It’s easy for Christians to fall into a rut: Church is a thing you do, prayer is a box to check, and faith seems far from “the real world.” This fall we let Jesus himself confront our ruts. “Do you believe this?” he asks (Jn. 11:26).
To believe in Jesus is to experience him. It’s more than logic, argument, and doctrine. It is intimate knowledge of God himself. This fall, let Jesus himself speak to you in his seven “I AM” statements in the gospel of John. How is he changing you? What response is he inspiring in you? To believe in him changes everything.
Invocation
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Ponder:
Today we ponder the I AM statement: “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” What things does our world hunger and thirst for? What longings do you have in your life right now? Ponder how Jesus is the Bread of Life, and how he satisfies all our unmet longing.
Word
John 11:20
“So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house.”
Meditation: Stillness and Movement by Megan Roegner
I wonder how many Christian women have felt convicted by the story of Mary and Martha in Luke 10. As the story famously goes, Martha bustles during Jesus’s visit with “much serving” (Luke 10:40) and is exasperated by her sister Mary’s decision to listen to his teaching instead of helping her. Jesus tells 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” (10:41).
The lesson drawn from this story is often oversimplified, I think: Mary’s passive posture is portrayed as a symbol of faithfulness in comparison to Martha’s flurry of activity. I won’t speak for all of my gender, but more than one woman I know has responded to this model of faithful behavior with a sigh. “Yes, but…”
Yes, we should sit at Jesus’s feet, to rest and be nourished by him. We should find peace and stillness in our lives in order to focus on what is most important.
But…there’s so much to do, and so many people relying on us to do it. Martha was wrong in how she chastised her sister, who had indeed chosen what was right. But that doesn’t mean that Martha’s busyness sprang from a lack of faith or love.
We get to see Martha’s activity from a different angle in the story of her brother Lazarus rising from the dead. When Jesus finally comes to Bethany days after Lazarus has died, it is take-charge Martha who meets him on the road. I imagine her striding toward him, perhaps a hand on her hip. She is not angry; she is determined. There is a job that needs to be done, a tragedy undone. It is a task that she cannot handle herself, but she knows there is someone greater than her who can. She tells Jesus that “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you” (John 11:21-22). Martha has extraordinary faith, faith that Jesus can make the impossible possible.
In the past year, I have been anxious and troubled about many things. To name a few, we’ve had two cars stolen and another totaled; our very close friends moved away; and let’s just say that my youngest son has already met his health insurance deductible. My response to stressful situations is generally to stew about all of the things that must be done. In all of the busyness, I don’t always stop to take my troubles to God.
Everyday troubles make us busy, but great tragedies knock the wind out of us. The greatest sadness of the past year was the sudden death of my friend in February. She was only 40 years old, my daughter’s godmother, her husband’s high school sweetheart, and her parents’ only child. There are some problems too big for us to fix. Sometimes we are stuck in helpless stillness before we can pick ourselves up again.
While we’re still grounded, we can perhaps take a moment to sit at Jesus’s feet, like Mary. Maybe we are hopeful, maybe we are confused, maybe we are angry. Please we pray, or why. Both are statements of belief.
And maybe, when we can finally stand up again, we will have the strength of Martha, striding out with faith and purpose, knowing there is someone greater than us who is still in control.
Jesus, give us the faith to take all of our troubles to you. Nothing is too big or too small. Help us discern when we need to sit and listen and when we need to act. Let our will be your will. Amen.
Prayer
Jesus, you said, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” In this world, I am always longing for more. Satisfy my deepest hunger, not only for physical nourishment. I long to be fulfilled and joyful. I find that only in you. So be the true bread of my life, and fill me up. Amen.
Benediction
May the grace of the Lord Jesus sanctify us and keep us from all evil; may he drive far from us all hurtful things; may he bind us to himself by the bond of love, and may his peace abound in our hearts. Amen.