by Cindy Phillips
I like to listen to people who give advice, then ponder the advice and apply it if it is good and useful. Advice can come from many places but the best advice comes from the Word of God through the Holy Spirit (who always leads you to the truth).
The Lord brought to my attention advice from two well known women in the Bible and they both just so happened to be named Mary.
The first Mary is the mother of Jesus. At the wedding in Cana, when they ran out of wine, she gave some great advice to the servants who were in charge of the wine. Join me in John 2:1-5 as we look at the story;
On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.” Jesus said to her, “Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come.” His mother said to the servants, “Whatever He says to you, do it.”
WOW, did you see that great advice? Since the Bible is the living Word and the living Word is Jesus, following the advice of Mary, we should do whatever He says to do. In other words, be a doer of the Word! James 1:22
Another instance of great advice coming from the mouth of Mary, the mother of Jesus, can be found in Luke 1:38 Then Mary said, “Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. Here the angel Gabriel gave her a message from God. Her response is great advice! Submit to the Word of God by agreeing with it.
The other Mary is the sister of Lazarus. One day Jesus came to visit His friend Lazarus and his two sisters. We know the story. Martha was busy serving and wanted Jesus to tell Mary to help her. What was Mary “busy” doing? We can read the story in Luke 10:38-42
Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.” And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”
Mary was sitting at Jesus feet. Picture it. There are so many beautiful truths here. She submitted herself to Jesus (sat at His feet), attentively listening. She was soaking in His presence. Notice Jesus said this was the ONE thing needed and that Mary had chosen the good thing to do. What powerful truths!
Think about these precious pieces of advice as you go about your week. Submit to Jesus, sit at His feet and listen to (and agree with) what He has to say to you, then do it!