Why am I in the Greenhouse?
“I need to finish this email and send it… I have to put the washing out today, it’s dry…Do I have time to go to the gym?...I haven’t caught up with my prayer buddy for ages, I really want to see her!... Am I doing enough for my kids so that they turn out as decent human beings?!... Oh, I need to get the living room ready for homegroup…WHAT, another PTA meeting?!”
I wonder, does 30 seconds in anyone elses’ mind sound like that? Then whatsapp ‘pings’ me back to the here and now and I read of a church family emergency so I drop my plans to go and help.
There’s always something to do, friends to catch up with, a situation to worry about and a cause to get involved with. Family, work, community, hobbies and passions are all wonderful evidences of God’s grace towards us but these delightful gifts often turn into dull, demanding duties. Or is that just me?
Then I play back conversations I’ve had during the week in my mind and think “I haven’t properly spoken to any of my friends about Jesus recently!” Why? That truly is my biggest longing in life, but why does it feel like another duty to add to the list rather than a delight?
I feel so busy ‘working for Jesus’ that I’m often filled with bitterness and even anger that others don’t see the need. I get overwhelmed and anxious because there are so many people hurting around me and I just don’t know how to fix it.
At times I’m filled with frustration, guilt, worry and even hopelessness. I know people need Jesus, I want to serve him, but I can’t do it all! My mind often gets me tied up in knots!
Maybe you’ve thought similar things at times, maybe that’s one of the reasons you’ve joined the Greenhouse Project. Your deep longing is to share Jesus but you don’t know how. So you want some focus, accountability and help to be creative in evangelism. Maybe you’re so busy that you would value encouragement to be intentional in sharing with your friends. Or maybe you want to ease that feeling of guilt and hopelessness and are seeking a way to serve Him.
Praise God for giving you a godly desire to make him known! It really is a delight to share Christ with our communities and it’s definitely more of a blessing when we team up for the task. But before we jump into this project let me share with you a realisation that really helped me recently to put my service of Jesus in perspective. As I studied the lives of the Sisters fromand their interaction with Jesus I was forced to ask myself 3 questions:
.How do I see myself?
How does Jesus see me?
How do others see me?
Lets ask these questions together to keep our service for Jesus a joy and delight flowing from love rather than a dull duty and a wrong thinking of what He expects of us.
How do I see myself?
Mary and Martha had God-given different personalities and they no doubt used those traits and gifts to serve Jesus but in Luke 10:38-42 we don’t see just those personality traits, we see their response to Jesus based on how they saw themselves, Jesus and others.
Take some time to read Luke 10:38-42
Martha might have seen herself as a worker, a server, a feeder, an organizer, a doer and a problem fixer. There were people in need and she thrived on being the meeter of those needs. She even got annoyed when others (her sister) didn’t see the need like she did, and did nothing to help. Can you sympathize with Martha?
Mary saw herself differently, instead of viewing others as needy and her as the solution, she saw herself as the one in need. But not in need of Martha’s home cooking but in need of hearing Jesus’s words. She saw herself as someone who had permission and was welcomed to sit, rest, learn and feast at Jesus’ feet. To lay down dull duty and delight in Jesus.#
A white wreath on a grean background. A line drawing of a woman’s face makes up part of the wreath. Text reads: Do I function as if I don’t need as much of Jesus as others do?
How do I view myself? Do I love to work and be busy for Jesus? Do I see the needs of others, jump in to start meeting those needs, but I’m blind to my own? Do I compare my service with the service, or lack of, with others? Do I function as if I don’t need as much of Jesus as others do? When the ability too serve is challenged or taken away, do I feel less of a disciple of Christ?
Or I see myself as someone who’s greatest need is Jesus, I need him way more than he needs my tiny acts of service. I need his life giving words, I need his gracious pardon of my sin so that I can be welcomed to sit, rest, learn and feast at Jesus’s feet. To lay down dull duty and delight in Jesus.
Do I see that I need Jesus and he, amazingly and wonderfully, desires me?
How does Jesus see me?
Jesus loved these sisters deeply (John 11:5) and as their Life-giving Creator, Teacher and Saviour, He knew what was best for them. Jesus tenderly speaks to Martha, he sees her to the core and knows she’s anxious and troubled so he offers her rest. He’s not blind to her desires but shows her that they’re distractions, they’re second best. He wants her to re-orientate her priorities and change her ‘portion’, to see herself differently and let Jesus meet her needs so that she can then delight in her God given duties. He wants to show her that he is the Giver and what he gives is the best.
Jesus sees Mary as one who is worthy of his time and teachings (most Rabbis in that time would not allow female disciples) but Mary knew that this man welcomes anyone who would come to him. He sees her as someone with a mind to be renewed for his glory, a humble heart ready for him to pour in his never-ending love, and hands ready receive his food. Jesus commends her for choosing the “good portion”. Jesus, like Martha saw people in need, but he is the only one that can truly satisfy that need forever. He is the one dishing up a treat, not Martha, and the portion than Jesus gives is truly wonderful! (Psalm 73:25-26).
Jesus respected these women, he revealed deep theological truth to them (John 11:25). Jesus wanted them to see he cared and was grieved by the things that hurt them (John 11:33-35) and he wanted them to see and experience his glory in John 11:41-43. Jesus saw Mary and Martha as valued women whom he wanted to share himself with!
We can often feel overwhelmed, anxious, distracted, and even angry, like Martha. Jesus sees and he Jesus knows, he even understands and he’ll gently call us back to himself. He wants us to chose the good portion because He wants to satisfy us, sustain us, nourish us and bring us deep joy and rest for our souls. He sees us as valued women He wants to share himself with. He’s asking us to sit with him.
As we start The Greenhouse Project and as Christmas approaches, there will be plenty of ‘distractions’ that could spoil our palette and leave a sour taste in our mouth. Let’s pray for a desire to want the best food, the good portion that Jesus offers. Obviously, the lost world needs the Saviour, but are we just as convinced that WE need him too and he wants us?
A thoughtful woman’s face makes up part of a hand drawn wreath on a green background. Text reads: What Jesus wants from us is to want him.
There is nothing that we could give to him that he hasn’t already given to us. What he wants from us is to want him. This City alight song spoke to me recently:
I approach the throne of glory
Nothing in my hands I bring
But the promise of acceptance
From a good and gracious King… I will give to You my burden
As You give to me Your strength
Come and fill me with Your Spirit
As I sing to You this praise… You deserve the greater glory
Overcome, I lift my voice
To the King in need of nothing
Empty handed I rejoice… You deserve the greater glory
Overcome with joy I sing
By Your love I am accepted
You’re a good and gracious King
How do others see me?
Mary, the listening, discerning disciple is back at Jesus’ feet in John 12:1-8, this time in an act of extravagant worship of Him. Has she been listening so intently that she really was preparing Jesus for what was to come or was this an overflow of unbridled love and devotion to her Lord and Saviour? What we know is that her love for Jesus affected others.
I was studying this passage with a group of women form our church and one wise legend pointed out that in v3 the fragrance of her worship filled the house! She went on to say “we should be like that, the fragrance of our love for Jesus should fill any place we’re in, it should rub off on people, they should ‘smell’ our love for Him.”
A white drawn wreath on a sage green background. Part of the circle is made up of a line drawn woman’s face. Texts reads: In her humble dedication to the one she loved deeply, she invited others to respond.
Do others see me like that, a person who LOVES Jesus? Do I take the fragrance of my love everywhere I go so that people ‘smell’ my love for Christ? Is my worship in all of life, (Rom 12:1-2) sacrificial and a ‘pleasing aroma to the Lord’ and also to others? Mary wasn’t showing off, she wasn’t serving others, she want even ‘sharing the gospel’ but in her humble dedication to the one she loved deeply, she invited others to ‘smell’ and respond.
Do I love Jesus so freely that is obvious to others in all I do?
Am I part of “Christ’s triumphal procession” that he uses to “spread the aroma of the knowledge of him everywhere”? Can I say, ‘thanks be to God’ because I’m a ‘pleasing aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing”? 2 Cor 2-14-15
Mary poured expensive ointment over Jesus, without holding back at great expense to herself, financially and to her reputation. So, I guess that part of producing an aroma filled house of worship to Jesus is not withholding anything from him. He deserves our lavished worship in response to his lavished, costly sacrifice for us. Do I say, “he can have everything … apart from my reputation at work, some of my savings, my kids wellbeing and a few relaxing evenings a week! ” As I hold back, are others missing out on smelling that beautiful aroma of the knowledge of him?
Let’s pray, as we start Greenhouse that we’ll see our need for Jesus and his desire for us. Let’s pray that our service for him will flow from a place of delighting in our Saviour not self-motivated duty. And let’s pray that in every day life we’ll be filling every house with the fragrance of our worship for Jesus, a wonderful Saviour who gave himself for us and to us.
~ Bethan Perry