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Vocation Meditation -
July 18, 2010
Jesus entered a village
where a woman whose name was Martha welcomed him.
She had a sister named Mary
who sat beside the Lord at his feet listening to him speak.
Martha, burdened with much serving, came to him and said,
"Lord, do you not care
that my sister has left me by myself to do the serving?
Tell her to help me."
The Lord said to her in reply,
"Martha, Martha, you are anxious and worried about many things.
There is need of only one thing.
Mary has chosen the better part
and it will not be taken from her."
Like Martha, many people today are "burdened with much serving". It is not uncommon to hear a friend or a neighbour say exasperatedly "there is not enough time to do everything." The demands of life do not cease.
In this week's Gospel, it appears as if Mary is shirking her responsibilities, increasing Martha's heavy burden of work and prompting Martha to cry out in despair to the Lord: "do you not care?" How dare Mary sit idly while Martha is forced to take on more than she could handle!
Is Martha's burden really too much to handle? Or has she approached her work without God?
Rather than go to Jesus first in prayer (in His very presence, no less!), rather than offer her work as a sweet sacrifice to God, rather than see her service as a way to sanctification, Martha goes to work alone… and despairs.
St. Josemaria Escriva says "First, prayer; then, atonement; in the third place, very much 'in the third place', action."
Entrusting our work to the Lord before we start working ensures that we will not be "anxious and worried about many things".
Vocations Challenge:
"There is need of only one thing"
Do I rush headlong into work and apostolate without giving it all to Christ first in prayer and supplication?
Dear God,
You set us in the Garden of Eden to "cultivate and take of it", to work for your greater glory. See that we recall with joy and enthusiasm our vocation to offer all our labour to you; help us to approach each task with a supernatural vision.
Amen
For the full Gospel reading for this Sunday, visit the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops site.