Creating a Place and Posture for My Best Listening
Unique Opportunity...
Recently, Karen, my youngest daughter, had an opportunity to see Sir Ian McKellen perform live on-stage in Scotland. (Think Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit trilogy, and X-men films.)
The only ticket available for her last-minute purchase was in the front box. Having paid the higher price for this coveted seat, she spent an evening three feet from the stage and actor, Ian McKellen.
Hearing her excitement as she shared the thrill of witnessing the acting talents and hearing the distinctive voice of one of the United Kingdom’s most distinguished actors, made me excited for her!
Maybe you’ve had a similar experience or hope to have the opportunity to hear a particular talented singer or speaker in person someday.
Is there someone you would pay big bucks to see and hear?
If we did fork over the big bucks, how would we show up for this listening opportunity?
Would you risk being late?
I somehow doubt it.
Place and Posture...
Today I want to look at someone who didn’t have to pay to see her favorite person (someone much bigger than Ian McKellen), but she did choose her place and the posture of her heart.
We will take a close look at Mary.
Not Mary, the mother of Jesus.
Rather, let’s look at Mary, the sister of Martha.
It’s a story many of us know well. If you are not familiar, you can find the full story in Luke 10:38-42.
If you are familiar, there’s a tendency to glance over it thinking – oh, yeah, I know. I should be more like Mary than Martha.
I want us to dig a little deeper today.
We will look at one specific verse in the Amplified version.
Here’s the “why” behind the Amplified version of the Bible:
“Its goal was to take both word meaning and context into account to accurately translate the original text from one language into another. “ (https://www.christianbook.com/page/bibles/about-bibles/about-translations/about-the-amplified-bible)
So here we go...
“She [Martha] had a sister called Mary, who seated herself at the Lord’s feet,
and was continually listening to His teaching.”
Luke 10:39 Amplified (emphasis added)
For comparison, here’s the ESV version -
“And she had a sister called Mary,
who sat at the Lord’s feet and listened to his teaching.”
Two differences stand out in the Amplified.
Most other versions tell us Mary “sat at the Lord’s feet”, suggesting passivity.
But the Amplified version indicates there is nothing passive about Mary’s intentions or placement.
She seated herself at the Lord’s feet.
She found a spot available close to Jesus and she drew near.
She actively chose to put herself in a place where she could listen closely to Jesus.
It doesn’t appear to be a prideful move, rather it is one of humility because she sat at Jesus’ feet.
She chose this position of proximity with an attitude of humility.
The second difference we note in the Amplified version is the addition of the word “continually”. This is not adding to the Scripture but rather is an effort to help us understand the meaning of the word in its context at the time the Bible was written.
Continually indicates this was Mary’s habit.
Mary was continually listening to Jesus.
She was intentional and she was relentless.
She would not be left out.
Where did she place herself? At the feet of Jesus.
What was her proximity to his voice? As close as she could get.
What was the posture of her heart? Humility and perseverance.
Mary showed up to actively listen and take Jesus’ words to heart.
Most noted, she certainly did not choose serving over seeking.
Ouch!
All too often it is easy for each of us (my hand is raised in confession) to get so busy serving on behalf of Jesus, that we neglect to just come near and sit at His feet so we can listen to His teaching.
When Martha asked Jesus to get Mary to hop up and help, Jesus gave this response…
“…few things are needed—or indeed only one.
Mary has chosen what is better,
and it will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:42
Mary’s choice was to avail herself of time in the Presence of Jesus.
She recognized her opportunity and she leaned into this moment in time.
I especially love how Jesus says this will not be taken away from her.
When we stop and spend time with Jesus and just listen, we are choosing what is better – and it will not be taken from us.
Nothing is better than the presence of God.
As we seek God in 2023, let’s choose to be like Mary.
Let’s choose to intentionally sit as close to Him as we possibly can.
Let’s choose to come with humble hearts ready to listen and learn.
And, let’s be found in His Presence receiving from His voice continually.
We have a fresh opportunity to sit and be with Jesus every day.
As we spend time with Him each day, we will begin to recognize the sound of His voice more and more.
As we learn more about where, when, and how to hear the voice of God in the coming weeks, let’s have a heart like Mary.
Let’s choose to put ourselves in a place where we can continually listen to Jesus.
Many blessings,
Kathy Ann
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