A Mary in a Martha World

   This experience came to me a couple years ago, and it has been on my mind again as of late, so I thought I would share it with you. Perhaps you will understand being a burden-bearer, too. 

    "Be a Mary in a Martha world."
    The thought came to me out of the blue that I needed to stop being such a Martha. I scoffed at the idea. Me? a Martha? Anyone that knows me recognizes that the thought is absurd. To put it delicately, no one has ever mentioned housekeeping as one of my talents. I'm certainly not one to abandon good conversation in favor of kitchen duties. I'm not one of those wonderful people that rush about the community distributing food and good cheer. 
    But then, stealing in softly as these things are wont to do, came a second thought. "What about your concerns and worries for those around you? Don't you take those upon yourself?"
    It was true. Hadn't I been valiantly struggling to carry with me the many concerns I felt for those I saw struggling about me? Hadn't I struggled under the weight of burdens for my friends who had lost the way? Didn't I worry incessantly about the choices my acquaintances seemed to be making? Yes, yes, and yes. 

    How much better if I could only have taken them to the feet of Jesus! Instead of letting those things overwhelm me, I needed to learn that there was a blessing in letting them go, resting securely in my trust in Jesus, and listening to His heartbeat.

    I've concluded there are many ways of being a Martha. Jesus stands by speaking to us in tender tones, begging us to lay aside our doubts and fears, the burdens He never meant for our shoulders to bear. He longs for us to come close to Him where we can rest our sorrows at His feet and feel the presence of His peace. 

    In the world around us we see teeming millions of Marthas, struggling beneath the weight of many burdens. The cares and trials that come, the heartaches that many believe will never ease, are also familiar to the child of God. Yet we have a solace in taking our cares to Jesus and leaving them there. Come sit with me at His feet. Let us each strive to choose the better part and learn to be a Mary in a Martha world.