Today I read the story of the wedding at Cana where Jesus turns water into wine. Sorry, to anyone who doesn't know the end of the story, I just spoiled it for you. :) The wedding thing may not exactly go along with Christmas, but it is pretty appropriate for this point in my life! (Note to self: have enough to drink at the reception.) So here it is...
John 2:1-11
The passage begins by telling us that there is a wedding in Cana and Mary is there. Then the next verse says Jesus and his disciples are invited as well. Then they ran out of wine. So what does Mary do? The first thing she does is go tell Jesus.
I think it is interesting that she doesn't exactly request anything, but just drops a subtle hint. Isn't that such a woman thing to do?!?! I laugh just thinking about it. But seriously, that is EXACTLY what we do. Well, I know I do it. Instead of "would you mind taking out the trash?", we say it as a statement like, "The trash is full." Other things I'm sure I've said are "the laundry is done", "Ice cream sounds really good", "My van really needs to be washed" or "My van needs gas." The list goes on and on. Jerrod tells me all the time that he doesn't get subtle hints, I should just tell him what I want him to do, but I just think it is part of being a woman. I would rather hint than come right out and say it sometimes, maybe because I don't want to seem like I'm nagging or something. I don't think it is a sin, necessarily, to subtly hint at things, but I know I do need to be careful of what my motives are behind the request
If I want help, why don't I just ask for help? Is it a pride thing? Do I want people to think I am a "big girl" and I can do it all by myself? I think sometimes that is it. In those cases I need to admit that I can't do it on my own and humbly ask for help. The truth is that if I am trying to do little things by myself that means I am going to try to do big things by myself too. Then I have a problem on my hands, because I am forgetting then, that I need God. No matter how big or small a problem is, or if life is going great. I still need Him. The other motive I sometimes have is laziness. I might be just plain tired and don't feel like doing it myself. I think that this kind of attitude is wrong. There is a difference between someone seeing how tired I am or whatever and offering to help, as opposed to me wanting to get out of work and asking someone else to do it for me. Now, sometimes I really am too tired (more like exhausted) to be able to do much, or too sore or in pain, but most of the time, I just don't feel like doing it. I think that motive can be wrong. Now there may be other motives that other people may see in their lives for this subtle hint thing, but these are what I see in my life. Ok, back to the story...
So Mary does her little subtle hint thing. She doesn't ask Jesus to do anything, just states a fact as us, women like to do. Jesus basically responds by asking what it has to do with him, and telling her that it is not time yet. I think it's neat that Mary doesn't argue with Jesus, but she is not about to give up. So she gives a warning to the servants. I can just imagine the motherly look I'm sure she gave them that said they better listen to her or else. Then she told the servants to do whatever Jesus tells them to do. Call it womanly intuition or whatever you like, but I think that Mary had a feeling that Jesus would not just let the party go without wine. He was going to have to do a miracle. And He did. He turned the water to wine, which I'm sure is a pretty easy thing for God to do. This was Jesus' first miracle.
Well, what can I learn from all this? First of all, I am going to try to watch what my motives are behind my subtle hinting. What can I learn from the rest of the story. One thing that hit me is that Mary didn't argue. She didn't put up a fuss when Jesus didn't exactly give her the answer she was probably expecting. Would I do the same thing? Do I? Not always, I'm sure, but I would like to be able to say that I don't try to argue with God. If I really think about it, He is going to win anyway, so why do I try to fight it? I know His plan is best, but sometimes it is hard to really grasp that concept and let go of control. But I know I need to do it. That is definitely something I can work on. The last thing I noticed is that it said in the last verse that the disciples believed in Him. Do I believe in Him? Ok, yes, I am saved and I believe in Jesus and what He did for me and all that, but do I really make that belief a reality in my life daily. Do I live differently as a result of what I believe. If I truly believe what I say I do, I think my life should change and be different. So is it?
P.S. For those of you reading this, I hope it makes sense. It is just my thoughts put down, and I know sometimes it seems like I am all over the place. I think that when I go back and read it too! Hopefully some of it makes sense. :) Merry Christmas! Remember: Don't leave the baby in the manger...
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