A few thoughts or challenges from a recent sermon at church:
At church, my pastor is preaching through the book of Luke. A few Sundays ago, we were talking about Luke 10:38-42 which is the Mary & Martha passage where Martha complains that Mary isn't helping at all. Jesus tells Martha that Mary has chosen what is better, and that she is worried about many things but only one is needed.
Anyhow, two things that Casey (my pastor) focused one where that we have a problem (making a good thing an ultimate thing) and that there is a solution (we need to focus on the one necessary thing).
Ultimate thing? Does that ring any bells of familiarity with any of you who frequent my little blog often? I did several posts on this very subject this summer! Apparently God really thinks I need to learn something! Ha!
Anyhow, it made me think of a saying one of my friends used to have at the bottom of here emails (maybe I had it, I cant remember). It said something like 'let me be so focused on Jesus that if the whole world were to crumble around me I wouldn't even notice', this is a very rough paraphrase.
Have you ever noticed how true this is? Setting our gaze on Jesus changes our perspective so drastically. Maybe this is why there are so many verses in the bible telling us to 'set our minds on things above'.
The point of the Mary and Martha story is that Mary was setting her mind on Christ, and Martha was setting her mind on the earthly circumstances around her. She was not serving and getting the home ready joyfully. She was not filling her mind with kindness and gentleness, instead she was running how much she was doing through her head. She was focusing on what everyone was doing, how much work they were contributing. She had an earthly focus.
How often I am Martha! I let the earthly thoughts of how right I am, or how much I am doing, or how wrong such and such is run wild through my head. And then I wonder why I do feel at peace. I don't feel full of the Spirit. This is because I am not following God's Word, which tells me to "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you." (Philippians 4:8&9) "Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things." (Colossians 3:1-2)
So today, when you feel the marathon of earthly thoughts beginning to take stride, visit the Word instead. Let God change your perspective, and your heart.
