Month: July 2019

Martha keeps popping up in my readings and thoughts in recent weeks. I blogged about her two weeks ago. I did a Lectio Divina twice on a passage in which she features. She recently appeared in the online devotional I use. And now, today turns out to be St Martha’s day.

St Martha is known as the patron saint of practical women – of cooks and servants in particular. Actually, I do not identify as a practical woman. I don’t know how to change a tap washer. My idea of cooking is to open a bottle of something and add it to a stir-fry in a wok. Just the same, I have a soft spot for this woman. As I thought more about her today, I have been reminded of this encouraging truth: 

God uses our unique natures.

Different gifts, different functions

The apostle Paul expressed this concept in his letter to the Romans. It’s recorded in chapter 12, right after the section about offering our bodies as living sacrifices and being transformed by the renewing of our minds.  Assuming that we’re on track with sanctification, Paul then expected first-century Christians to wholeheartedly live out their unique natures. He put it this way: 

“For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully.”
(Romans 12:4-8 NIV)

I wonder if Martha, Mary and Lazarus ever read a copy of that letter to the Romans? And if they did, I wonder where they were and what they were doing at the time? One thing I am pretty convinced of is this: they would have been wholeheartedly living out their unique natures. Martha was most likely organizing everyone and everything around her. Mary was probably as contemplative as ever. As for Lazarus, I hope that he was still very much alive and excitedly telling everyone he met about being resurrected.  

Traditions

Tradition suggests that Martha, Mary and Lazarus moved to Southern France in the middle of the first century AD. Historical records from the day are hazy but the ancient bones of some very important person, believed to be Martha, remain there to this day. I enjoyed looking at pictures of The Collegiate Church of St Martha online, though my schoolgirl French let me down. You can have a peek too – the reference is in footnote 1. The bones are stored in a crypt in the church, which is a Gothic building built over Romanesque walls. To the Medieval church, a Renaissance section was later added. See footnote 2 if you want to read more. I’d love to visit when I’m rich (ha!). 

Whether this early Christian missionary whose bones are kept there was Martha the sister of Mary and Lazarus or another Martha, she sounds like one amazing lady. Not only did she bring the gospel to Provence, but she is also credited with pacifying a monster which regularly ravaged the area. After taming the horrendous creature, she reportedly led it to the townspeople who promptly killed it. See footnote 3. 

One can almost imagine the plucky lady we read about in the gospels coming to a town like this, hearing of the problem with the monster, and saying, “Well, somebody has to do something about it.” Did she dust the flour off her hands then march off to find the fearsome creature, I wonder? These are just stories, of course, though with a kernel of truth.

And the point is ……?

The point of today’s ponderings about Martha is this:  God created us differently and uses us in our differences. Whether or not the plucky woman who left her mark and her bones in France was the same Martha as Jesus’ hospitable host, God used her. She had a key role in establishing God’s church in that corner of the Roman Empire.

Throughout the ages, God has continued to use his saints – his sanctified people  – all over the world. Many stories could be told of saints throughout the centuries. God uses us still today with our individual strengths, quirks and, yes, even weaknesses. 

Am I a Martha? A Mary? A Lazarus? I’m just an ordinary Australian Christian woman. I’m no ‘official saint’ in the eyes of the world, but in God’s eyes, I am undergoing sanctification.  I’m a saint-in-progress who has my own quirks, strengths and weaknesses. As I work at the renewing of my mind, God works at transforming me … and using me to build his church. 

Encouragement

On this St Martha’s Day, the patron saint of practical women. I’m encouraged to remember that God knows us, works in us, and works through us ordinary people. The following words were not written by Paul, because he lacked the perspective that we have. The sentiments are his, however, and are as true today as they were in Martha’s day.

If you are gifted in taming monsters, then tame them courageously. If you are gifted in creating meals for many with a minimum of fuss, then do so cheerfully. If you’re gifted in writing little articles that spur people on to live well, then write regularly. If your gift is to befriend women from other parts of the world, carrying the fragrance of Christ as you enter their homes, then get out of your own home and into theirs with enthusiasm and cheerfulness. Whatever you do, do it wholeheartedly, living out your uniqueness. For we are all different but we all form one body. May Jesus be glorified through our various avenues of service. 

References

Footnote 1  http://www.webmaster2010.org/variables/tarascon-collegialestemarthe-24juil2016.pdf accessed on St Martha’s Day, 29 July 2019. 

Footnote 2 – https://www.rdv-inprovence.com/en-us/provence-places-to-visit/tarascon.html  accessed on St Martha’s Day, 29 July 2019

Footnote 3:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarasque accessed on St Martha’s Day, 29 July 2019

A friend from Asia wouldn’t take ‘no’ for an answer. She wanted me to help her friend get a study visa for Australia.  I don’t know how many times I told her that I was powerless to help and that I had no influence at the Australian embassy. Finally, mostly to stop my friend’s relentless nagging, I agreed to do what I could … which wasn’t much … but turned out to be much more than I had anticipated. 

First, it was regular English practice. The woman concerned turned out to be highly motivated, which helped my attitude. Then it was a plea I couldn’t ignore … to use my connections (关系 guanxi) with the God of the Universe to ask for divine favour over her visa application. (I was adamant that one can’t play games with God, but said that I’d pass on the request …and urged her to get to know him herself.)  Then I sent a query to the Australian embassy on her behalf after her application was denied. To my surprise, I received a phone call within minutes explaining it all and she was able to apply again. Her second application was successful.

An accidental reading of Luke 11:1-13

Helping a friend’s friend come to my country happened years ago. The incident has come to mind again now because of a Bible passage about ‘shameless persistence’ which the Lord brought to my attention this past week. I say ‘The Lord brought this story to my attention,’ because I was actually looking for something else. But this passage was exactly what I needed to read. 

I skimmed through parts of Luke the other day, looking for the story of Martha and Mary, which I blogged about last week. I was intending to spend more time in that story.  It is at the very end of Luke 10.

But even as I did so, my heart was heavy for friends going through a hard time. As best I could, I was ‘praying without ceasing’ … but how does one pray? Then I stumbled upon the story of the shamelessly persistent friend. It is in Luke 11, immediately after the passage I was looking for.

As I flicked to the page with the Martha and Mary story, my eyes lit upon the phrase ‘shameless persistence’. A sixth sense kicked in. This is how I am to pray for my friends … with shameless persistence. Regardless of how God chooses to answer our prayers, we can’t go wrong by praying plenty.

Another shamelessly persistent friend

So what is in Luke 11:1-13, apart from the phrase ‘shameless persistence’? In part, it’s the story of the person who insisted that his friend get out of bed at midnight to loan him three loaves of bread so that he, in turn, could host a friend who had just arrived after a long journey (Luke 11:5-10). Jesus told this story in response to his disciples’ request to be taught how to pray. After giving them a model, which we call ‘The Lord’s Prayer’, including the request for our daily bread, Jesus then told the story of the persistent person who wanted to borrow bread in the middle of the night. 

The poor friend who didn’t want to get up in the middle of the night finally succumbed. Jesus explained, “But I tell you this—though he won’t do it for friendship’s sake, if you keep knocking long enough, he will get up and give you whatever you need because of your shameless persistence” (Luke 11:8 New Living Translation).

Shame

I am intrigued by the many levels of shame in this story. The shamelessly persistent man wasn’t hungry himself. I imagine that he had eaten earlier in the day. He may even have been planning to get more bread in the morning. Back in the day, guests couldn’t call ahead with an expected arrival time. He wasn’t expecting a friend from far away to arrive in the middle of the night. But arrive he did … and the friend was hungry. 

Not being able to provide food for this friend surely brought shame on this host. And so he incurred another sort of shame by asking a friend for help, and quite possibly waking up half the neighbourhood in the process. He stood outside his friend’s door and called and called and called some more. He refused to take ‘no’ for an answer.

Insights from translation

The Greek word translated ‘shamelessly persistent’ in the New Living Translation is ἀναίδειαν (anaideian). (You can see this for yourself on  biblehub.com .) This is a compound word, made up of the prefix ‘an’, meaning ‘without’, and ‘aidos’, meaning ‘shame’. Although this word only appears once in the New Testament, it seems that ‘aidos’ was a common concept in the Greek-speaking world. I assume this because ‘Aidos’ was the name of the Greek god of shame, modesty, respect and humility. (I learnt that from Wikipedia.)

Other Bible translations use words such as shameless audacity (NIV), impudence (ESV), importunity (KJV), and 情 词 迫 切  (CUV).  That Chinese phrase literally means ‘loving words with urgency’. If you look at the Chinese characters, you can see pictographs for a ‘heart’ 忄, words 讠, movement 辶 and a knife 刀. The other parts of the Chinese characters give clues about the pronunciation. 情词迫切 (qing ci poqie)- heart, words, action and a knife – what a vibrant description of the way the shamelessly persistent friend put everything – heart, words, action and urgency – into his midnight plea to borrow bread.

Pray with shameless persistence

And that is the way we are to pray, Jesus explained. With shameless persistence. Putting heart, words, action and urgency into our pleas. Immediately after Jesus told this story, he then added, “And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.” (Luke 11:9-10 NLT). 

Martha and Mary prayers

Some of us are all action … women like Martha, who bustled about doing, doing, doing. Some of us pray like that too. We try and tell God what we think he should do (ha!). I think of those prayers as ‘Martha prayers’.  

Others of us are more contemplative. I am working towards that, and sometimes enjoy just sitting in God’s presence and lifting loved ones by name to him. I think of these sort of prayers as ‘Mary prayers’. 

In Luke 10:42, literally just a few verses before this teaching about shameless persistence in prayer, Jesus said that Mary (sister of Martha) had ‘chosen what is better’. What was better? Mary was sitting at Jesus’ feet rather than bustling around serving everyone like Martha. I take that as affirmation of Mary’s attitude, and strive to be more like her. 

But then we get this parable about shameless persistence. It seems that there is a place for action. Jesus taught his disciples how to pray – and that included requests for daily bread. Oh yes, there was a lot more as well – worship of God, focus on his kingdom and asking forgiveness for yourself as well as forgiving others. There is a good mix of action mixed in with contemplation.

Shamelessly persistent

Just as my Asian friend of years past was relentless in using her relationship with me, an ordinary Australia woman, to do all I could to get her friend to Australia, so we are to pray relentlessly. Our prayers are not offered to a friend – an equal – however. They are offered to One infinitely greater. 

Shamelessly persistent … that’s an attitude I want to foster. Not in friendships with my peers … you can relax … but in prayer. Heart, words, action and urgency – asking, seeking and knocking – Mary-like and Martha-like both, praying just as Jesus taught us. 

God is good to me in a great many ways, so why would I grumble? The danger of losing focus and finding that blessings become burdens, however, is age-old.

Flexibility

When I worked in an office, I would moan about rigid work hours. If only I could work from home, I would have more flexibility in how I used my time. Now I work from home. It’s a blessing. But I find myself getting anxious because there aren’t enough hours in each day to do everything I want to do. Aiyo … the pressure, the pressure.

Home

I am extremely grateful for my little home. I don’t take it for granted. Most single people on a modest income have just a room in a share house or live with family or friends. I love my home but, right now, it is messy. There are spiderwebs in the hallway. The windows are long overdue for a good clean. The garden needs weeding. Aiyo … the pressure, the pressure. 

Hospitality

Hospitality is something I enjoy and which I like to think I do well … spider webs and all. But before friends come to stay, I have to clear the clutter off the spare bed in the office and move the computer and necessary piles into the bedroom. Producing tasty and varied meals day-after-day is a challenge for this single woman, who usually just cooks simple (though nutritious) food. Aiyo … the pressure, the pressure. (If you’re a friend who sometimes stays, don’t let this paragraph put you off. I want you to come. And I like cooking something a bit special from time to time.)

At the moment, my to-do list is somewhat out of control. “So why are you taking time to blog?”, you may well ask. Writing is something I sense God would have me develop and so the goal of producing one small achievable thing each week – even just a blog post – is a blessing which, I admit, threatens to become burdensome at times. 

Lectio Divina

Last Sunday, I spent time doing Lectio Divina (contemplation on a Bible passage). The passage I focused on, Luke 10:38-42, is about Martha and Mary. Why Martha and Mary? Simply because it was available online easily – you can listen and do it too – just cut and paste this link: https://youtu.be/vszOJBibnF8

I think that God knew I needed to spend time in this passage. What stood out to me was the fact that Martha welcomed Jesus and his disciples to her home, but then got grumpy about all the work it entailed. Let me remind you of the story from Martha’s perspective. 

Martha’s story

“I have a lovely home. God has been very kind to me. And to think that I am privileged to offer hospitality to the Messiah himself. 

“He came to me … to ME … an ordinary Jewish woman. I was quick to invite them to stay. I say ‘them’ because Jesus was travelling with his disciples. Thankfully, it was only the twelve, and not the 72 that sometimes follow him around. 13 men in my living room is a stretch, but the Lord has blessed me with a lovely spacious home and we’ll make it work. 

The tension builds

“I want everything to be perfect. I want them to be comfortable. I want the food to be just right – not too spicy, not too bland, and plenty of it. The floors and bathroom need constant mopping with so many people traipsing in and out. Others keep coming to the door too, wanting to debate theology with Jesus or to ask for healing or bread. Bread – ha – that’s my responsibility. I’m the host. Just think of that. Host to the Messiah. 

“But I need help. Where is that sister of mine? I can’t do everything. The dough needs kneading, we’re almost out of fancy drinks, the bathroom needs a quick wipe-over and the vegetables need chopping.

Mary, lazy sod … she’s just sitting there listening. Always has her head in the clouds, that one. Honestly, she is impossible. Does she not notice all that needs doing for the Messiah? Does she not care?

“I can’t catch her eye, though it’s not for want of trying. She’s mesmerised by all he has to say. It’s all very well for her. She doesn’t have the responsibility of keeping everyone fed and watered. But she ought to do something to help. 

The tension comes to a head

“As I scurry in and out with bowls of nuts, fruit and drinks, it must be obvious to anyone who cares that I am frazzled and frenzied. Ah – there you go. The Lord himself catches my eye. He’ll put my sister in her place. She hangs off every word he says, so I’ll get him to set her straight.

I speak quietly into the Lord’s ear as I lean over with a bowl of figs. “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord said. He, at least, doesn’t take my services for granted. He notices me. Cares about me. He calls me by name. He sees me as a woman – an individual – and not just as a busy hostess. 

“You are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed,” he continues. What?  Worried and upset? They’ll be worried and upset if they’re not fed, if the bathroom is a mess and if the drinks run out. Then we’ll see what ‘worried and upset’ looks like. Hmmmph. 

“… Few things are needed – or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” WHAT????????!”

Back to Suzanne’s ponderings

Luke doesn’t tell us how Martha reacts to Jesus’ firm words. We do read, however, that these same two sisters later related to Jesus in ways entirely consistent with their personalities once again (John 11:17-44). After the death of their brother, we see that Mary just wept and our Lord cried with her. Martha, on the other hand, remained practical and cerebral, even in her grief and confusion. Our Lord reasoned with her, his words cool and rational.

Later New Testament passages teach us that we all bring different gifts and skills to the community of believers. Martha was skilled at ‘doing’ – and particularly gifted at hosting – and she had the resources to do it. Were Martha’s gifts unappreciated and undervalued? 

I think not. What, then, was the problem? 

Attitude

It seems to me that the problem was Martha’s attitude. Her blessings – her home and the privilege of hosting the Messiah himself – had become burdensome. 

What about me? Do I grumble even as I use the gifts given to me by God? Do my blessings become burdensome?

Flexibility of time is a blessing… but with it comes pressure to manage my time well. My cute little home is a blessing … but with it comes the responsibility to maintain it. Hospitality is an honour, but with it comes busyness. None of these are problems in and of themselves, but my attitude to them can be less than ideal.

Long ago, our Lord said, “Martha, Martha … you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed – or indeed, only one” (Luke 10:41-42a NIV). Today, he could well say, “Suzanne, Suzanne … you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed – or indeed, only one.” To which I could respond, “Well, Lord, you tell me – if I don’t do the translation work, academic study, lesson preparation, editing, communications, cleaning, cooking, sorting, shopping, reaching out in friendship and more, then who will?”  

Progress

But I won’t say that. At least, not today. Today, I will say, “Lord, I’m sorry. I have lost focus again. Please will you help me to stay focused on you.” 

And then I will lower my expectations. I will say ‘No’ to a few people, even though I don’t like doing that. I will settle down to the tasks in front of me with a calm and Christ-centred attitude. At least that’s the plan. 

Right now, I need to get this blog post actually posted online. Then I must work on the next task on my task list. Oops … yes … as you can see, I’m a work in progress. As are we all. 

May our blessings not become burdens.

The concept of God as our divine parent has been on my mind lately. Today I enjoyed a special walk in my neighbourhood while waiting for my freshly washed clothes to dry in a dryer at the laundromat. (It is winter in Melbourne, you see.)

As I walked, two trains of thought from the past few days came together – God as our Father and Jerusalem as our mother. (I will explain.) I thought about God, our divine parent, disciplining us in love and singing over us with delight as we form part of his special city.

Yes, that last paragraph is as dense with content as a fruitcake is dense with fruit. Let me elaborate.

God as our Father

In my Tibetan lesson on Thursday, my teacher helped me learn a new (to me) Christian song. The lyrics are the words of ‘The Lord’s Prayer’, the prayer that Jesus taught his disciples. They have been put to a hauntingly beautiful Tibetan melody. In it, God is called our ཡབ (yab) which is an honourable way of saying ‘Father’. 

In Tibetan, the lyrics start out with ནམ་མཁར་བཞུགས་པའི་ངེད་ཀྱི་ཡབ། ། . This means, literally, ‘Our Father who lives in the sky’. My teacher didn’t like the use of the་first word, ནམ, meaning ‘sky’. He thought that a different word should have been used – a word which means, literally, ‘the place where gods dwell’. I am glad, though, that the Tibetan song uses the word for ‘sky’. Although God is far from us in terms of perfection and purity, he doesn’t live in a far off place. No, his kingdom is near us and around us, just like the sky.

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Jerusalem as our Mother

I have also been thinking about Jerusalem as our mother this weekend. Why? That is a random concept, you may say.

I enjoy listening to an online Ignation devotion most days. This weekend, the passage for contemplation was Isaiah 66:10-14. In it, Jerusalem is described as our mother. The imagery is graphic. We read of God’s people feeding and being satisfied at Jerusalem’s “comforting breasts”. Indeed, God’s people will “drink freely and delight in her overflowing abundance” (Isaiah 66:11). Isaiah goes on to say that God will comfort us “as a mother comforts her child” (Isaiah 66:13a).  

Jerusalem as our mother? I find it a bit of a weird concept but it’s Biblical.

A Contemplative Walk

As I waited for my clothes to dry, I went for a half hour contemplative walk. I asked God, “Is there anything you would show me?” Then I tried, as best I could, to just still my mind and focus on him as I strolled through the path, past the supermarket, through another park and back again. 

Was it God, or was it me? This passage from Zephaniah 3:16-17 sprang to mind:

“On that day they will say to Jerusalem…. ‘The LORD your God is with you..… He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.’”

The Holy Spirit seemed to be pulling together the threads of my contemplations over these past few days. Our Father in heaven is with us. He’s not far off in a land in which spiritual beings dwell. No, he is right here, right now, above us and all about us. And he delights in Jerusalem – our mother –  the one from whom we draw nourishment, comfort and identity. 

But it hasn’t always been this way. First was a time of rebuking…..

Rebuked

God will no longer rebuke Jerusalem, says Zephaniah (Zephaniah 3:17). Jerusalem had been rebuked before this, though. That doesn’t mean that God didn’t care about her. Quite the opposite, in fact. Scripture says:

“My son, do not reject the discipline of the LORD,
and do not loathe His rebuke;
for the LORD disciplines the one He loves,
as does a father the son in whom he delights”
(Proverbs 3:11-12 and quoted in Hebrews 12:6)

It’s like the father and daughter duo I sat near in a cafe earlier today. The waitress brought the man’s coffee along with a complimentary chocolate. (I was enjoying the same.) His little girl immediately grabbed the chocolate off her father’s saucer. The man, however, firmly took it back. 

“You mustn’t do that. I don’t like greedy little girls.” 

My heart broke for the little girl. Her daddy didn’t like her?  The child, however, didn’t seem perturbed. Perhaps her focus was on the chocolate? Or maybe she was confident in her identity as the dearly loved daughter of this man.

“Please, Daddy, may I have your chocolate?”  

“That’s better, sweetie. But no. It’s not good for you to have so much sugar. Our lunches will come soon and you will have some healthy food. After that, well, then we’ll see.”  

I still don’t like the way the father told his daughter that he didn’t like greedy little girls. But there is no question that his rebuke was given in love. He wanted her to be healthy and whole. 

That’s how God treats us too. 

Rejoicing with Singing

I often use music to energise me, motivate me, calm me down or to worship. In this passage, however, God does the singing. God – our Father in Heaven – our Father in the sky – looks down on us imperfect, broken people, and rejoices over us with singing! 

Okay – I’m taking quite a leap here, assuming that it is us that he is singing over even though the passage is talking about Jerusalem. And besides, as I contemplate this complex concept, I am walking in Mooroolbark, Melbourne – a l-o-n-g way from Jerusalem. But Scripture suggests that Christians belong to ‘the heavenly Jerusalem’, and as such, God rejoices over us!

In the same chapter as the writer to the Hebrews quoted the proverb about God disciplining those he loves, he also wrote, “But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem” (Hebrews 12:22a). He said a lot more besides which will be wonderful to meditate on another time. 

Jerusalem is our mother. Jerusalem is the city of the living God. The heavenly Jerusalem is where I belong. It’s one of those ‘now and not yet’ truths. My clothes are very much in a solid metallic dryer in the outer east of Melbourne even as I contemplate this truth. But I belong to God’s city. 

So what? 

If we are dearly loved children of our father in heaven, we will want to live in such a way that he responds with delight rather than rebuke. We don’t live well in order to win his approval. We live well because we are his. 

There are times when we still need the firm hand of a parent. Just as the precocious little chocoholic in the cafe today needed pulling into line precisely because she is her father’s precious girl, so God nurtures us. 

He not only rebukes us in love, but he also rejoices over us with singing. 

As I gaze up at the wintry sky, I imagine that I can almost hear his singing. One day, we will experience it in full. These promises are like the buds that protrude from the winter trees I pass on the street near the laundromat. They’re already real and alive, and full of anticipation of so much more to come. 

My identity is as a dearly loved daughter of God. I collect the washing basket from my parked car and walk in to the laundromat retrieve my clothes. I wonder about the others who wait for their clothes to dry. What of the Caucasian lady engrossed in watching a football game on an iPad? What of the Asian couple with a very tall basket of laundry? Have they heard the good news of a heavenly Father who longs for them to be reconciled to him? 

There is still room in the heavenly Jerusalem for plenty more residents.