International Women's Day
Today is International Women's Day, so I felt it was appropriate to write my thoughts about a topic that's been on my mind.
In Luke 10, we read about when Christ visited the home of Mary and Martha. Both women sit at His feet to listen to His teachings. At one point, Martha gets up to cook dinner, while Mary remained. After working in the kitchen for a while, Martha is likely hot and tired and stressed (because, um, the SAVIOR OF THE WORLD is in her house and she doesn't want to feed him burnt Ramen noodles). Frazzled, she calls out Mary for not helping. Christ hears these comments and lightly reprimands Martha for her comments.
We often use this story to illustrate the importance of placing spiritual things over temporal, but I'd like to use it to emphasize a different point.
First off, I don't think Christ minded that Martha left His feet. He was likely familiar with the family, maybe even close friends with them. He knew Martha's personality and that she enjoyed a clean house and a well-cooked meal. He knew that this was Martha's way of serving Him. I think Christ appreciated the gesture, especially because he had just travelled far and was likely hungry.
Christ doesn't say anything about Martha's decision to cook and clean until she brings it up. I think His reproof is not a result of her decision to cook and clean, but rather a result of her criticism of Mary.
We see this today. Though we support a woman's right to choose, we find plenty of reason to judge and criticize her choices. Can you believe she's a stay-at-home mom? A working mom? A college dropout? Can you believe she dyed her hair THAT color? Wore THAT dress? Fed her family THAT meal? Fill in the blank, we love to compare our choices to someone else's.
Martha wasn't guilty of anything except comparing herself to Mary. She should have supported her sister's decision and stayed confident in her own.
The women around you won't live a life that looks like yours because they. are. not. you. Live your life. Support other women's choices. The world would be a boring place if all women did the same things, so celebrate that diversity -- today and always.
In Luke 10, we read about when Christ visited the home of Mary and Martha. Both women sit at His feet to listen to His teachings. At one point, Martha gets up to cook dinner, while Mary remained. After working in the kitchen for a while, Martha is likely hot and tired and stressed (because, um, the SAVIOR OF THE WORLD is in her house and she doesn't want to feed him burnt Ramen noodles). Frazzled, she calls out Mary for not helping. Christ hears these comments and lightly reprimands Martha for her comments.
We often use this story to illustrate the importance of placing spiritual things over temporal, but I'd like to use it to emphasize a different point.
First off, I don't think Christ minded that Martha left His feet. He was likely familiar with the family, maybe even close friends with them. He knew Martha's personality and that she enjoyed a clean house and a well-cooked meal. He knew that this was Martha's way of serving Him. I think Christ appreciated the gesture, especially because he had just travelled far and was likely hungry.
Christ doesn't say anything about Martha's decision to cook and clean until she brings it up. I think His reproof is not a result of her decision to cook and clean, but rather a result of her criticism of Mary.
We see this today. Though we support a woman's right to choose, we find plenty of reason to judge and criticize her choices. Can you believe she's a stay-at-home mom? A working mom? A college dropout? Can you believe she dyed her hair THAT color? Wore THAT dress? Fed her family THAT meal? Fill in the blank, we love to compare our choices to someone else's.
Martha wasn't guilty of anything except comparing herself to Mary. She should have supported her sister's decision and stayed confident in her own.
The women around you won't live a life that looks like yours because they. are. not. you. Live your life. Support other women's choices. The world would be a boring place if all women did the same things, so celebrate that diversity -- today and always.
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| Photo by Leon Biss on Unsplash |
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