As they continued their travel, Jesus entered a village. A woman by the name of Martha welcomed him and made him feel quite at home. She had a sister, Mary, who sat before the Master, hanging on every word he said. But Martha was pulled away by all she had to do in the kitchen. Later, she stepped in, interrupting them. "Master, don't you care that my sister has abandoned the kitchen to me? Tell her to lend me a hand."
The Master said, "Martha, dear Martha, you're fussing far too much and getting yourself worked up over nothing. One thing only is essential, and Mary has chosen it—it's the main course, and won't be taken from her."
Luke 10:38-42 The Message
I know the point of the story is…sigh, "Poor Martha...she just doesn't get it." But I always thought Martha got a bad rap. Of course she was busy working, they had company AND it was Jesus! Someone had to do the work. Poor Martha indeed!
I love entertaining. I love everything about it. Nothing gives me greater pleasure than pouring over recipes searching for just the right food to serve; deciding on who to invite, making sure I have a good blend of people; preparing the food is almost a Zen experience for me, and then watching the faces of my guest as they enjoy each other and my food is one of the greatest highs in the world!
I like to imagine Martha was that type of hostess. And here was Jesus sitting in her living room, and she wanted to make it a special meal. And there sat Mary at his feet just doing nothing! Sure, listening is all well and good, but how are you going to eat? Who's going to make the meal if everyone is just listening?? I imagine Martha sticking her head out of the kitchen door with a smile pasted on her face and hissing through her teeth ‘Mary, get in here NOW!” And then out of desperation, she complains to Jesus and he praises her??!!! It’s kind of like being on a group project for work where the slacker gets all the rewards for doing none of the hard work….just not fair! Life is about doing, performing, results; not sitting!
It started out as a wonderful vacation; 7 seven days as the guests of some of our oldest friends in their gorgeous vacation home on the Big Island of Hawaii. We went on a helicopter ride over an active volcano watching the lava flow down to the Pacific Ocean. We were 3 feet away from a pod of whales when they breeched the surface. We stood on black sand beaches then dove beneath the surface delighting in the most glorious rainbow of tropical fish swimming inches from our face. It truly was a perfect vacation….until the last night.
At 3:30 am I was woken by what I thought was my husband's snoring. After poking, prodding, yelling at him to roll over, it became apparent there was much more going on. He was having a heart attack. I was able to do CPR while our friends called 911. The ambulance arrived, and we were taken to the hospital where they worked frantically to stabilize him. The doctors told me they decided 'he was worth saving' and were going to airlift us to Honolulu, but if he regained consciousness at all, he would more than likely will be impaired.
I couldn’t control this party. I didn’t plan it. I didn’t know who the guests were or how long it was going to last. There wasn't anything I could 'do' to make this better, to fix this, to make my guests happy. I was all alone.
And in the midst of all the chaos, I had my “Mary moment” I finally got it.
I finally realized that the Mary/Martha story wasn't about putting on the best party,
taking time to be with your guests, or even taking time to spend with the Lord in study or prayer, but taking the time to completely STOP what you are doing, to sit at his feet, and to totally, completely depend on him.
When I did, amazing things happen. My husband woke up and knew who I was! He wasn’t impaired! I had no chance to interview doctors to find out who was the best qualified, but God put us in the Cardiac Center for the Pacific Rim with a cardiac surgeon trained by Michael DeBakey! As our 7 day vacation turned into 35 days God put an angel in my path every single day to lift me up when I was down and show me perspective when I needed it. There were so many tiny miracles every day. He wrapped me in his love and protective embrace. He made sure my children were taken care of and gave them a strength and maturity beyond their years. When we finally arrived home only to have another cardiac event, He gave me strength I never knew I had. He showed me first hand what happens when you STOP, sit, listen and depend on Him only.
