"Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, " you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."
Snuggled in the book of Luke is a tidy little story about two sisters. They both loved Jesus but they expressed it in different ways. Martha opened her home to him and set about getting the household together and Mary sat at his feet silently digesting his stories and gestures. Losing sight of the fact that she was the one that had generously volunteered to open her home to the Lord; Martha seethed with jealousy of her sister and the time she got to spend enraptured with the guest of honor. She became overwhelmed to the point of distraction. She was hearing less and less of what Jesus was saying and her mind began accusing Mary. I can almost see the dagger-looks she threw at her sister.
Jesus gently opens her eyes to her own need. I'll bet Martha did a priority check after being told that her sister made the right choice. I like to imagine what happened at the end of this visit. The Bible doesn't say how the relationship of the sisters changed, but I like to imagine that Martha cleared a spot on the floor next to Mary and plopped down to drink in the animated stories of fiery mountains and good Samaritans. I also like to imagine that they teamed up to get the house in order and chattered about Jesus and the disciples as only sisters can. I like to imagine that joy permeated their household as they helped each other to serve the Lord!
"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving." ~Paul
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