Recently I was at a wedding and I had the chance to observe Martha as she interacted among the guests. I was fascinated at the thing I saw. She did exactly what I have described in my recent posts about silence, hearing and relationship.
I walk with Martha and know her pretty well. I have been called to serve and assist her so I am keenly aware of her shifts in direction. It has been a work of the Spirit in and through me, and one that enriches my life.
In this awareness I often can observe God’s movement and her response to Him. What I viewed her doing was looking to see what the Father Himself was doing and then moving out into it. It is so natural that the casual witness would never see it, but I did. Her spirit turned to see and then she followed Him where He led. Maybe I was so acutely aware of it because I was meant to communicate it through this blog.
Where Jesus went in her was to a man, actually the pastor who performed the ceremony. For Christ in Martha, He wasn’t involved with anyone else for this period of time. Personally I am usually aware of everything that is going on while I talk to someone, but for Martha there was no one in the room but the man in front of her. I watched as she sat across the table and listened to him. She had very few words but sat and listened. She was not uninvolved because she was completely in the conversation. I imagine this man would have felt totally validated and heard, for Martha was a hearer.
Carole was sitting next to me at the dining table and I got her attention and pointed Martha out to her. I said, “That is just like Jesus when He engages us.” When He wants our attention, there is no one else in the room. He focuses and looks us right in the eye.
I don’t know what they were talking about; for me, the visual of seeing what transpired held so much more weight than anything that could have been said. It was exciting.
I know from what I saw that this man knew nothing more about Martha. Just like God, if you wish to speak, He will let you flow. But if you wish to know Him, you must silence your compulsion to talk and wait to hear. Who knows, the ministry of the Spirit might have been to hear rather than to speak. How many countless years has Christ had to listen to me? Ugh! I speak no judgment on anything that transpired, I am just rejoicing in the fact that I saw the Spirit of the Living God moving through a vessel of His unhindered and unsullied. It makes me SO hungry to give Him entrance to do the same. “Remember the new man!”
Thanks, Martha! I enjoyed seeing Christ today.
