Truthful Tuesday: Serving Perspective

Our Gospel lesson on Sunday was about Mary and Martha (Luke 10:38-42).  I have read and heard and even studied this lesson many times.  It is a familiar story to me yet God spoke sweetly to me this week to open my heart and eyes to yet another truth of His!  Further proof of how His word is living and active!  It is alive and It is real and It is also refreshingly perfect!  So, here was the lesson that was revealed to me and to no surprise the timing is impeccable!  The message was that both Martha and Mary are doing the right things.  Most of us are the busy, frustrated and short on time Martha's...and yet we all want to be the sit at the feet of Jesus Mary's.  There is nothing wrong with what Martha was doing...what was wrong was her attitude. Martha invited Jesus into her home to feed Him, to provide a time and place to gather and allow Him to teach...but she got upset when Mary wasn't doing what she wanted/needed Mary to be doing.  Here is how the Holy Spirit translated it for me:  Focus on God instead of whatever the task is at hand. So simple, right?  Whenever things are busy and hectic, that I should find quiet and pray and rely on God to provide whatever it will take for me to accomplish what I am working on.  That I should serve with a pure heart that is focused on Him and not me or the task.

Many of you know that I am a part of Community Bible Study (CBS) and in September will begin my 12th year.  I have been part of the leadership for the past few years and love this bible study so much and for so many reasons.  As a leader, I am assigned a core group of ladies to shepherd through the year.  I took a few years off from being a leader and am going to be back in a leader role this year.  I often get overwhelmed with the tasks that are associated with being a leader added to my daily responsibilities that I have as a mom, wife and employee and stress as the fact that I usually come up short handed in being the shepherd that I am called to be.  But as I listened to the story of Martha again on Sunday, I was reminded that if I will submit to the Lord and be intentionally prayerful for these ladies and ask God to help me with all of my responsibilities, that He will provide.  I want to serve them well; and with the help of Jesus I can do it.  I want to love the ladies with God's love. Be less focused on the task at hand and more focused on serving for His glory.  -small plug: if you are in Birmingham and seeking a way to dive into God's word, let me know and I'll get you information for this amazing biblestudy.  I promise you will not be disappointed!

So often I have thought of Mary as making the better choice over what Martha was doing (all the busy-ness) but I was reminded by our Preacher that what Martha was doing was also very important and necessary, it is just that she went about it with the wrong attitude...that is what got her in trouble!  I was thinking...how could Martha have handled her situation differently?  She could have ask God to provide and help her to accomplish everything that was needing to be done.  She could have been joyful in her serving and allowing God to work through her in all of her work.  That doesn't mean that it would have been less work; it is still hard work and a lot to get done.  But the question is do we allow God to be the driver or do we have put Him in the backseat just in case we reach our breaking point and need to call on Him.  That is the real difference!  Making the choice to serve to give God the glory.  Not for our own good or our own honor but for His!  He desires for us to serve but it is a matter of how I chose to serve, what is my attitude and where is my focus?  It want it to be for Him and on Him!
Amen!