Mary and Martha

Let Me bless you with My grace and Peace.  Open your heart and mind to receive all that I have for you.  Do not be ashamed of your emptiness.  Instead, view it as the optimal condition for being filled with My Peace -- Jesus Calling, Jan. 14

 

For the past three days, the "Mary" in me has had to be "Martha," without prayer/quiet time, without reflection, without stillness.  From Friday night to Sunday morning, we had 56 teenagers on retreat in a remote area of Mississippi -- and it was a great experience for the teens, it seemed, though exhausting for the team leaders. 

 

Today, Monday, I understand even more why Jesus called the disciples to "come apart and rest" after times of intense ministry.  Today, I am empty; last night, I noticed fear and anxiety beginning to creep into my spirit -- because I had not been taking time to pray for several days.  It is easy to say, "Service is prayer," and I do believe that -- but without "face to face" time with Jesus Himself, our service tends to be ours alone:  our energy, our enthusiasm, our thoughts -- all of which are exhausting.

 

I see why Mary said, "Do whatever He tells you" to the servants at Cana.  If we are not listening to what He is telling us to do, we are running on our own steam, and we very soon run out of steam.  Psalm 1 tells us: Blessed is the man [whose] delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law, he meditates day and night.  He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in due season and whose leaf does not wither.  Whatever he does prospers.

 

And Psalm 127 puts it this way:

 

If the Lord does not build the house,

in vain do its builders labor;

If the Lord does not guard the city,

in vain does the guard keep watch.

 

In vain is your earlier rising,

your going later to rest,

you who toil for the bread you eat,

while he pours gifts on his beloved while they slumber.

 

We can exhaust ourselves "doing good" for others, but unless it is the Lord working in us to bless them through us, we accomplish little or nothing.  I do know that God Himself was at the retreat and working through all of us to bless these children, and I do know that it was time for all of us to be "Marthas," feeding the kids, washing the dishes, cleaning the floors, and keeping watch over the schedule and activities -- much like mothers of young children.  This is what we were there for; this was our mission for the weekend. 

 

But I also know that after such a "Martha" schedule, "Mary" must for awhile sit at the feet of Jesus and just listen to renew her spirit.  So I want to spend the day filling up my emptiness, and once again knowing the peace that only Jesus can give me.