Words to Treasure
We are God’s creation. He created us to belong to Christ Jesus. Now we can do good works.
Ephesians 2:10
The Mexican afternoon was hot, and Pedro was feeling the heat up on the roof of the small house they were building for a needy family. As he worked he watched one of the girls on the team play with the children of the neighborhood. And the more she played, the more it bugged him. He was working hard to help get this house finished, and she was goofing around doing kid stuff. He wanted to climb down and tell her off. This house wasn’t going to build itself.
Pedro is right and Pedro is wrong. Building a home for a needy family is fantastic, but getting to know the family is also just as important. We need both. Doing good works without good friendships with people doesn’t really work, because building the house ends up becoming more important than the people who will live in it. To do good things we need both work and love in equal parts.
People in Bible Times
A woman named Martha opened her home to Jesus and his friends. She was busy being the perfect host while her sister Mary sat at Jesus’ feet listening and enjoying the company. This really bugged Martha, because she was doing all the work. Finally she asked Jesus to tell Mary to help her. But Jesus told Martha to stop worrying about things. Mary’s choice was a good one. (See Luke 10:38 – 42.)