Remember the story in the Bible…Jesus and the disciples are going to visit the home of Martha, Mary and Lazarus.  Martha gets super busy cooking and cleaning, and Mary, well- she just kind of sits around hanging on Jesus’ every word.  Who are you in the story?

There are a lot of Martha’s in the world.  It is part of our Protestant heritage.  You all know the old Protestant work ethic…”Idle hands are the devil’s work.”   In the early days, there were no retirements and no vacations—you couldn’t afford to stop working, except on the Sabbath.  So, Martha is the worker.  Martha was also serious about keeping the law.  By being the perfect hostess—she was being religious.

My grandparents were Martha’s. They worked hard for the church for many years and it was not easy for them to grasp the changing face of the church.  I remember one time my grandparents were watching my two sisters and me for the weekend, and I didn’t have a tie for church.  My grandparents refused to take me to church without the tie.  They thought it would be sacrilegious. They were Martha’s.  They believed in the customs and rites of the church and held them in high esteem. When one went to church, one dressed properly and acted reverently.  That is Martha from our story.  Martha is proper and reverent for the established way.

Thank God for the Martha’s.  They are the one’s who built the churches.  They are the one’s who always worked the fairs and the suppers.  The Martha’s of the church are the workers.  The only complaint against the Martha’s is this—sometimes the Martha’s are so busy, that they miss the Word.  Many times they are so active and social, that they don’t take time for their own spiritual renewal, and then they burn out on church work.  What good is a burned-out Martha?  Not much good.  The church loves Martha’s, when they are truly being a Martha, and then we lament when they cry, “I’ve had enough.  Can I get a little help here?!”

Mary on the other hand, is more contemplative.  She’s not lazy, she’s interested.  Mary’s may come to the Bible Study.  Mary’s are the ones who are more willing to go with the flow. Mary is not afraid of change—she is hungering and thirsting for something.  Mary in our story was not afraid to go against the rules of the church in order to hear the Word.  Is Mary a rebel?  Definitely!  Mary will put aside the socially acceptable, historically acceptable norms for an afternoon and entertain the possibility of the Kingdom of God.

There are a lot of Mary’s out there.  Mary’s come to the church often.  Mary’s sit in the pews and are genuinely interested in what is happening in the worship service, but they won’t be running around like all the Martha’s.  Mary is concerned about the Kingdom of God on an intellectual and personal level.  Mary wants to figure it out.  Mary is quite attentive to the Word of God.  Mary may and I mean a strong MAY—be interested in building herself up, rather than the whole church.  She may be interested in serving herself before the Kingdom of God.

Mary did not build the church, in the way that Martha did.  Martha would be the one out there laying the bricks, while Mary was praying for the right conditions to make the bricks.  Martha is busy doing for others, while Mary is working on her own spiritual condition, realizing that, perhaps, if she has her own spiritual life in order, then she can be a greater help to the Kingdom of God.

When we look around the pews, we see Mary’s and Martha’s.  Who are you?  You may be a little of both.  I bet a lot of you may have been Martha’s at one time, and now you consider yourself to be a Mary.  You worked so hard for so many years and now you feel it is the time for the “younger Martha’s”  to have their turn.  The problem becomes the younger Martha’s don’t do it the right way, but then they do it for 20 years, and we wait and pray for a new generation of Martha’s to step up—everyone burns out in the process!   As a church, made of people who make up the body of Christ, we need to stop the vicious cycle of burning out Martha’s!

Everyone needs to be a lot like Mary.  Jesus was absolutely right.  Mary chose the better part.  Mary realized what she had and really appreciated it.  Martha was so busy doing the right things, being the perfect hostess that she didn’t stop and reflect on what was right there in front of her the whole time.  Truthfully, we need to have the best attributes of both.  If you are all one, and none of the other—then you will have an impossible time trying to understand the other.

Martha didn’t really understand Mary.  Mary didn’t fully understand Martha. That is how it is sometimes in the church. The Martha’s want to tell the Mary’s…“Get up and help out—start signing up for stuff.” The Mary’s want to tell the Martha’s…“Hey, why don’t you stop and smell the roses?”

We need each other.  We need busy Martha’s and at other times we really need Mary’s sitting, listening, praying and anointing the faithful.

We should appreciate the contributions that all can make.  We need to recognize all the good that the whole people of God can make towards making the Words of Jesus a reality in our lives, and make God’s Kingdom come…on earth as it is in heaven.  You can be a Martha or a Mary, but for the love of God, don’t be a Lazarus.