Drink More Water
Sir, You have nothing to draw with and the well is deep; where then do You get that living water? John 4: 11
There is an interesting phenomenon that is different between men and women. I’ve read about it many times online, although I’m not sure any official studies have truly been done. When men need to take care of something, they stop what they’re doing and take care of it. When women need to take care of something, but are involved in something else, they create a list for themselves of things they must do first and then reward themselves by finally allowing themselves to take care of the other thing … and so their days go.
Of course, one notable exception to fulfilling lists first and doing what is needed is the the story of the 2 sisters, Martha and Mary. Martha had a whole list of “to do” items. Mary probably knew all about this list. After all, she lived with Martha and being a woman of her culture and time, she would have been very much aware of what her responsibilities entailed. But, she opted for something else.
Luke 10: 38-42 tells us (The Voice):
38 Jesus continued from there toward Jerusalem and came to another village. Martha, a resident of that village, welcomed Jesus into her home. 39 Her sister, Mary, went and sat at Jesus’ feet, listening to Him teach. 40 Meanwhile Martha was anxious about all the hospitality arrangements.
Martha (interrupting Jesus): Lord, why don’t You care that my sister is leaving me to do all the work by myself? Tell her to get over here and help me.
Jesus: 41 Oh Martha, Martha, you are so anxious and concerned about a million details, 42 but really, only one thing matters. Mary has chosen that one thing, and I won’t take it away from her.
As we keep on doing everything we can on the new project called VAYA that God has laid on our hearts, it is amazing how easy it is to get submerged in the overwhelming number of details and things that must be coordinated. We can easily succumb to fears and doubts and questions. It is a huge undertaking and at times, we can feel a bit alone on this stage of the journey.
This week, God sent us a number of different encouraging responses from people – a young man who is interested in training through VAYA, a Vineyard worship leader who wants to help with VAYA and God also opened the door to whole new world of Vineyard churches involved in Latin American missions. We are excited at the possibilities this resource brings (thank you Michael for your timely call and encouragement!). But, the bottom line is, reflecting on both the woman at the well and the 2 sisters, one thing is abundantly clear – it stands out like a clarion call and reminds us of our Source – there is Living Water available to us … all the time and we want to make SURE we, like Mary, will hear Jesus say that we have, “chosen the one thing that matters.” We need to … drink more water … living water and HE will be the one to walk us through the thick miry swamp of details and financial needs and finding the right passion-driven students. HE will direct our paths (Prov. 3: 5). This is one thing, male OR female that should not be put off or be a reward for taking care of other things. This needs to be our highest priority. Under the law in the Old Testament, God was always to receive the FIRST tenth as the tithe – not the last tenth after other things were done. We need to remember to have a Mary heart and …
