Are you Mary or Martha

In the gospels, there is an intriguing story. One day, Jesus goes to two of his followers place, mary and martha. They greet him and let him in. Martha goes about the house, cleaning, getting ready Jesus' favourite cookies, and other such things to be a hospitable house. She gets stressed trying to make the place spick and span for Jesus. While Mary goes and sits at Jesus's feet and listens. Martha gets upset at the fact that Mary isn't helping out, and goes to Jesus explains her distress that Mary helping. Jesus told Martha she was in fact anxious and making herself anxious on being preoccoppied with what did not matter.

This story came into my mind at prayers this week. My prayer was that we would be like mary and take the time to stop, listen to God, his heart for the world and not be affraid to do so.

I know I am often keen to do more, not to take the time to listen, to take in Gods heart.

We often think if we do more, we will be more rightious, if we serve in more ways, we will gain rightiousness. But if we do this to save face, we will run ourselves raggard, and become anxious pained people, for no reason, for the fact we need to save face. Rather than spending time with Jesus, listening to his heart

Jesus' call is that if we are to be the people we are called to be people who live out passionate lives, lives that are full of grace, full of action. But we need to come need to remember to to take time to be, to listen to God and reflect, or we will become anxious people.

A prayer for the day

Lord I pray that I would be wise, I want to be an ambassador of you in all my life, let me come and listen to you, abba. Lord let me be countercultural and rest when I need rest. Lord let me be countercultural and take steps out to defend to poor and lonely. Lord let me be couragious in the way I live.