From the time we are young, girls receive very clear messages about our path in life.
We watch our mothers. We play with our dolls, and we begin to learn some things. We learn that we are the caretakers. We clean. We straighten. We wash. We make lists. We take care of. We cook. We run errands. We worry about how things look. We bake. We sew. And by the time we’ve grown up, the very fact that we know how to do these activities often compels us to focus our energy, our time and our attention on these small details of life. Keeping the house in order. Supporting our spouses. Participating in the life of our church. Keeping our children active. All good work. Work that at the end of the day can yield a certain satisfaction, yet if we are not careful, can also reduce our circle of influence and keep us from knowing and fulfilling God’s greater purpose for our lives.
Sometimes it can us take years to realize, that we have missed the significant distinction between task and purpose.
Certainly no woman in Scripture was more consumed by the details than Martha, yet when Jesus responded to her, He did not say, “You’re all alright. She’s alright. We’re all alright.” Jesus looked at Martha, then looked at Mary and said
One thing is needful: and Mary hath chosen that good part.
Many of our churches choose to interpret this passage as a recommendation that women have a devotional…or study the Scripture. But in the broader context of Jesus’ interactions with women and the Great Commission, this passage takes on a far more revolutionary meaning.
In the parable of the talents, Jesus clearly laid out the expectation that each of us will continue the work of the kingdom of God. Yet so of many us, like Martha, become so burdened under the weight of the lives that we are creating for ourselves and our families that we can only ask “Am I doing things right?”
We never stop to ask, ‘Am I doing the right things?’
If we’re honest, many of us don’t want to ask this question. We’re too busy and frankly, we can’t afford to upset the apple cart. So many of us, banish the thought. Because let’s be honest, it is easier to simply do what is expected. Especially when the path laid out for Christian women in our society is so compelling. Yet in Matthew 25, Jesus strongly advises us to take a hard look what He thinks our priorities should be and to put our proverbial houses in order. And He also warns us of the consequences of not doing so.
Too many of us will have reason to regret not answering the call of God. And there is so much work to be done.
Imagine if each one of us took her one, five or ten talents and consistently applied them to the work that Jesus spoke of in Matthew 25…feeding the hungry, consoling the lost, caring for the sick or visiting those in prison. Can you imagine what would change in our communities? In our states? In our nation? In the world?
In 2017, we believe that it is time. Not to walk away from our responsibilities as wives, mothers and friends, but to ask and to answer the call of God in more than our own homes, and our own churches. As women of the cross, we are the answer, we have the solution to hunger, to illness, to despair and to a lack of integrity. We are the hands and feet of Jesus. Where we will go, He will go. Where we will not go, He does not go.
So, what will you be about in the New Year? Task or purpose?
