September Storyteller: Am I a Mary, or a Martha…or, Both?
- Merry Sorrells
- Sep 30
- 4 min read
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Dear Community of Friends,
It takes a good deal of self-discipline for me not to check my phone first thing in the morning when I wake up. For years, I have been working to train myself to turn to God first before turning to my phone to see what’s happening in my life and in the world. For this Storyteller, I was led to do a little AI research to see what everyone else is doing. Here’s what I found:
One study concludes that 44% of US major faith groups pray daily, and 50% of those report praying at wake-up; therefore, an approximation is that roughly 22% of U.S. adults pray first thing in the morning.
It has become clearer and clearer to me that starting my day with prayer and gratitude, when I first awaken, by recognizing that God is directing my day, accordingly, it becomes a day filled with love, goodness, and productivity. Honoring and glorifying God at the start of every day puts us on the sure path for a successful, God provided experience. Expressing gratitude to God for being always present, all-powerful, and all knowing, is a wonderful uplifting way to begin each day. It makes it almost impossible to be grumpy and guarantees a smiling start to the morning.
If I put this simple act of prayerful devotion first in my day, every day, I find that it is easy to return to prayer frequently throughout the day when challenges arise.
Recently, I led a Middle School Chapel, focusing on teaching the students the importance and transformative power of prayer in life. I wanted them to learn to listen for God’s voice, to work on developing their relationship to God, and to see Him/Her as a constant friend and companion. We teach many important things in schools, but for me, the most important thing we do is to develop the spiritual identity of every student, and to teach them that God is an ever-present help in their daily lives.
The Chapel highlighted the story of Mary and Martha, from the Gospel of Luke in the New Testament. It is one of my favorite stories because of the lesson it teaches. My telling of it went something like this:
Jesus was friends with three siblings named Mary, Martha, and Lazarus. Martha encountered Jesus while walking in the street one day and invited him to their home. Martha knew that Jesus would likely be accompanied by many of his followers. She was so excited that he would come to visit at their house that she got busy immediately making preparations for his visit.
Knowing how special this visit would be, she wanted everything to be perfect for their special guests. She began to prepare food, tidy the house, and worked to be sure that everyone would be comfortable. In my mind, I picture her bustling around the kitchen, stirring pots, baking bread, and setting out bowls and mats. She was busy with this work when he arrived.
Mary chose something different. Instead of helping with all the chores, she sat at Jesus’ feet, listening closely to his teaching. She wanted to soak in every word.
It didn’t take too long for Martha to get frustrated. She was working hard while Mary was just sitting there. Finally, Martha went to Jesus and said, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do all the work? Tell her to help me!”
But Jesus gently replied, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things. But only one thing is truly needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
He entreated Martha to sit beside Mary and learn more about God and how important He was in their lives.
Martha was focused on being busy and getting her tasks done. In those days, it was a woman’s job to take care of the work of the house. What she was doing was important!
Mary was focused on learning from Jesus and listening to his message to the people, and spending time communing with God.
Jesus reminded Martha (and us, in turn) that slowing down and taking the time to focus on God is the most important thing.
Life gets so busy, and whether we are Middle Schoolers with homework, sports, activities, friendships, and responsibilities, or whether we are adults with work, family responsibilities, finances, and workouts, we are always challenged to be persistent and focused on our relationship with God. It is what saves us and what fills us.
Life is about balance. It is a balance between being responsible like Martha, but also making space to be present like Mary. As I continue to work at trading in my early morning screen time for prayer time, I become more confident and consistent in letting my morning prayer lead throughout the day.
Thank you for being a part of my story.
Until next time,
Merry
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