Luke 10:38 As they were traveling along, Jesus went into a village. A woman named Martha welcomed him into her home.
Luke 10:39 She had a sister named Mary. Mary sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to him talk.
Luke 10:40 But Martha was upset about all the work she had to do. So she asked, "Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work all by myself? Tell her to help me."
Luke 10:41 The Lord answered her, "Martha, Martha! You worry and fuss about a lot of things.
Luke 10:42 There’s only one thing you need. Mary has made the right choice and that one thing will not be taken away from her."
How annoying it is to stare at pictures that are taken out of focus. You would wish that the studio had not printed photos that do not satisfy your sight, although the characters occupy a very significant space in your life. In the same way, it is totally exasperating to find people in the church whose lives are out of focus. They come to church because they HAVE to, not because they WANT to. They join you in praise and worship because they NEED to do it and not because they LOVE to do it. They even pray because they SHOULD do it, rather than they WOULD do it. Christian life is not a BLESSING in that case, rather it becomes a BURDEN. Are you ENJOYING your Christian life, or simply ENDURING it? If that is your life, then your life is OUT OF FOCUS. You need to have a life that is AUTO FOCUS! It’s a life that is focused on God and His grace rather than the global crisis and economic recession that plague the entire globe.
In photography, an out of focus picture could be caused by two factors. One, there is not enough LIGHT to illumine the imagery. Two, the LENS are not properly set to capture the imagery. To relate that in our spiritual life, inadequate light would mean that our devotion to God is not in proper order, and improper setting of lens would mean that our duty to God is not consistently observed. There has to be a perfect balance of light and lens to have a perfect picture. In the same way, there has to be a perfect balance of our DEVOTION and DUTY in order to have a life that is spiritually AUTO FOCUS. A life that is spiritually out of focus will eventually manifest in Unclear Visions, Unfounded Perceptions, Unreliable Interpretations and Unfruitful Actions. So how do you know when you are out of focus?
First, when you find yourself Getting Angry at your Situations. In our reading passage we find Martha doing the kitchen chores alone but energetically. But Luke described her attitude in verse 40, "But Martha was upset about all the work she had to do". She was actually doing great and working well. Her hands were on the job; her head was also on the job. But her heart was not on the job. She did not love what she was doing, although she was undoubtedly effective on it. In the life of Martha we can discover three possible reasons to our getting angry at our situations. One, when we allow distraction to ravage our service. It is a wonderful thing to serve – rewarding so to speak. But when we allow distraction take its toll, then we become grumpy over the things that we do, however effective we may be doing them. Two, when we assume desertion to undermine our focus on the job. How often we do things for God, and we do it alone. But instead of feeling privileged to do the job alone, more often than not, we feel so deserted that no one even lifts a finger to help us. We ask God the question, "Shall I always do this alone and by myself?" Thank God if you are doing things alone, for God has chosen you among the many and therefore you are handpicked by Him. That means you are solely fit to do the job. Three, when we accept depression that would result to discouragement. When no one seems to care that you are working alone; when no one seems to notice your hard works; when you hear no words of appreciation or a tap on your shoulders from the leaders and co-workers in God’s kingdom, you tend to give up. You scream loud these words, "The Lord must do something in my Personal Situation". If you are this type of a person, I can say, "YOU ARE OUT OF FOCUS!" Friend, it’s time for you to know that your reward is the work itself. It is such a marvelous thing that God trusts us to do His work. What an honor and privilege! Our minds can be distressed; our emotions can be oppressed; our wills can be suppressed, yet Christ has firmly expressed, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33.
Second, when you notice that you are Feeling Sorry for your Self. Still in verse 40 we see Martha in her emotional cage of self pity, "Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work all by myself?” She wanted to shift the main attraction to her chores. Perhaps she thought that the visit of Jesus to their house is more of a social event or a friends’ get-together party – a reception with a grand buffet. That is why when she can no longer cover all the tasks of wrapping the "lumpiya", cooking the "pansit", chopping the ingredients of "bopis", mixing the fruit salad, etc. etc. (my own paraphrase), that is when things turned bad to worse. She saw herself under the circumstances - circumtances that she made herself. She felt so sorry for her self – the grip of self pity. There are three possible reasons to our feeling sorry for our self. One, when our spirit falls into Inadequacy. When we lack personal prayer and quiet time, personal study of the Word, and when we tend to become lax in our personal devotions. Those are the times when we feel spiritually low and we become vulnerable to the devil’s deceptive attacks. Two, when our soul falls in to Iniquity. When we sin in our daily walk (as we all do), and come to the point of feeling a bit of self-condemnation, we feel defeated. Three, when our body falls into Infirmity. Everyone is prone to physical illness. There are numerous causes of physical infirmities. Our lifestyle is one of the major causes of illnesses. Our eating habits, work habits, leisure time, and many more are the major causes of our ailments. When we are physically ill, emotionally down and spiritually inconsistent, we cry out, "The Lord must do something in my Personal Condition". If you are this type of a person, I can say, "YOU ARE OUT OF FOCUS". Friends, we are not exempted from sickness; we are not deferred from loneliness; we are not spared from brokenness but God has given us the power to live victoriously over our personal problems. We have all the heavenly rights to become victorious. We are children of the King of kings and servants of the Lord of lords!
Third, when you realize that you are Becoming Weary in your Service. In the same verse 40, Martha boldly voiced out her demands to Jesus, "Tell her to help me". What a desperate demand. Not long before that day, she used to do the kitchen work alone and there were no complaint - none at all. This time it’s totally different. She wanted to distract something that is more important than what she is doing by taking people to her side to do what is for her to tackle. There are three possible reasons to our becoming weary in our service. One, when we become envious about the role of our co-workers. That green-eyed monster kicks in when we see other people seem to have more convenient responsibilities in the ministry, especially when their tasks are in the limelight and ours are in the backstage. Two, when we become furious about the rest of our co-laborers. Martha saw Mary sitting at the feet of Jesus, while she was spinning around like a whistling top, rushing to prepare all the menu of the day. The same is true in church ministry. There are people who seem not to stop doing things, and there are some who seem not to do anything but sit and pray. Three, when we become dubious about the rule of Christ. "Is God still in control of the situation?" Martha must have questioned Jesus about what was going on in the house. Probably. When she demanded that Jesus would tell Mary to help in the kitchen, she was implying her lack of trust in the rule of Jesus. As if Jesus did not know what needs to be done, first and foremost. That’s a question of unbelief. We often forget that God is a transcendent God. He sees the world and everything that happens in it. He is also an immanent God. He is involved in the entire creation. Nothing occurs or transpires in the whole creation that He did not approve and that He is not involved. When you become weary in your service, you cry out, "The Lord must do something in my Personal Designation". If you are that type of a person, I can say, YOU ARE OUT OF FOCUS! Friends, when other people seem different, don’t panic. When other people do nothing but sit, don’t fret. When the Lord seems so quiet, don’t quit. Listen to what the apostle Paul has to say, "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving". Colossians 3:23, 24.
Is your life out of focus or auto focus? When the amount of light is not in perfect balance with the setting of the lens, however beautiful is the imagery, it will turn out blurred and out of focus. The same is true in our spiritual life. Our devotion should be in perfect balance with our duty. We should not get angry at our situations; we must not feel sorry for our self; and we don’t have to become weary in our service. We should be like Mary in our Worship, but like Martha in our Work. Then only we can have an AUTO FOCUS life.
