Martha or Mary?

I am Catholic, and in the Catholic Church we have this thing where we have feast days where we celebrate certain saints. One day last week it happened to be the feast day of Martha and Mary. I think we all know the story, but click here for a quick review.

People were posting on Facebook all about, "Are you a Martha or a Mary?" Because we live in the digital age, and the only way I even know if it is a feast day is if Facebook tells me. 'Nough said. Actually I rely on Facebook for all news, but that's not totally relevant here....


I read the passage and I gave it a brief second of thought before realizing the Martha or Mary question is barely a question. The truth is that I am so Martha my name should probably be changed to Martha.

Martha is about doing things. About doing things for God and I am the very same way.

I am about doing things in general. Sitting at God's feet listening to him is soo not my thing. In fact that just might be the total opposite of my personality.


Still I think many more of us in this day and age have become Martha's. I read an article last week in which the author said that the problem with the modern age is that we base our worth totally on what we accomplish.

 He went so far as to say that until we can reach the end of a day without accomplishing anything important and still know our own worth; we will never be happy or satisfied (loosely paraphrased because I lost the link).

So I would beg to argue that we have become an entire nation of Martha's. Our worth is so dependent on what we do that we cannot just be. We cannot just sit at the feet of Jesus because we feel that we are not enough, because we base our entire worth on what we do.

I know this is true for me. I spent a day resting after a long week and weekend. I was working on recovering from a cold and still feeling sick. I read books and rested. I tried to just be. But for me that is nearly impossible because I have bought into the lie that unless I accomplish something I am worthless.


You might not be a full blown Martha, but I think this culture of accomplishment has affected all of us. The question then is not so much are we a Martha or a Mary but do we feel like we are enough?

Do we feel that we can just sit with God, without doing anything and be enough?

Because you are, because we are enough and we need to learn to accept that and Be Still. 

 

 

 

You are so loved!

~Emily 

Childlike: What It's Not

"Unless you become like a little child, you cannot enter the kingdom of Heaven." Mathew 18:3

I want to talk about what this doesn't mean. I will write another post about what it does mean next week.


When I see myself before God as a child, I am in a candy store.

The whole event is perfectly ingrained in my mind. I can visualize myself. I am 5 years old, small and adorable with lovely blond curls.

Like most kids in a candy store, I want the candy.

I want it so badly that I am throwing a royal fit. I am lying on the ground, screaming, crying and kicking my legs. I want that candy and I want it now!

The only part of this story that's real is that those are the kind of fits I threw as a child. Thankfully, I don't throw those kinds of fits anymore when I don't get what I want. At least not literally.


But I have to admit, when talking to God, I still throw those fits.

I yell at Him and think, "Why won't you just give me what I want?"

I want something and I want Him to give it to me. I know that it's childish to demand and beg and get mad when I do not get what I want.

Still, when I look deep down, I know that I still do this with God. I still throw fits and demand he give me what I want. Like I said, it's childish.


Childlike is something totally different. Stick around for next week when I go into detail about what it really means to be a child.


Trust me, it has nothing to do with throwing fits....


You are so loved.
~Emily

Sorry for the lack of posts last week... we all went on an unplanned blog hiatus. The good news is that Sarah is back and will be posting again! :)

Limitless

 

Logo: Steubenville Conferences

For more information about Steubenville conferences, which are awesome, and play host to powerful speakers, great music, lots of Holy Spirit, and Jesus present in the Eucharist, visit http://www.steubenville.org/

 

A thief comes only to steal and slaughter and destroy; I came so that they might have life and have it more abundantly.

John 10:10

 

 

So, I just got back from a youth conference. A really awesome, amazing conference. I cannot wait to share it with you all, but it's going to take a while to finish processing, and even longer to express.

 

 

For now I just want to give you the verse at the heart of it. The whole weekend was based off this, and the theme, "Limitless", revolved around it. It has quickly become one of my favorite verses.

 

 It is so applicable for me and where I am right now. I have a struggle which strives nearly constantly to deprive me of joy and peace and life as God wants it for me. I need to fix my eyes on Him and trust in His limitless power and His limitless plan. This verse is a beautiful reminder of that.

 

 

What are the thieves in your life? What are the things that threaten to rob you of abundant life? Is there a person who is leading you astray? Is there a situation that is beyond your control but is still weighing on your heart? Is there an attitude that's draining you, or a sin you cannot shake?

 

Whatever you're facing, whatever your thieves might be, take courage and throw them into the heart of Jesus. Cast them at His feet. He has already conquered everything we have to fear and is waiting, desperate for us to give it all to Him and longing to give us His abundant life in return.

 

What are we waiting for?


Peace be with you.
~Caitlin

 

 

 

Still Sinners

 

 

No words need to be added for this verse. It stands totally on its own.

On a side note this summer posting is a little sporadic and all over the place because it's summer! Enjoy the sunshine and sporadic posts. :)

You are so loved.

~Emily

God's Plan vs. Mine

This verse kept coming back to me. It haunted me, even in the daylight.

It persisted and demanded to be taken seriously-not brushed off or ignored as merely consoling words of comfort. I think we have all heard this verse a lot, which is why I failed to realize its significance in my life. 

When I really think about this verse, I realize that those plans that God has for me look nothing like the plans I have for me. 

For instance, a popular thing to do in Christian circles is to write down a list of qualities or traits that you would like in a husband. The goal is to know what you value and to help you stick by those values.

I cannot even write out that list. Every time I try and think about it, I write down attributes of whatever particular guy I like at the time. 

I try to tell God, "This is the man I would like. Now change your plans." 

I am a planner, a controller. I want to make my own plan and follow it. For me, not having a plan is really scary. The problem is that my plan is just that: mine. It is not God's. 

Time and time again in my life I have wanted something and not gotten it. I did not want something bad, I wanted something good. Each time my desire faded and I was left without. 

Every single time without fail, when this has happened, something way better has occurred in my life. Something totally unexpected and way better than I could have ever imagined. 

I can just imagine God saying "See, this is my plan...and it is way better than yours!" (Yes, He has sass.)

Still, every single time, I doubt him. 

I doubt him because I know pain. I know disappointment, as does anyone who has really lived. I write this to say that it is hard. 

Life is hard. Trusting in God's plan in the midst of it all; That is hard.

Trusting in God's plan is something that I fail at, all the time. Still, I choose to trust in God's plan for me, even when I do not know it.

You are so loved!

~Emily

The Skit Guys

Some weeks are utterly crazy during the summer. Those weeks you do not have a chance to breathe... or write a proper post for your blog! Well, this is one of those weeks. But other weeks when we have all the free time in the world we get to internet browse!

Today I have for you some wonderful picks of Biblical browsing to aid your faith.

Today we are talking about Youtube and the Bible, two of Sarah's favorite things.

A few years ago, I found these guys called The Skit Guys on Youtube. They talk about God and the Bible, and they seem to be pretty awesome! Although I cannot vouch for all of their stuff, what I have seen is really good.

I hope you enjoy and I hope this is one of those weeks for you when you have tons of time to peruse the internet. :) I'll get there one of these weeks.

You are so loved.
~Emily

If the YouTube videos in this post don't work for you, just go on over to YouTube and explore The Skit Guys. :)

Love Conquers All

For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control.

2 Timothy 1:7

The first time I remember having a "favorite Bible verse", it was this one. I have quite a few more favorites nowadays, but this one still holds a very special place in my heart.

Everyone experiences fear. It's a natural human emotion. Today more than ever, there are many things in the world that we could be afraid of. But we were not made to be afraid. 

We were made to love. We were made to be in relationship with Love Itself. God is Love.

Love conquers all. 


Peace be with you. 
~Caitlin