"Now it came to pass, as they went, that he entered into a certain village: and a certain woman named Martha received him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, which also sat at Jesus' feet, and heard his word. But Martha was cumbered about much serving, and came to him, and said, Lord, dost thou not care that my sister hath left me to serve alone? bid her therefore that she help me. And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her."
"Today being Mothers Day I want to dedicate this message to all of our Mothers. However, I believe it has a message for every one of our hearts. We all need these words for the day and hour of which we are living. Our daily lives are filled with many unique problems, intense pressures and yes, thank God, this life He has given us, also has many bountiful blessings and privileges.
Thinking of Mary and Martha in our scripture reading above we immediately understand two realms of living. Each and every one of us live in these two realms…..the material and the spiritual.
Anxiety challenges us daily. Cares and heartaches range from preparing a simple meal to the intense grief that comes when death invades our ranks. But, just as Christ was there to help Mary and Martha with His presence and words of wisdom, He is likewise here today to help each of us.
Only Christ can grant us the peace and the tranquility that we need!
(The material realm of living) First of all, I believe we must recognize the necessity of material things. Jesus did. He knew that man must eat, be clothed and be sheltered. When He saw the poor, the blind, the sick and the destitute, He was moved with compassion and He relieved their suffering. Even today His heart goes out to those with physical and material needs. He cares!
But, our Lord also knew that man does not live by bread alone. (Matthew 4:4 "But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.")
God places priority on those things which are eternal. He promised that if we would seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness the other necessities of life would be added unto us. (Matthew 6:33 "But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.")
(The spiritual realm of living) There is also a necessity of the spiritual in our lives. With both of these necessities comes the necessity of TRANQUILITY. Note verses 41 and 42 above - "And Jesus answered and said unto her, Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things: But one thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part, which shall not be taken away from her."
We are living in a day when circumstances are such that it is easy to become anxious and worried, disturbed and in turmoil. Literally millions of people, on a daily basis turn to tranquilizers to steady and calm themselves. ***But, friends, let me tell you, true tranquility is NOT found in a pill - but a person. The person I refer to is Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God!
The only pill that will help you is the gospill (Gospel) and that will turn you on to Jesus!***
What is the secret to finding tranquility?
First of all it is realizing that tranquility is NOT forgetting our obligations; such as simply ignoring your bills and refusing to think about them. That kind of tranquility is temporary. You can rest assured the reckoning day will surely come. I am quite sure that Mary did not make it a habit to leave all of the household work and chores to her sister. But, Mary refused to allow herself to become so involved with material things that she would be forced to neglect the things which were most important.
The next secret to tranquility is the ability to live a balance life. It is learning how to properly balance the material things of this world with the spiritual…the temporal with the eternal. This is not to imply that we live two lives. God forbid. The balanced Christian life is a Christ centered life, a life in tune with pleasing and communing with God.
Another secret of tranquility is recognizing the Lord's presence. We are to take care of the material necessities of life but, our obligation is to never ignore the presence of Jesus!
We must realize that He is present in EVERYTHING we do;
He hears EVERYTHING we say.
He is with us ALWAYS!
Without Him we can do nothing!
Today, we have the same privilege as Mary. We can sit at Jesus feet and bask in His presence.
The next secret of tranquility is talking with Jesus and listening to Him talk to us. Prayers and communion with our Heavenly Father are not one-sided! The conversation between Jesus, Mary and Martha was by no means one sided. You will also find that when you speak to the Lord, He will speak to you. If we are in a materialistic frame of mind and wrapped up in the worries of our day, we won't spend time as we should in prayer and reading God's Word.
Friends, let's live well balanced lives...well proportioned lives…lives that are blessed of God!
It is significant to point out that in the very next verse, we find the Lord Himself praying. Luke 11:1 ("And it came to pass, that, as he was praying in a certain place, when he ceased, one of his disciples said unto him, Lord, teach us to pray, as John also taught his disciples.")
Finally - the secret of tranquility is to always give priority to Jesus and the Word of God. Mary sat at Jesus feet and heard His word. Jesus said, "Mary hath chosen that good part."
What is Jesus saying, day by day as He evaluates our priorities and our choices?
Is He saying, "they have chosen the good part?"
Would you like to find true tranquility today?
