Mark 14:1-11

Be still: Lord Jesus, help me to see how I can love you with all I have, even when others don’t understand. Amen

Read: Mark 14:1-11

While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head. (v3) 

Encounter: This passage stirs me because it pushes against the part of me that likes to measure and calculate. The woman didn’t calculate. She didn’t offer a little perfume, saving the rest. She broke the jar. She poured it all out unselfishly. To her, Jesus was worthy of everything.

The others couldn’t see it that way. They saw waste and foolishness. They saw resources that could’ve been 'better spent'. I imagine the awkward silence, the judgmental glances, the whispered criticisms. Yet Jesus saw beauty where others saw waste. He saw love where others saw foolishness.

I wonder how often I hesitate in my devotion because of what people will think. It is easy to ration worship. To hold back giving. To serve when it can be convenient. In my teen years I was hesitant to sing out or raise my hands because of worry I’d stand out. I let self-consciousness silence the love I wanted to express to Jesus. This woman demonstrates that love for Jesus isn’t about appearances or efficiency – it’s about devotion. Jesus treasures honest, wholehearted love poured out in faith.

Notice what Jesus says: 'She did what she could' (v8). That’s such a freeing phrase. She didn’t do what she couldn’t. She didn’t live up to someone else’s expectations. She offered what she had. And in God’s eyes, that was beautiful.

I have at times stepped out in devotion in ways that seemed insignificant or strange: giving away time I couldn’t spare; doing something I felt unqualified for; offering encouragement when I didn’t know if it would land. Those things felt ordinary, even foolish. But in Jesus’ hands, they became 'beautiful things.'

Apply: Where is God inviting you to 'break the jar' – to step past caution and give him your best? This week, identify one area where you’ve been holding back, and prayerfully take a step of faith, trusting that nothing poured out for Jesus is wasted.

Devote: Thank you, Lord, that you see beauty where the world sees waste. Help me not to measure my devotion by what others think, but by your worth. Teach me to pour out all I have, knowing you treasure it.