Luke 10:38-42 NLT
38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. 40 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 by myself? Tell her to help me!” 41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one.[a] Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
I know it’s not the conventional take, but can I just say: I can kind of see where Martha was coming from. Time at Jesus’ feet being far more important than anything else we can possibly occupy ourselves with is definitely the most important takeaway here, but can we take a second to empathize with Martha? Now don’t get me wrong, calling her sister out in front of the Messiah was definitely uncalled for, but her feelings are somewhat valid— at least to her they are. She’s slaving away trying to give Jesus her best. Martha, like a lot of us, is cursed with that innate need to help and do and fix, even when it comes at the expense of her own enjoyment. She wakes up every day wishing she could walk past her neighbor’s yard and not feel the need to help clean it, or for once, just sit down and eat her plate of food instead of helping the hosts hang up birthday decorations. Martha looks around the room while holding a trash bag, sees the joy and fun plastered on every single face, and longs for the day where she might finally let someone else step up. But that’s not Martha. Martha has been given a keen eye and a heart of service, two attributes drawn directly from the DNA of our generous and perfect creator.
This may have happened to you at some point in your life. You, out of the goodness of your heart, fulfill a need only to be scrutinized or at the very least are made to feel under appreciated. It can be something as simple as doing a favor for someone only to find out they didn’t want any help to begin with. In our lives as followers of Christ, it can be as serious as mistaking good intentions for what really is disobedience to the Lord. We may sometimes find ourselves leaning on our strengths or acting out of our greatest of character traits, but they mean absolutely nothing unless they are in line with God’s desires. I believe the Lord desires to mold your character this year, so surrender every aspect of it to God. Lay every passion, desire, and personality trait, both good and bad, at our Father’s feet because there is no better version of you than the one that reflects the heart of Jesus.
Now here’s where it gets interesting. Notice I said both the good and the bad parts of your personality. It’s easy to pinpoint the parts God most likely doesn’t appreciate in your character, but allowing Him mold the positive, virtuous parts is equally as important. For years, I’ve preached and taught about how just about every part of our lives comes down to stewardship. Our time, relationships, calling and ministry, health— it’s all been entrusted to us to be good stewards of. When I heard George Elias say the same thing not too long ago, I finally realized I was actually on to something! You have been tasked with being a wise steward of the character you’ve been dealt, including the good parts of it. Every positive character trait you possess has the potential to become a double edged sword. Being structured and disciplined is admirable, but it can come at the cost of neglecting the spontaneity and leadability that is required when following God. It’s almost like every seemingly harmless, positive quality in you has an unhealthy iteration of it lurking in the dark. It’s one thing to be generous, it’s another to be frivolous to the point where you’ve mismanaged what God gave you and now your family is worse off due to your carelessness. King Saul’s downfall is a clear and unfortunate example of what bad stewardship of character looks like. After all, the initiative that made him a good candidate to be a king, was the same initiative that cost him a kingdom.
1 Samuel 13:7-14
Meanwhile, Saul stayed at Gilgal, and his men were trembling with fear. 8 Saul waited there seven days for Samuel, as Samuel had instructed him earlier, but Samuel still didn’t come. Saul realized that his troops were rapidly slipping away. 9 So he demanded, “Bring me the burnt offering and the peace offerings!” And Saul sacrificed the burnt offering himself. 10 Just as Saul was finishing with the burnt offering, Samuel arrived. Saul went out to meet and welcome him, 11 but Samuel said, “What is this you have done?” Saul replied, “I saw my men scattering from me, and you didn’t arrive when you said you would, and the Philistines are at Micmash ready for battle. 12 So I said, ‘The Philistines are ready to march against us at Gilgal, and I haven’t even asked for the Lord’s help!’ So I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering myself before you came.” 13 “How foolish!” Samuel exclaimed. “You have not kept the command the Lord your God gave you. Had you kept it, the Lord would have established your kingdom over Israel forever. 14 But now your kingdom must end, for the Lord has sought out a man after his own heart. The Lord has already appointed him to be the leader of his people, because you have not kept the Lord’s command.”
Saul’s story may have ended much differently if he had valued God’s instruction over his ability to problem solve, or if before saving his kingdom he’d focused on developing a healthy heart. The confidence he had in his own ability paired with his inability to see the destructive potential in his character set him on a path far away from the one God laid out for him. This is the same lesson Martha of Bethany learned when Jesus visited her family home— thankfully with less severe repercussions! God designed and intricately wove every part of Martha’s body and mind. Her strengths were purposefully placed in her by God himself, but they were always meant to be given right back to Him. Now you and I are given the same challenge: give every single part of you to God, and pray daily that you’re walking in obedience and not just what’s most comfortable or convenient.
Engagement: Take a moment to bring this directly to the Lord. Pray intentionally today that you don’t miss out on the plans the Lord has for your life simply because you didn’t allow Him to deal with your character. Don’t make the mistake of sacrificing the eternal promises He has for you at the altar of “good intentions”. It’s plain and simple, “the Lord is seeking for those who are after His own heart”. Those who desire nothing more than to be a vessel that He fills or a handful of shapeless clay that He can bring vision to. Before becoming too hyper-fixated on all the things we’d like to change this year, leave room for God to change what really matters. He is aching to create in you a new heart and to shape your character to what He desires!
I dream and am believing for a Faith Chapel full of people who are oozing the presence of God. Even more so than they are now! Our goal will always be to look more and more like Jesus. So Lord, mold our characters to reflect your heart each and every day.
Love you family,
Pastor Erick Aguilar
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