“No Need to Worry”

It’s a good thing we heard the story of the Good Samaritan last week. Now we have Mary and Martha this week. Last week we needed a lot of good Samaritans to help out with the Carpenter’s Project. If everybody who helped out last week had decided to be a Mary instead of a Martha, then a lot of things would never have gotten finished. I think that Luke had a reason for putting this story right after the Good Samaritan. The Good Samaritan calls us to action. This story, in the home of Mary and Martha, calls us to slow down, to listen, to sit at Jesus’ feet and take the time to hear what he has to say. The story of Mary and Martha says to us, there is no need to worry.

Here’s a little story about a time I was sitting down on the steps of the cabin where I lived for 2 months in the summer of 1984. This cabin was part of a summer camp called Cape Cod Sea Camps on Cape Cod, in Brewster, MA. I worked at that camp for three summers as a counselor and swim teacher. That summer one of the girls in my cabin was Amy Redford, the daughter of Robert Redford. One of the first PG movies I ever saw was The Sting, starring Robert Redford and Paul Newman. But when I asked my son if he knew who Robert Redford was, he said no. I couldn’t believe it! I told him he is a famous movie actor, the equivalent of Johnny Depp today. And then he said Ohhhh.

Whenever a parent came to visit their child at camp, there would be an announcement over the loudspeaker for that child to come up to the office. So you can imagine, when Amy Redford was paged to come up to the office, every counselor in that camp, at least all the female counselors, would find a reason why they had to go up to the office at that very moment. So here I am sitting on the steps of my cabin, it’s rest time, so all the girls are on their bunks. Guess who comes striding down towards the cabin? Robert Redford! So my hair’s a mess, I’m wearing my jean shorts and a t-shirt, and I’m going to get to meet Robert Redford! So I stand up, and the first thing I notice is how short he is. He’s just a little taller than I am, wearing jeans and cowboy boots. The next thing I notice is how wrinkled his skin looks. He says hello, and I say hello, trying to be really casual about it. And then out comes his daughter and they walk off together towards the beach.

So here’s my point in sharing this with you. What if we had the same excitement, the same sense of anticipation at meeting Jesus every day, as we do at meeting a celebrity like Robert Redford? We don’t have to wonder when Jesus will show up. We don’t have to wait for a call over the loudspeaker to go and meet Jesus. He’s always with us. And he loves when we take the time to sit quietly with him like Mary did that day. That day Mary understood something that Martha did not. I think Mary knew that Jesus’ time on earth was coming to an end. And so she put first things first. And with that, she put her worries aside.

Maybe Mary had done what this woman did. She made herself a worry table. She knew that her fears were ruining her life, and she had to do something about it. So she calculated each one of her worries. When she did that she discovered that 40 percent will never happen; 30 percent were all about decisions that can’t be changed; 12 percent were about others' criticism, mostly untrue; 10 percent were about her health, which gets worse with worry anyway; and only 8 percent were legitimate worries, since life has some real problems to face.

Life does have its challenges, there’s no doubt about that. We all know it does no good to worry, and yet we still do it. Just like Martha, we let worry get the better of us. I hear people worrying about getting things done- things you have promised yourself you will do, things you do for others. Things that people rely on you for: like housework or yardwork, or church and community work. We are told that Martha was distracted by her “many tasks.” In Greek, that same word for “many tasks” is “diakonia.” This is where the word Deacon comes from. I know the nominating committee is looking for a few more deacons, so I don’t want to discourage you, but I don’t want you to worry either. Go home and sit at Jesus’ feet and see what he has to say about it. Here’s just a gentle reminder that worrying doesn’t get us anywhere. There is no need to worry.

And still, we can’t seem to get away from our worries. There is an old story about a man who left his village, weary of his life, longing for a place where he could escape all the struggles of this earth. He set out in search of a magical city--the heavenly city of his dreams, where all things would be perfect. He walked all day and by dusk found himself in a forest where he decided to spend the night. Eating a crust of bread he had brought, he said his prayers, and just before going to sleep, placed his shoes in the center of the path, pointing them in the direction he would continue the next morning. However, when the man was asleep, someone appeared in the night and turned his shoes around, pointing them back in the direction from which he had come. The next morning, he got up, gave thanks to God and started on his way again in the direction his shoes pointed. For a second time, he walked all day and toward evening finally saw the magical city in the distance. It wasn't as large as he had expected. As he got closer, it looked curiously familiar. But he pressed on, found a street much like his own, knocked on a familiar door, greeted the family he found there and lived happily ever after in the magical city of his dreams. What God does in the night is turn our shoes around and point us toward home.

And when we arrive there, what better thing to do than to sit down at Jesus’ feet and give thanks. You could do this while sitting in your favorite chair, or at the kitchen table, or outside in your garden. Wherever you are, Jesus will meet you there.

In just a minute we’re going to sing “In the Garden.” But before we do I wanted to take a look at the words to this hymn. People who put together hymnals often don’t include this hymn, even though it’s very popular. I’m guessing the reason for this is because the words imply that it’s just me and Jesus, that I can go out in my garden all by myself, and walk and talk with Jesus. I don’t see anything wrong with this hymn, as long as we sing it alongside other hymns which talk about the church and being in community with other Christians. It’s a beautiful hymn that is part of our faith heritage.

This hymn reminds me of Mary sitting at Jesus’ feet. There were other people in the room that day, because I’m sure Martha had a big crowd to feed, but as far as Mary was concerned, it was just her and Jesus. Here are the words to the 3rd verse: “I’d stay in the garden with Him Tho’ the night around me be falling, But He bids me go; Thro’ the voice of woe His voice to me is calling.” Jesus bids us to come and sit at his feet, like Mary did, but then pretty soon he bids us to go out into the community, out into the world, to do good. It’s a balance, isn’t it, to be both a hearer and a doer? Jesus loved Martha just as much as he loved Mary. There is a time for each of us to be more like Martha, and a time to be more like Mary. So take Mary’s gifts of stillness and peace, of living in the moment, of quietly loving Jesus, with you when you are called to your many tasks, whatever they may be. And remember, there is no need to worry. Let us pray…