Mary’s ‘one essential thing’

Living the Faith in Luke: What is Mary’s ‘one essential thing’?

When I finished my training for Ministry in 1986 I thought with wonder, “So that’s it, the end of my formal education!” It felt like I was finally leaving all that behind. I yearned to begin as a minister and as a parent (both started within weeks of each other!). Well the years ticked past in a mad rush of parenting and adapting to the ministry lifestyle with its lack of fixed hours and endless possibilities.

My leisure time just for myself was reduced to half an hour of reading before going to sleep at night. And the years ticked by…

Meanwhile, the church everywhere was in upheaval as it became more and more obvious that Australian society was rejecting the church and nobody new was coming to church. The church declined in numbers and began to age relentlessly.

Ministers everywhere were seen as the solution to the problem. “If only we could get the right minister then our future would be assured”.

Ministers felt they had to try new things to make the church more attractive: contemporary worship, ditching unpopular Christian beliefs or morals, better small groups, better buildings, radically different styles of worship, etc. Some even suggested sharing our faith with non-Christians but as nobody had ever done it before it never got anywhere in most Victorian Uniting Churches.

The pressure built and built to do things that none of us were trained for. I needed to learn so much in such difficult times and I was so busy in life that I didn’t have time for learning.

I woke up one day and it was 10 years on! I realised that all my business in both my personal and church life was making me slow and thick. My life was like living through the drug induced fog that ‘cold and flu’ tablets can give you. I couldn’t think clearly about the things that really mattered. I was like Martha in the story but I wanted to be like Mary.

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 only one thing is essential. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:38-42
Mary had been offered the one thing that women could never have in that society: an education.

Such a precious gift! And so undervalued in our society. That is because education is done so differently in our time compared to Jesus’. Education in our society teaches you lots of facts and theories that you will mostly never use (ahh, sweet algebra!). But Jesus’ style of education equipped people for real life.

Mary needed that. I need that. Jesus gives that.

You need to continue your ‘education’ but not like at Primary School. Adults learn differently. We need to discuss what is happening in our lives and connect that with the teachings of Jesus. This type of learning is about adults taking responsibility for our lives and learning the stuff we need to live well as Christians. It always begins in recognising we are ignorant about important things and that we need to work it out.

Adults can work it out with:
• trusted Christian friends or with a Mentor from the church
• in a small group with other fellow travellers focussing on life.

Often Bible Studies can be like Primary Schools teaching people mere information. This was not what Jesus did with Mary. Bible Studies should be renamed ‘Living the faith’ groups to try and capture this different emphasis on practical living.

• Family groups discussing the sermon over lunch
• Christian books about life
• A formal course on the area you need to grow in
• Time apart with God to sort out priorities

I recommenced my ‘education’ 13 years ago in earnest in all these ways and I have grown enormously.
Martha’s ‘distracted’ lifestyle is very contemporary and will lead to a serious life mistake somewhere along the way. But for Mary; “…only one thing is essential. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Perhaps you would consider joining one of the small group studies at LFC …?

Graeme