Mary, Martha and Abiding

So this concept of Mary and Martha has really been on my mind this past week or 2. A lot of times in the ministry there is almost an expectation that you need to be constantly busy, that running around like crazy is a sign that you are doing what you are supposed to be doing....and other times we ourselves seem to put that onto us. Some of us are of that personality type, where we see a need and so we assume it is "our job" to fix it. Like Martha, she saw that she had a group of people coming over, and a very important guest, Jesus Himself, and so she was running around being busy, preparing things, which is all good if that is what the Lord has for you to be doing at that moment. But I wonder how often we see a need and want to "fix it" out of our own strength. We don't seek the Lord's will in the matter at all.

Mary was the one who choose the better thing, to sit at the feet of Jesus. To abide in Him and in His presence. How often we choose work and being busy "for the Lord" over actually just being "WITH the Lord". Obviously there is work to be done, the harvest is plentiful and the workers are few, the Lord wants to use us, but He doesn't NEED to use us. He wants US. He wants us to know Him and abide in Him, and that is more important to Him than the work.

As we grow in Him and as we abide in Him the work we end up doing for the Lord will come out of our time with Him, it will overflow with His Spirit. Because after all, anything we do "for the Lord" should be done FOR HIS GLORY, not for our own glory, and the more time we spend in His presence the more of Him we will want to share as we go out, and the less of us. Everything we do in His name, should be about Him, not how good we are, or how busy we are, or how many people say we are "good". We should always be pointing the way to Him, not to ourselves and not to the work. It matters very little if we feed the world if we don't tell them who Jesus is. To be blunt, what difference will a full stomach make in Hell?

It can be a dangerous position when that balance gets upset and we are "serving the Lord" to seek our own glory. But no matter where He places us, whether it is at school, sitting in an office 9-5 or out on the missions field, if we are constantly abiding in Him, and taking that time to sit at His feet, we will be able to truly shine for Him and to give Him the glory.

Anyway, below is a little clip from My Utmost For His Highest from my devo time this morning...it's what got me thinking again about the Mary and Martha thing.

Be blessed!

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" It does not matter what my circumstances are. I can be as much assured of abiding in Jesus in any one of them as I am in any prayer meeting. It is unnecessary to change and arrange my circumstances myself. Our Lord’s inner abiding was pure and unblemished. He was at home with God wherever His body was. He never chose His own circumstances, but was meek, submitting to His Father’s plans and directions for Him. Just think of how amazingly relaxed our Lord’s life was! But we tend to keep God at a fever pitch in our lives. We have none of the serenity of the life which is "hidden with Christ in God" ( Colossians 3:3 ).

Think of the things that take you out of the position of abiding in Christ. You say, "Yes, Lord, just a minute— I still have this to do. Yes, I will abide as soon as this is finished, or as soon as this week is over. It will be all right, Lord. I will abide then." Get moving— begin to abide now. In the initial stages it will be a continual effort to abide, but as you continue, it will become so much a part of your life that you will abide in Him without any conscious effort. Determine to abide in Jesus wherever you are placed."

-Oswald Chambers