Mary and Martha

I know I've written on Mary and Martha before, but not in this context. If I had a choice, I would want to be Mary. But I think there could be too much of Martha in me. Not to disparage Martha - she had many admirable qualities and if Martha was like Mary... Still, I'd like to be seen by the Lord as He saw Mary:

   " But Martha was very busy and distracted with all of her serving responsibilities; and she approached Him and said, “Lord, is it of no concern to You that my sister has left me to do the serving alone? Tell her to help me and do her part.” But the Lord replied to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered and anxious about so many things; but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part [that which is to her advantage], which will not be taken away from her.” [Luke 10: 40-42]

The Lord's point was not to criticize Martha but to show her a better way:

   "Martha welcomed Him into her home. She had a sister named Mary, who seated herself at the Lord’s feet and was continually listening to His teaching."

[v. 38b-39]

Is this true for us as well? Do we focus on the 'things' that need to be accomplished in the day and miss the most important part - listening to and spending time with the Lord!? Do we use the tasks in the day as an excuse for why we don't spend more time with the Lord? (Shake your head yes.) Do we allow those tasks to distract us from what is truly important?

I remember a phrase that use to be stated... often. "He/She's too heavenly minded to be of any earthly good." That was stated in a tone of voice that was critical or sneering or other such negative. Is that phrase even possible? Do you know anyone who is that way? But rather than criticizing, is there just a spot of envy too? Personally, I think we all need to take stock of how we spend our time. The Lord never said Not to do those things, but I think we shouldn't emphasize the tasks over time spent with the Lord. 

Criticism can be positive, can be correcting as long as the person isn't diminished in the process. Criticism too often is harsh, hurting, and possibly incorrect - which is why it has such a bad rep. And sometimes correction is viewed through the eyes of criticism (or spoken that way) which is counterproductive too. If we are going to provide correction we need to keep in mind:

   "“Don’t pick on people, jump on their failures, criticize their faults—unless, of course, you want the same treatment. That critical spirit has a way of boomeranging. It’s easy to see a smudge on your neighbor’s face and be oblivious to the ugly sneer on your own. Do you have the nerve to say, ‘Let me wash your face for you,’ when your own face is distorted by contempt? It’s this whole traveling road-show mentality all over again, playing a holier-than-thou part instead of just living your part. Wipe that ugly sneer off your own face, and you might be fit to offer a washcloth to your neighbor." [Matthew 7:1-5, MSG]

And this is NOT saying that when you see error you don't/shouldn't confront the error. What we need to remember is that our actions and words is based in our motives. Also we need to also remember that silence typically is interpreted as approval. 'Speak the truth in love.' (Ephesians 4:15) Matthew and Paul are telling us to confront our own motives before we act.

Bottom line is that we all exhibit traits of both Martha and Mary. Both are needed but the qualities of Martha can interfere with the qualities of Mary. Never neglect the Mary qualities because they are foundational. But as James points out [James 2:17-26] - works are important too. Works demonstrate and provide the evidence of the affect of Mary qualities.