We read in the creation story that we are created in the image of God.  What does that mean?  What sets God apart from every other living thing?  God has total ultimate freedom to choose.  God chose to bring into existence everything that is.  God chose to have a relationship with what God made and to deal with the human race, at least at this point, in a love relationship.   

God chose to make the sky blue, and give us the right components in eyesight to appreciate it.  As we look at the beauties of creation, we see God has made many choices in everything.   

Perhaps that which best labels us as “created in the image of God” is our ability to choose.  The choices we make pile one on top of one another and ultimately determine who we become as individuals and how we relate to one another.  

When we have made the wrong choice, we don’t have to continue down that path and compound our problems for the future.  We have the ability to say, “I made the wrong choice.  I want to re-choose.”

Most of us from the time we are toddlers are taught about our responsibility.  We are taught to pick up our own toys and put them where they belong.  There is a certain age we are taught it is our responsibility to dress ourselves.

My mom liked to tell the story of our sister as a three-year-old dressing herself in a wool skirt and sweater when it was 103 degrees in July.  My mom didn’t make her suffer and live with her decision but encouraged her to re-choose and make a cooler choice.

When you were a child, perhaps you thought spelling was a stupid exercise and you refused to do it.  Sooner or later you realized that being able to spell words correctly helps you in written communication.  You found that you weren’t going to get very far in life without knowing how to spell.

At the point of knowing you had made the wrong choice, you then had the opportunity to re-choose and work on the spelling list and become better at spelling and thus more successful in learning.

Maybe it is finances.  Perhaps when you were young you just spent money:  yours, your parents’, borrowed from friends, your charge cards maxed out.  Then, from the point of being broke and without hope, you decided to re-choose and learn to do better in the area of handling money.  

Today’s scripture is about two sisters who made different choices.  One sister was a homemaker and a great cook.  She loved to have company for supper and get out all the best dishes.  Her name was Martha.  

Many believe Martha to have been the older sister, which would have made her also someone who knew about responsibility.  She would have been good at making decisions and organizing the household.  Whatever needed doing, Martha knew how to do it.

Even today the number one authority on homemaking and entertaining is still a woman named Martha.

The other sister, Mary, liked to listen to stories and to hear debate.

In this account, Martha was the boss of the kitchen and she was getting a bit overwhelmed.  When Jesus came to their house, Martha chose to make the meal the most important part of his visit.  

Martha could have been shopping in the marketplace when she met Jesus and invited him to come to dinner.  Jesus came to dinner and he brought 12 grown men with him.  That made 16 coming to dinner, including her brother, Lazarus.

During the last-minute meal preparations, it seems that Martha could not get Mary’s attention.  Martha was the Home Ec specialist.  The meal was her responsibility, but she needed help.

Finally Martha had had enough.  She said to Jesus, “You are so careful to care for everyone; what about me?  While I am working to do my best in the kitchen preparing the meal, Mary keeps choosing to sit in here listening to you.  Will you please tell her she needs to re-choose and come out in the kitchen and help me?”
 
Jesus replied to Martha, “Martha, your choice says the meal is most important.  You have chosen to make the meal very involved when a simple meal would be sufficient.  You have taken on the responsibility of the meal and you are working on it so diligently, but it will be forgotten tomorrow.  Mary has chosen this time to focus on relationships, and that is not going to vanish.”

Martha wanted Jesus to tell Mary to re-choose and come to the kitchen and help her with her responsibility.  Jesus invited Martha to re-choose and come and enjoy the relationships in the room.

This lesson is teaching us to examine our choices and what it is we spend the majority of our time doing.

Are we like responsibility-first Martha, choosing to put our time and energy and money into something that has very little or no lasting consequences?

Most of us put long hours into doing the same things that will need doing again and again.  We all have responsibilities and there are people who are counting on us doing what we do.  We go about life in the same routine and the days, the months, and the years slip by.    

While it is true there are some chores that must be repeated, we must learn that they are not the reason for our life on this earth.  Often we choose to take on responsibilities that have little to do with relationships.  We were made for an eternal relationship with God.  We have our time on this earth, in this life, given to us so we may respond to God’s desire to know us.  

The sad thing is that we spend very little time on relationships.  The simple truth is our relationships suffer because we have chosen poorly.

We act as if we are simply physical creatures and the most important part of life is our responsibility, getting done what needs doing.

Never has someone on their deathbed lamented, “I wished I would have had more time to roof the house, or cement the driveway.  I sorry I didn’t get the car washed one last time before today.”  Most of the time a person who has time to reflect on life’s regrets talks most about wanting to re-choose relationships.  “I wished I would not have spent so much time working, and had spent more time with my kids, more time with my spouse,”  and the relationship list goes on.

One thing for sure:  there isn’t enough time for everything.  We have to make choices.  We can be only at one place at one time doing what we are doing.

Have you ever had that feeling while you are doing what you are doing, something is going undone?  You may spend Saturday morning washing your car and then you have a clean car, but your lawn won’t get mowed.  You may spend Saturday morning washing your car and mowing your lawn, but you didn’t get the shopping done.  You may get up really early and get the car washed and the shopping done and the lawn mowed on Saturday morning, but you didn’t get the deck stained as you planned.  If it rains, you are really behind in your responsibilities.

We, like Martha, find there is far more responsibility than there is time to get it all done.  While we are busy doing one thing after another, often our relationships suffer.  We must re-choose.  

Martha could have prepared dinner for Jesus, Mary, Lazarus, and herself easily.  When she issued the invitation, did she know inviting Jesus meant inviting a dozen other men?  The work that was required of two hands was going to be a big job for four.

She wanted Mary to re-choose responsibility.  She wanted Mary to join her in the frenzy of extending a menu for four to now include 16.  When Mary did not re-choose as Martha wanted, Martha called in Jesus to help persuade Mary.

Martha found that the instruction of Jesus did not include getting Mary to re-choose responsibility but for Martha herself to re-choose relationships.  

This is one of those scriptures where I wonder, what happened next?  What was the result of Jesus inviting Martha to re-choose?   

Did Martha serve the food she had prepared to that point, which enabled her to come and sit and listen to Jesus with Mary?

This scripture is not to condemn Martha, but to invite us to see situations in which we are offered the opportunity to re-choose how we spend our time.

If we are honest, we have to admit that most of us are choosing responsibility over relationships.  Responsibilities have no end to them.  There are always more waiting for us.  

Created in the image of God with the ability to choose, we also have the ability to re-choose.  We can admit, “I have it all wrong.  I spend too much time trying to fulfill my responsibilities, which means I neglect my relationships.”

What are we going to do with this story of Martha and Mary?  How is God’s word speaking to you?

                                                          Amen.

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