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Mary and Martha were two sisters and friends of Jesus. They are commonly portrayed as opposites, Martha a worker and Mary who sat and listened (Luke 10:38-42). I think as we read this story we need to be mindful that works aren’t the real wrong in this story. I mean this story comes right after the Parable of the Good Samaritan where we learn that works are very important to the faith life. But it’s more of motives that are real culprit. The why behind what we’re doing. Matthew Henry comments “That which he reproved her for was her being careful and troubled about many things.” She was more concerned about how things looked to the point that she was distracted, and not actually with the Lord. Who else has been there? Mary was commended because she sat and abided.
I think that we as parents need to take note and reflect on this, and it will really effect the way we present this story to our littles. However, on a very basic level, this is a story of opposites. So that’s where we are starting with the toddlers. This is how we explored this story.
Mary and Martha
We listened to Dan and Louie’s retelling of Mary and Martha. We were on a road trip when we did this story, so being able to listen to the story just worked perfectly for our family.
Opposites
Mary and Martha were pretty much portrayed as opposites in this story. Therefore, we practiced matching opposites using puzzle cards I found in the Target Dollar Spot.
For Parents
For those interested in growing alongside their littles, a few adult resources on Mary and Martha that I have gleaned a lot from are Having A Mary Heart In A Martha World and Having A Spirit by Joanna Weaver. She takes a real in-depth look into these women’s lives and offers lessons we can learn from their story.
Another great resource is the The Bible Binge (Episode 12). This episode is dedicated to Mary and Martha. Like all Bible Binge episodes it is full of fresh perspective and lots of laughs.
