Mary’s anointing of Jesus in John 12:1-8 tells us much about wordless devotion to Jesus. All the words spoken by Jesus in this passage relate to defending her action to those who saw it simply as a reckless waste of money. This reminds us that sometimes, actions speak louder than words, and our actions must be a reflection of our faith.

Mary says nothing at all in this interchange, but she demonstrates her love by giving her most expensive item and pouring it out on Jesus. She bows down and serves Jesus through her offering of extravagant love. She is the type of the Christian worshipper. Each time we meet her, she is bowing down at the feet of Jesus, seeking to learn, seeking to deepen her relationship with Him, seeking more of him. We know virtually nothing about her but her devotion to Jesus, and perhaps, just perhaps, this is all we need to know.

The encounter with Jesus in John 11 is framed in the context of disappointment, confusion and the pain of bereavement. The sisters have informed Jesus of Lazarus’s illness and remain convinced that if He had been present, He would have prevented Lazarus’s death. Yet they must now meet Jesus at a point of unbearable pain, the loss of their brother.

They both have faith in Jesus, but this encounter moves them from theory to practice. Martha confesses that Jesus is the Messiah and believes in resurrection, but she is not prepared for the miracle of resurrection from a tomb in which her brother’s body is already rotting. Mary’s grief is so great that others wept because of it, including Jesus. Yet in the midst of this pain, Jesus gives revelation about His identity which has comforted us throughout centuries: “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26)

In all His encounters with individuals, Jesus treats people as individuals, showing both sensitivity and challenge in His responses. He is looking for faith in individuals, because when faith meets Jesus, miracles happen! This is seen in raising Lazarus from the dead, a powerful act which transformed this situation. Faith, when meeting Jesus, can turn our disappointment into unexpected joy.

In our bible study, we looked at Jesus’s words to Martha and Mary, two sisters who feature in three places in the Gospels (Luke 10:388-42, John 11 & 12.) Though they are associated with the great miracle when Jesus raised their brother, Lazarus, from the dead, in terms of the words Jesus spoke to them, we learn much from these encounters.

Luke 10:38-42 shows us the differences between the two sisters clearly, with Martha, the sister forever associated with service, coming to Jesus because she expects Him to nudge her sister into helping her. She is practical, hospitable, busy… and distracted. Instead of acquiescing to her demand to tell Mary to get up and help her, Jesus gently rebukes Martha, reminding her that Mary has chosen the better way, the ‘one thing’ that really matters.

Life can be incredibly busy, but Mary reminds us that we have a choice how we spend our time, and time spent listening to the words of Jesus is never wasted. Martha’s service and zeal were not grounded in devotion and spirituality. Indeed, they had led to expectations of others which were demanding and unreasonable. Service is most definitely needed, but service must be an overflow from relationship. If service is divorced from relationship, it fails. Similarly, Jesus reminded us that our sustenance comes from the word of God and not simply from bread alone (Matt 4:4), something Mary had grasped. This passage reminds us that motivation matters as much as ministry, and we need service to be an overflow from our relationship with Jesus Himself.

At our fellowship meal this month we enjoyed a barbecue, USA style, as we prayed for that country on the weekend celebrating the 250th anniversary of independence from British rule.

Before our barbecue today, we spent some time discussing prayer, looking especially at the Lord’s prayer (Luke 11:1-4). Prayer is not something we are used to before we become Christians and is something that has to be learned. We need to learn to pray on our own and with others; prayer can be audible or inaudible (many people find praying out loud quite intimidating.) There are different aspects of prayer (confession, praise, thanksgiving, listening, asking and making requests) and no ‘right’ way to pray. All of us will learn to pray in our own way.

There are, though, things that hinder prayer and can distract us from prayer (including mobile phones which often also re-wire our brains to expect constant stimulation.) It’s always good to start with God as our focus in prayer since this focuses our minds on Him. Prayer involves trust and faith, asking God to supply all our needs, and will always involve our need for forgiveness.

The good news is that God prays with us and through us (see Rom 8:26-27) and helps us to pray. We can pray for ourselves, our family and friends, our church, our locality, our nation and the world. Instead of just complaining about situations, we should pray!

What’s happening in July?

Our monthly fellowship meal after the service on the 1st Sunday of the month (5 July) will be a barbecue. We’ll be praying for the USA this month.

Our Parent & Toddler group meets as usual on Wednesdays and Fridays (9-11 a.m.) until 17 July. Then we have a break for the summer, but will be taking members of the group to York Maze on Friday 31 July, leaving GPCC at 9 a.m. and returning about 7 p.m.

There is no Sunday service at church on 12 July as we will be taking part in the public baptism and family fun day at Manvers Lake between 1 and 5 p.m. Join us for a free outreach event with children’s crafts and a barbecue as well as enjoying worship, the word and the joy of seeing people declare their faith in Jesus through water baptism.

In the summer holidays we’ll be holding 3 Summer Fun Days with Dearne Churches Together. The first is on Wednesday 22 July between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. at Goldthorpe Railway  Embankment and the Salvation Army. Book in for this free event including lunch by contacting Julie on 07729 421405 or emailing julie@gpcchurch.co.uk

We’ll also be singing at Parkside Care Home in Wombwell on Wednesday 29 July at 2 p.m.