Choosing to be Mary

At the Home of Martha and Mary: 

"As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him.  She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said.  But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made.  She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work bymyself?  Tell her to help me!"  "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed.  Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her."  

Luke 10:38:42 NIV



Picture it ... you have the Lord Jesus Christ in your home, the excitement of which is probably overwhelming, and you yearn to impress him, to show him a feast worthy of Him... so you begin the preparations the moment He enters your home -you are honored He chose YOUR HOME; you are amazed He is there... but you miss the most important opportunity - to sit at His feet and learn; to sit at his feet and feel that peace; to sit at his feet and know that you are growing in faith.  But wait, the bread has not been baked, the floor has not been swept, your children left a mess after breakfast, you haven't washed clothes or linens yet... there is so much to do, and your sister isn't helping you (isn't that just like her... geesh).  Knowing Christ is famished after such a journey, you want to prepare your home and this meal, FAST.  You tell him to tell her to help you... but He sure does tell you doesn't he!

This was me yesterday - so bogged down by what I had to accomplish, so weighed down by the 'things' on my to-do list.  Although I spent my morning with Christ in fellowship - it ended there. :(  Sure, I prayed throughout the day - "Lord, get me through this day," but I wasn't trusting that my time was blessed. 

Only one thing is NEEDED - not wanted, not suggested, but NEEDED - to trust in the time you have with Christ... and it will NOT BE TAKEN AWAY FROM HER!  Her time was blessed, she was growing in the knowledge of Christ, of God's promises for her, and that time was not going to be taken from her.  I may want to prepare the feast, but God wants me to recognize His glory.  Only one thing was NEEDED - time at the feet of Christ, in purposeful fellowship with the Spirit, praising God.

Yesterday, I made the choice to be a Martha; TODAY, I CHOOSE TO BE MARY.  I won't be lazing around sitting on the floor; I will still do the things I am responsible for, I will work; I will prepare food for my family; I will drive my children where they are scheduled to be; I will attend the meet; but I will first and foremost praise God, learn from His Word, and be in fellowship with Him.

Today, I choose to be Mary.

2011 Review

2011 - Tuckey Family Walk in Review :) 

I hope you'll enjoy a little walk with us, down memory lane, leaving Michigan, arriving in North Carolina, and the journey inbetween!

Fellowship

12/29/2011

Last night I had the sudden urge to read a book that’s been ‘on the radar’ lately – much talk about the book and an upcoming movie, along with having just finished a different book, sucked me in.  I snuck up to my daughter’s room, borrowed her Nook, downloaded the book, and began reading.  I stayed up for another 2 hours reading – finally succumbing to heavy eyes at 3am.  Needless to say – the alarm ringing at 7:45 wasn’t a welcome sound.  I was tired.  I am still tired (as I write this at 10:06 am), and I will continue to be tired.

Knowing I couldn’t go back to bed, I made my morning concoction – Spark/Hydrate, and began the drive to my daughters place of gymnastics.  It’s a 20 minute ride.  Somewhere in the middle of that drive, in the middle of a conversation about the colors of cars, value of new versus used, safety of certain brands; it hit me (If you know me at all you know that God does this a lot – ‘hits’ me – mostly because I seem to ignore the subtle and gentle ways He tries to get my attention.)!  I spent the time, energy, effort, and enthusiasm to stay up late (knowing I would have to get up early) reading a book that had nothing to do with the promises of God, the word of God...yet I hadn’t been soaked in the word of God in many days – because I ‘didn’t have the time.’  OUCH!  I was drying up like a sun-dried tomato (currently my favorite food, thus the reference).  That one is going to require a band-aid!  Let me be frank here – I DO have the time – everyone has the time – I’d just filled that time with things that seemed more important to my human mind (laundry, cleaning, newspaper reading, etc… the ‘busy-ness’).  I hadn’t been using my time wisely. I’d used the holiday’s as an excuse – I’d said to God “time with my kids”; “a clean house”; “an ‘informed’ mind” are all more important than being in fellowship with YOU!   I wasn’t using my time wisely.

Coming home I realized this morning should and would be different.  I have a bible app on my phone (YouVersion – I highly recommend it), with a daily verse displayed on my ‘home’ page.  As I sat down to eat, God spoke to me - it was as if He said "If you are really a follower, you'll read my word before you eat, because I can fill you in ways that grapefruit cannot."  After one bite of grapefruit, I grabbed the closest bit of God's word - the bible app on my phone, intending to read today's LifeVerse chapters.  Howerver, I was intriqued by today's verse of the day:

2 Corinthians 13:14 NIV:
“May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.”

I realized – not only am I loved by God and able to receive grace through Jesus Christ – but I’m literally in fellowship all day with the Holy Spirit because He is in me.  I still have to be an active participant in that fellowship - it can't happen without my effort.  Not only do I want to start my day in fellowship with the Holy Spirit through reading/devotion/praise, I want to continue and end my day in fellowship with the Holy Spirit.  Now here’s the ‘kicker’ – I have the power and ability to do so because the Holy Spirit is in me!  Imagine the strength I have with the power of fellowship with the Holy Spirit… it’s inviting: think fellowship with family and friends/gathering; it’s comforting – think the comfort of a great meal; it’s reassuring – think of the good memories of family gatherings and fun. 

Grace means Jesus will forgive my lack of focus, Love means God loves me despite my faults, and Fellowship means I have the opportunity to be filled second by second; minute by minute; hour by hour; day by day!

So I say to you –

 “May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.”2 Corinthians 13:14 NIV