August 2004
Mary and Martha

[Mary] sat at the Lord's feet and listened to what he was saying. But Martha was distracted by her many tasks. -Luke 10:39-40

Finding Balance

Two sisters, one family. Each expressed her devotion, either in action or in reflection. Martha was given to serving and achieving as a way of honoring Jesus, their guest; Mary was given to attentiveness and conversation. Only the mistake of becoming distracted was rebuked, for in the distraction Martha lost sight of the guest and could not use the moment for grace and growth.

When being and doing have found a balance within us there is the possibility of health and wholeness. Our being must be fed and nurtured if our doing is to be strong and wise. It is the message Martha needed to hear from Mary to be sure, but it was also a message that Mary needed to hear from Martha. Mary's listening and Martha's serving were complementary parts of the same whole; each needed the other. The power and energy of a melody is only half-strength without the imagination and images of the lyrics.

"Faith without works is dead," James wrote, and so also works without faith. Words without deeds are dead, as are agendas without actions, worship without education, leadership without discipleship. We are invited into a relationship of honoring our guest that requires our hearts as well as our hands. In the balance we will find completeness. For life is lived in this ebb and flow of rest and work. Grace and growth can happen amid the rhythm of reflection and action. Only do not be distracted from the one thing that is needful: the presence of the guest who brings grace and understanding to our living. We should never be so consumed by our tasks or so lost in our thoughts that we fail to live in relationship with the source of all life-Jesus.

Does your congregation blend the strengths of action and reflection?

Prayer: Bring us, O Lord, into such a relationship with you that our whole lives might honor and serve you. Bless our words and deeds that all may know the love we have found in you. Amen.