A Clean Desk is a Sign of a Sick Mind

A Series on Women in the Bible
 (Use the link below to read the verses.)
John 11:17-44

[God worked in and through the lives of countless women in the Bible. These women played significant, if not critical roles in the Lord’s plan of Redemption. In this series, we will look at the faithfulness of some of these God fearing women.]

  

There are two types of people in this world; those that are organized, and those that aren’t. 

You can easily identify which category a person falls into by looking at their desk. Over the years, I’ve come across people whose desk looked like a tornado hit it. Their belief seems to be, “A clean desk is a sign of a sick mind!”

 

In contrast, the desk of an organized person is very… organized. Everything is in its proper place; in neat piles, systematically located for the right time. If somebody dares to move something on their desk, the organized person can tell immediately.

 

Both of these types of individuals fulfill a role in society; both have gifts to be utilized; both also have a part to play in God’s plan. Last week I wrote about Mary of Bethany. She had a sister by the name of Martha, who would probably be considered organized; or at the very least, functional.

 

In John 11, Martha had a very functional, if not theological discussion with Jesus. This was during the pain and grief following the death of her brother Lazarus.

 

²¹ Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died…

²⁵ Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me
will live, even after dying. ²⁶ Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?”

²⁷ “Yes, Lord,” she told him. “I have always believed you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who has come into the world from God.”          NLT

 

A little later, when Jesus was about to call Lazarus out from the dead, this exchange took place between Jesus and Martha, making you wonder if she would ever truly get it.

 

³⁸ Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. ³⁹ “Take away the stone,” he said.

“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.”                  

⁴⁰ Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”            NIV

 

Yes, Martha was very functional, pragmatic and analytic; dealt in the realm of ideas more than feelings or relationships; liked to keep busy with her hands rather than to contemplate; was highly organized, and maybe even a little OCD.

And yet, she was a child of God; someone who knew Jesus personally. She had a role and a purpose in his brief ministry on earth. She was a follower of Jesus who knew who he was, and what his mission was.

 

Time and again, Jesus showed Martha grace and mercy; the same grace and mercy that he shows us.

 

Copyright 2021 Joseph B Williams