Made Like Martha: Finding rest in the midst of unexpected woodchips

 

 

Welcome to Week #9 of the Made Like Martha Mobile Book Club. We are so glad that you are here. Today we are talking about a theme found in Chapter 9.

If you are a regular reader of mine, you will know that things have been eerily silent on the blog due to book writing and the workload of my master’s degree. So I am thrilled to be back in this space with you today. If you haven’t yet, I encourage you to grab a copy of the new book, Made Like Martha, by my friend and author, Katie Reid. For if there is any ounce of “doer” within you, you will find hope and rest within its pages. I am honored to be teaming up with Katie today and participating in an online book club that she is hosting. So feel free to join in the conversation below and give Katie a follow.

God is faithful and will defend and provide for His daughters, Mary and Marthas alike. May you sense His presence today and may your soul be at rest.

 

 

It was a warm, summer day. My son had taken to creating a pile of woodchips at the end of a slide on the playground near our home. I watched him stack the woodchips into a couple of piles that fancied him, and then run off to conquer the swings.

All was well, until another little girl decided to go down the slide. As she neared the bottom of the slide she went through the tiny pile of woodchips that my son had left behind. She started to cry. Her mom came running. I remember the way her eyes glared at me and the way the words, “who would let their kid do such a thing” sounded and felt. She was clearly upset with me and glared at my son, who thankfully, was oblivious to what was going on.

I sat there stunned. What was the big deal? The little girl was not bleeding. My son did not set out to hurt her with a pile of woodchips. I wanted to open my mouth and unleash some sass, but felt the Holy Spirit say to my heart, “sit and be still.” It was hard but I stuffed my sass and tried to smile whenever my little guy called out to me from the swings.

Eventually my son tired of the swinging and made his way to the top of the fort-like, wooden playset. He was content, minding his own business by one of those tall, metal poles you grab onto and slide down. And here came the little girl again, headed in the direction of where my son was playing.

I started calling down the angel armies of Heaven y’all.

Please little man, do not look at her or breathe in her direction, I whispered under my breath. The mom, who still looked annoyed, went over by the bottom of the pole and asked her daughter to slide down it and into her arms. The little girl was scared and started to cry again.

Then it happened. God showed up.

My son stopped what he was doing and headed towards the girl and the pole. He told the little girl not to be scared and that he had slid down the pole before. He even offered to hold her hand while she reached for the pole. The little girl smiled through her tears, grabbed my son’s hand, and squeamishly slid down the pole.

I was so proud of my son in that moment! I didn’t prompt him to be kind, but I am pretty sure I know where his impulse to help this little girl came from, since he is made in the image of a kind and loving Heavenly Father. The little girl’s mother looked over at me. With a nervous laugh and half-smile, she managed to mumble an embarrassed “thank-you” to my son and me. I would like to boast about how I was gracious and all smiley back to her. Yeah, but I wasn’t. I just stared at her.

Because I need Jesus a lot.

But if I had to do it over again, I would have extended grace to this fellow mom because every single one of us wants to protect or defend our children. And I would have given her a smile, because we mamas often hurt for reasons others know nothing about, causing our mess to spill out the minute unexpected woodchips prevent us from getting where we want to go.

As we headed home, I thanked God for proving who my son really was to this woman. Had I lost control of my cool, the pole incident wouldn’t have happened. I wouldn’t have given God the opportunity to show up. This Martha wanted to prove and defend. Yet God asked me to sit and rest my mouth and my soul on a bench as He worked things out at the pole. I wonder, how often do I miss God’s provision because of my need to prove something?

I shudder to think of it, but return to the beautiful truths Katie shared with us on pages 158-159. These are my truths and they are yours as well. God loves us, He will watch over and direct us, and He is our refuge and strength (John 3:16, Psalm 46:1, 121:5-8). So fellow Martha, if you struggle with allowing your mouth or soul to rest whether you are in the midst of work, family, or playground drama, remember the precious truths in this chapter and find some peace within from them. Allow God to show up and provide for you so that all of who you are remains at rest whenever you encounter unexpected piles of woodchips.

 

 

Discussion time!

As Katie points out, us Martha types do not leave much room for God to “show up and show off” because we become caught up in the proving and in the doing (page 147). Perhaps you can relate. So Katie and I would love to know your answer to the following question:

How have you seen God show up and perhaps even show off in your own life? It can be in a big or in the smallest of ways. Do share with us!

Made Like Martha: Good News for the Woman Who Gets Things Done by Katie M. Reid is an invitation for go-getters to discover what it means to rest as God’s daughter without compromising their God-given design as doers. Join us on Facebook for the “Made Like Martha Sisterhood” as we embrace our design for God’s glory and the good of others.

 

GIVEAWAY TIME!!!

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