Mary Christmas!

     One thing we tend to talk about a lot during the Christmas season is how 'busy' we are. We can get so busy shopping, cooking, wrapping, attending parties, decorating, and cleaning, that the month just flies by. It can get even worse when we add church programs, rehearsals, and parties! We end up asking, "What happened to all the things that I wanted to do?" Dwayne and I have asked that question more times than we like. This year we have committed again not to let the holidays get away from us. Each year, my goal for Christmas is to spend some intimate time with God, worshipping Him for the gift of His Son and to remember the sacrifice Jesus paid for me by being willing to come to the earth as a helpless baby. However, year after year, the busyness sabotages my goal.
     In the Bible, there are two women who demonstrate this conflict in a story that plays out like a perfectly written drama. It is the story of sisters named Mary and Martha. They each loved Jesus. They were both great women. They each had the same goal; to show Jesus how much they loved him. However, they went about it in two completely different ways. Martha wanted to show her love by serving. She wanted everything to be perfect for Jesus. No sandwiches were good enough for this amazing man. He deserved a culinary spread fit for the honored guest He was. However, that takes effort and work. I can see her running around the kitchen trying to pull off this amazing dinner and all she needed was for someone to care like she did and to come help her. Why would her sister be so inconsiderate? Why is she in the other room instead of helping her? I can see it so clearly because I have had those fits before myself. My family can vouch for it. Mary was being so inconsiderate because she had another way of showing her love to Jesus. She wanted to spend time with him. She wanted to learn what He was teaching. She realized what a special blessing it was to be able to sit at His feet and soak Him in. When she focused on Him all the pulls of life just faded away. I have experienced this as well, but not nearly as many times as I wish I had because I am too busy being Martha. Martha tried to get Jesus on her side. She asked Him to tell Mary to stop being so lazy and to get up and help. Mary knew how much work it took and Martha wanted Jesus to scold her and tell her to get into the kitchen and help her. He must have heard that prayer millions of times since He created the first woman. However, Jesus didn't answer the way Martha had hoped. He basically told Martha that she is stressed out way too much. She is the one that is creating all the work. He told her that when it comes down to it, Mary is making the better choice. He would rather us spend time at His feet than running around trying to serve Him. Have you ever thought of it that way? Have you ever prayed like Martha? It would sound something like this, "Jesus, I am just trying to help You. I am serving You and want it to be the best it can be because You deserve nothing less. Can't You tell the others to volunteer and come help me. Do they think that this just happens by itself? They know it takes work. Why can't they see I need help? Convict them please and tell them to help me!" God's answer to this prayer hasn't changed since He answered Martha. He still says to stop stressing out about serving Him and to make the better choice, which is to spend time at His feet.  There are times to serve and there are times to listen quietly.  In this case, listening was more important.
     Who do you want to be like this Christmas season? Martha or Mary? Let me share with you a way to remember to make the better choice. Every time you hear 'Merry Christmas' translate that as 'Mary Christmas' and remember to get out of the kitchen this Christmas and sit at the feet of Jesus who was born in a manger to be our Lord and Savior.

As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, He came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what He said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to Him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!" "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.

Luke 10:38-42