Nice to Meet You, My Name is Martha

2016 hit me like a ton of bricks. I’ve been overwhelmed at work, unhappy and unhealthy. I’ve felt so lost, completely dragged down by bad situation after bad situation, and I’ve felt myself asking God, why would you let this happen? You were supposed to be beside me, yet I feel that in my time of need I’ve been left to deal with this alone. In my heart of hearts I know this isn’t true, but as so often happens to all of us, the real world got in the way of my heart.

So I found myself thinking of the story of Lazarus. Lazarus, whom Jesus loved greatly, was sick. Even though Jesus knew about it, he stayed where he was for two more days. He didn’t rush to Lazarus, because He knew that God would ultimately be glorified through the situation. When Jesus finally did reach Lazarus and found him dead, He wept. Lazarus had actually been dead four days already, and his sisters Mary and Martha were sad and troubled. Martha was upset enough to run up to Jesus and say to him, “Lord, if you had been here our brother would not have died!” Martha knew Jesus was the Lord, and she knew all He needed to do was be there to heal Lazarus and none of this would have happened. She was angry and hurt that Jesus did not come. Mary, on the other hand, didn’t rush out to Jesus. She stayed at home quietly, no doubt thinking and praying. But when Jesus approached her, she too said, “Lord, if you had come my brother would not have died!” Neither Mary nor Martha understood why Jesus had abandoned them in this way.

After I thought about Mary and Martha, I turned to Lazarus. How must he have felt through all this? No doubt sick and suffering in his bed, waiting for the Lord to come and help him. I’m sure he heard Mary and Martha talking, saying that Jesus must have heard the news by now and should be here any day. On that last night before Lazarus died, what must he have thought? He, too, knew that if Jesus would only come he would be healed, but Jesus was nowhere to be found. I’m sure that in his heart of hearts Lazarus understood that the Lord would never abandon him, but like us all, the world was getting in the way.

Jesus knew all this, and His heart broke, but He didn’t let it get in the way of the Father’s plan. He knew Lazarus would be healed and raised, and that Mary and Martha’s faith would deepen, and that many other people would believe and follow Him because of the miracle they witnessed. When I think about this, I feel hope building up in my soul. So many of us are in the middle of our own four days, suffering, lonely, feeling abandoned, wondering why the Lord isn’t coming to help us like we thought He would. But the truth is, He’s watching. Nothing will happen to us that He can’t make right. In the end, He will come to raise us out of the dark, and through our situation other people will come to see Jesus, to believe in Him, and to glorify His name.

And Jesus said to Martha, “Did I not tell you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?