Martha, Martha...
Your weekly reset, in 5 minutes or less
The reason these weekly resets will likely head out to your inbox at anytime of the week is for a few specific reasons:
Do moms actually have weekends? For me, it seems the Friday night is what Sunday nights used to be before children: evenings where I am anxiously gearing up for the onset of a couple days without solid routine structured with childcare or work schedules. In conclusion: what is the beginning of our week?
I am human. At least, that’s what they tell me and humans are mistake-makers.
Ideally, these weekly resets will provide a dose of encouragement but I’m pretty sure that is always needed.
“Stodgy.” “Uninspired.” “Bland.”
We’ve somehow just discovered the show The Great British Bake-off in our home and have been entertaining ourselves with these words any chance we get. Whether we are using them correctly is of no concern when it comes to our new favorite adjectives.
It’s got me thinking about the realities of our life though, which feels pretty mundane. And exhausting. Repetitive. Stodgy.
Monday through Friday we are leaving the house at 7:30 am, dropping off Eliza at daycare, and opening the shop by 8 am. We “close” at 5pm, according to the website, but I’m often home waiting for Joey to finish working until 6:30 or 7pm and desperately trying to make a dinner I likely won’t be able to eat hot. Like everyone else these days we are trying to keep our budgets tight and cram as much work into a day as possible.
Often life feels mundane and as if we are stuck on a hamster wheel. I’ve found myself physically reacting to the repetitive tasks like bedtime with a toddler and wanting to cry. I wrote part of this reset in the rocking chair while nursing my daughter to sleep and wondering:
How long will I be the only one who can get her to bed?
I feel guilty for wanting our breastfeeding journey to be over because it has made us so close in ways no one else could be close.
There is a daily yoke we are carrying simply because most days are exactly the same. Dishes must be done. Children must be fed. Hair must be washed. Money must be made. Are we ok with that?
On the flip side of this perspective, I find myself thinking of Sunday’s sermon.
I’m pretty sure most women have heard of Martha and Mary, two sisters that meet Jesus in the New Testament. To simplify, Martha is busy serving others and asks Jesus to back her up that Mary should…well, get off her butt and help serve too. (If you have a sibling, you might know this sentiment too well!)
Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”
Luke 10:38-42
Ok, pause. It’s common to talk about the fact that sometimes we are Martha and sometimes we are Mary. But you know what my pastor pointed out this week?
Martha invited Jesus into her home.
Women didn’t do that! It was not acceptable for women to ask men, let alone Teachers, to come into their homes.
Secondly, think on this: Martha invites Jesus in and then asks him to justify her works as the biggest priority.
Oof. How often do we do this? How often do we find ourselves willing to be open to what God wants from us, to serve others, but we become exhausted by how we carry it out?
Mary and Martha are both inheriting the kingdom of God, as we have too. But what is inheritance if not a gift we cannot control? We can do nothing but gain it. That is what Jesus is trying to remind Martha. That is what he is trying to remind mothers. You. Me.
In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory.
Ephesians 1:11-12
God has created us in His image to carry out His good works. But we often forget that crucial part that changes everything: It’s Jesus’s good work that matters most. His resurrection is the ultimate good work.
Do we continue to serve others? Yes.
Do we continue to welcome God in with open hearts? Yes!
Should we live each day with the burdening weight that our works are the end all - be all for everyone’s salvation? No.
Jesus has done his work for us all. For you. We are called to serve but, most importantly, we must accept that Jesus serving us has the biggest impact of all.
If you find yourself in a bit of burnout and exhaustion from the mundane routines of your day as you read this, I pray you remember the Work is done. The little things we’re left with are sanctifying us in ways we will learn of later.