Martha's Example in Stay at Home Days

Martha’s Example in Stay at Home Days

Martha welcomed Jesus and invited him to her home. (Luke 10:38-42) 

It was her home. Scripture tells us that Martha had siblings, but there is no mention of a spouse or children. There is no genealogy given. There is a hint in another account that Martha may have worked as a cook, but that is not used as a primary identifier. Luke makes it clear. Martha opened her home to this itinerant teacher who, unlike the foxes and the birds, had “no place to lay his head.”

When Jesus entered her home, he began to teach. He wasn’t there just to mingle, to be entertained, to rest, or to eat. He was there to teach, and Mary took advantage of the teaching. She sat down, at his feet and listened. She didn’t hide out at the back of the room, she didn’t just sort of half listen as she cooked the lentils, no, she got as close as possible, smack dab in the middle of the very front row and made herself a student of the teacher.

Martha was not happy. She knew Mary was supposed to be a proper woman, helping to prepare the meal, not mingling with the men, and absolutely not taking the best place.  So, she acted just like any other big sister, she called Mary out, and she did it in front of the guest of honor. She was trying to shame Mary away from Christ.

It did not work. Mary stayed right where she wanted to be. She had made her choice, and Christ validated it. Please note, he did not chide Martha for her choice of service, but he did call Mary’s choice the better one.

Martha and Mary called for Christ’s assistance in time of trouble and welcomed his company in time of grief. (John 11:1 – 43) 

You know the story. Lazarus falls seriously ill. The sisters send word to Jesus, asking for him to come. Jesus receives their plea and seems to ignore it until it is too late to intervene and prevent their brother’s death. When he does show up, Martha chides him for his delay. Jesus offers what sounds like a cliché comfort and ties it to a conversation about Martha’s faith. Martha, through her tears, acknowledges that she believes in life after death, but she is still crying, still sad. Jesus gets more explicit and declares himself to be The Christ and asks if she believes this. Her response is a creed, “I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world.” Then she gets her sister and brings her to Jesus so that he may also comfort her. Together they see their brother raised again. Together they hear the instructions to “take off the grave clothes and let him go.”

There is another feast at which Martha chose to serve Jesus with her labors. You will find that account in John 12:1-8. 

Martha’s gift is accepted without negative comment, but Mary’s gift of praise, anointing Jesus’ feet with nard, is criticized. Again, Christ came her to defense. 

What can we learn, which examples can we follow?

1. Be like Martha, open your home to Christ and expect him to show up. This is not another version of the ‘I can worship anywhere’ excuse for not attending corporate worship. Rather, it is establishing the practice of keeping Christ in the most intimate parts of your life, the place where you live, into the thoughts you hold privately, and making him a part of the company you keep.
2. Welcome Christ when he comes, and spend time with him. When you have invited him, do not seat him comfortably in the best room and then leave him alone while you go off to take care of other tasks. To be blunt, if you invite Christ home by accepting a devotional booklet, hymn book, or Bible, do not just place that word of God on the coffee table or book shelf and leave it there. Open it, read, learn, and inwardly digest it. Live it. If, today, during this time of social distancing, you invite Christ in by clicking onto live streaming or other electronic means, do not just shift to another screen and check your email or play a game, stay at Jesus’ feet and listen, learn, visit with him, be with him. 
3. If you have chosen to honor him with service, do so gladly, without resentment, and extend that service beyond just the time spent welcoming or visiting with him. 
4. Fear or grief are reasons to want Christ in your home and in your life. The sisters invite Christ and chide him for what they see as a less than adequate response to their request. Today we pray fervently for a miracle resolution of the pandemic. It seems like God is taking his own sweet time about answering our prayer. Still, when he did come, they shared their very raw grief and pain. They took him to the grave. They wept with him and he wept with them. It wasn’t a magic “Jesus is here and loves you and now everything is suddenly wonderful” sort of thing. They had to open the grave. They had to smell the stench of necrotic tissue. They were not allowed to withdraw from the pain. Martha had work to do. She had to bring her sister to Jesus. Our work also involves sharing Jesus with others who share our grief and or fear. 
5. If, today, during this time of social distancing, you have invited Christ in, if you are moved to honor Christ with service, praise, or a gift of a tithe, do so with joy and love. Do not worry if your voice is weak or your gift is small. (Remember the story of The Widow’s Mite – Mark 12:38-44.) Christ accepts your gift. No loving parent refuses the hugs of a young child or the child’s handmade card. Because the parent loves the child, the gift is valued. Because God loves you, your gift, your repentance, your love is accepted.                                   

Thanks to Journeys of Faith Contributing Writer-

Natalie Hartwig for this reflection.

The Good Shepherd

Sheep on the Hillside- Machaerus, Jordan

Carried on God’s Shoulders

On Good Shepherd Sunday we hear the pictures of Christ, the Good Shepherd, seeking the lost lambs and carrying them back to the flock on his shoulders. We recall the words of Christ, identifying himself as the Good Shepherd (John 10:14) and link it automatically to Psalm 23. We see ourselves, lost and foolish lambs that we are, rescued again and again by the Good Shepherd, and carried, secure in his arms or draped around his neck. We know we do not have to walk alone or find our own way in time of trial. Christ finds us and carries us through life.

To this picture of comfort I would add another picture of God carrying His children on His shoulders. Look to Deuteronomy 33:12. This blessing of the tribe of Benjamin, youngest and most beloved of the sons of Jacob, says Benjamin will rest between the shoulders of God.

While many scholars attribute this to a description of the mountainous terrain assigned to the tribe of Benjamin, I rather like to think of a child, carried happy and secure, on the shoulders of his father. 

We have artistic renderings of Christ, the Good Shepherd, but have no renderings of the first person of the Trinity, the Creator carrying his children. Such a lack is good and proper. The people of the Old Testament were specifically forbidden to create idols or representations of God for the purpose of worship. 

Poets have painted verbal pictures of God forming man of the dust of the earth. The Scriptures tell us that God shut the door of the Ark to secure the safety of those inside. And then there is this, the picture of God carrying the youngest of the tribes on His shoulders. 

Here is how my heart paints that picture. It is part of the journey out of Egypt into the promised-land. God called his beloved child out of Egypt (Hosea 11:1) and saved Israel from the wrath of Egypt by drowning the army of the Pharaoh in the sea. Then God carried the joyful child on his shoulders in celebration. God carries us not only in times of trial, but also in times of great joy. This is how I see loved ones who died in faith. This is how I know it will be when I enter into glory. I will be sitting on God’s shoulders, singing, laughing, bouncing, happy, and celebrating the victory God has worked.

Thanks to Natalie Hartwig-

Contributing Writer for 

Journeys of Faith for this devotion.

Family Worship Together

There are so many different things right now.

More than we can count in our new normal -

 not so normal days.

That became weeks.

 And it is certainly feeling like-

 into months.

 One of the things that we have been 

enjoying is our 

Family Worship Time together.

There are 8 littles- 

6 and under-

 and most on the lower end of that spectrum.

They don't last long on a normal 

Facbook or Zoom worship experience.

So at the very beginning of all

 of this we started writing our own

 family worship service
and gather on ZOOM.

We start by making the sign of the cross, 

and we light a candle.

We follow the Lectionary reading for the Gospel.

Papa rewrites the reading for different "parts"

 for Pappa and Gigi to read.

 We began with sock puppets-

but quickly moved to pictures on paint sticks.

Papa plays songs on guitar that are easy

 for our young crowd to learn.

There is often a question 

for the older guys in the troop. 

The BIG GUYS help to lead with the Lord's Prayer.

We started to do the family blessing the way

 we saw families do in a 

Messianic Jewish Worship service in Israel. 

The dad (we do both parents) 

stretches out a prayer shawl

(or blanket) to extend the blessing over his family.

The service is short and to the point.

Each week begins with a short review

 of what we learned last week.

Some things have been very good

 in this COVID19 season.

This is one of them.

Easter Vigil

WERE YOU THERE?

Readings and Song for a personal Easter Vigil

Luke 23:20-21 

Wanting to release Jesus, Pilate appealed to them again, but they kept shouting, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” 

Luke 23:24-27: 

So, Pilate decided to grant their demand. He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, the one they asked for, and surrendered Jesus to their will. As they led him away, they seized Simon from Cyrene, who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus. A large number of people followed him, including women who mourned and wailed for him.”

Were you there when they crucified my Lord?

Were you there when they crucified my Lord?

Oh, Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble,

Were you there when they crucified my Lord?

LSB 456 vs 1; CW 119 vs 1; ELW 353 VS 1

Mark 15:22-25 

They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means The Place of The Skull). Then they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. And they crucified him. Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get. It was the third hour when they crucified him.

Mark 15:40, 41: 

Some women were watching from a distance. Among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome. In Galilee these women had followed him and cared for his needs. Many other women who had come up with him to Jerusalem were also there.

Were you there when they nailed Him to the tree?

Were you there when they nailed Him to the tree?

Oh, Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble,

Were you there when they nailed Him to the tree?

LSB 456 vs 2; CW 119 vs 2; ELW 353 VS 2

Matthew 27:50

And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit.

Matthew 27:59-61:

Joseph [of Arimathea] took the body, wrapped it in a clean linen cloth, and placed it in his own new tomb that he had cut out of the rock. He rolled a big stone in front of the entrance to the tomb and went away. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were sitting there opposite the tomb.

Were you there when they laid Him in the tomb?

Were you there when they laid Him in the tomb?

Oh, Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble,

Were you there when they laid Him in the tomb?

LSB 456 vs 3; CW 119 vs 3; ELW 353 VS 3

Sit in silence for 3 minutes.

Mark 16:1-7:

When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go to anoint Jesus’ body. Very early on the first day of the week, just after sunrise, they were on their way to the tomb, and they asked each other, “Who will roll the stone away from the entrance of the tomb?”

But when they looked up, they saw that the stone, which was very large, had been rolled away. As they entered the tomb, they saw a young man dressed in a white robe sitting on the right side, and they were alarmed.

“Don’t be alarmed,” he said, “You are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who was crucified. He has risen! He is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, and tell his disciples and Peter, “He is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will find him, just as he told you.”

Were you there when God raised Him from the dead?

Were you there when God raised Him from the dead?

Oh, Sometimes it causes me to tremble, tremble, tremble,

Were you there when God raised Him from the dead?

LSB 456 vs 4; CW 119 vs 4; ELW 353 VS 4

Luke 24:9,10

When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others, it was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who said this to the apostles.

John 20:11-18:

But Mary stood outside the tomb crying. As she wept, she bent over to look into the tomb and saw two angels in white, seated where Jesus’ body had been, one at the head and the other at the foot.

They asked her, “Woman, why are you crying?”

“They have taken my Lord away,” she said, “and I don’t know where they have put him.” At this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing there, but she did not realize that it was Jesus.

“Woman,” he said, “why are you crying? Who is it you are looking for?”

Thinking he was the gardener, she said, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have put him, and I will get him.”

Jesus said to her, “Mary.”

She turned toward him and cried out in Aramaic, “Rabboni!” [which means Teacher].

Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet returned to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am returning to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”

Mary Magdalene went to the disciples with the news: “I have seen the Lord!” and she told them that he had said these things to her.

For all the faithful women Who served in days of old,

To You shall thanks be given; To all their story told.

They served with strength and gladness

In tasks Your wisdom gave,

To You their lives bore witness, Proclaimed Your pow’r to save.

We sing Your praise for Mary, Who came at Easter dawn

To look for Jesus’ body And found her Lord was gone.

But, as with joy she saw Him

In resurrection light,

May we by faith behold Him, The Day who ends our night!

O God, for saints and servants, Those named and those unknown

In whom through all the ages Your light of glory shone,

We offer glad thanksgiving

And fervent prayer we raise

That, faithful in Your service, Our lives may sing Your praise.

All praise to God the Father! All praise to Christ the Son!

All praise the Holy Spirit, Who binds the Church in one!

With saints who went before us,

With saints who witness still,

We sing glad Alleluias And strive to do Your will.

(LSB 855, vs 1, 13, 3, 4; ELW 419, vs 1, 9, 3, 4)

Thank you to Natalie Hartwig for this Easter devotion.