The Autobiography of Martha

When I think of the word, occupied, I envision a war scene—blackened fields bristling with the spears of an enemy. The glint of burnished helmets weakens the knees, and things get hairy when the horn is blown and ten thousand lowlifes contribute a guttural hip-hip. They take a step with one accord and the earth shakes as a legion of scallywags marches two-by-two. This is the dramatized version of course, but for us Christians, Martha’s experience in Luke 10 is basically the same thing.

In this scene the Lord Jesus visits Martha at home. An onslaught of tasks awaits her—chores, duties, indulgences—that she puts before the Lord and is thus occupied. But it’s not a unique occurrence; in her condition and interactions with the Lord, Martha’s history is our biography.

Assailed from All Sides

Occupation doesn’t always involve armies pitching tent in a field. Sometimes the invasion is more subtle, occurring in our heart and mind. In my recent experience as a college student, I find that if I am not distracted by one thing, I’m taken captive by another. No matter how I desire to be for the Lord, I can’t help but to be a wool-headed daydreamer.

I take after Martha, who when the Lord knocked on her door, “was drawn about with much serving,” (Luke 10:40) and managed to neglect her Houseguest. The Lord made known to Martha her condition when He said, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things” (v. 41). Jesus pointed out that though outwardly she was conducting business, Martha missed the point.

Visited

It’s a sweet experience for the Lord to inform us that we have been occupied. When I am losing sleep over a future that I have no control over, the Lord sometimes taps on the door and says, “Erin, Erin, there is a battalion in your lateral septum.” Which is fine, because as modern-day Marthas, our story is that we have been visited.

Visitation is actually a clear sign of growth in the Lord. Though she immediately gave herself to other activities upon His entering, the fact remains that Martha “received Him into her home” (v. 38). If we never opened to the Lord, we would fail to see the hindrances between ourselves and Him. If we were never in the presence of God, we would have no reason to be bothered by our occupation. Opening (i.e. receiving Him into our home) and confessing that our heart is not single is an explicit indication that the Lord is visiting, shining light on our situation, and bringing us on in Himself.

The Good Part

Though we offer the Lord the short end of the stick, He does not expose our mixed heart without dishing out a double helping of grace. While Martha zoomed back and forth, her sister Mary sat at the feet of the Lord and “chose the good part” (v. 42). The Lord isn’t so much concerned about what we do and don’t do, but that we are recipients of the good part—which is Christ Himself. I can be preoccupied with Twitter and dream all my unfounded dreams, but what the Lord is after is that I’d sit at His feet.

Destined

This is our destiny—to be occupied, emptied, and then refilled. Throughout the years of our Christian life, the Lord will keep visiting. As we allow Him to make His “home in our heart”, like in Ephesians 3:17, He addresses each part of our occupied self and we can say, “You’re right, Lord! Come into this part of my being.” After so many transactions with God, we will be emptied and then filled with Christ. Our household is destined to have one precious Occupant, and as Jesus says in verse 42, this good part “shall not be taken away.”

By: E. Kedzie