 Purred: Tue Apr 19, '11 9:04am PST |
 | |  | | “ “She has done a beautiful thing to me.” ”
Mark 14:6 (RSV)
Tuesday Of Holy Week: Sacred Extravagance
Tonight I find myself in a village outside the walls of Jerusalem. Light and the sounds of conversation come from an open doorway. By the doorway, Mary Magdalene stands, her face flushed with joy.
“I was so distressed that I couldn’t eat,” she says. “The longing to be near Jesus was so strong, I felt I had to do something. So once again I acted on an impulse. I bought an alabaster jar of perfumed ointment and ran all the way to the home of Simon the leper, where Jesus was having a meal. Without even knocking, I marched right into the house, stood behind Jesus at the table, broke the jar and poured the balm on His head. I can’t imagine how I had the courage to do such a thing, but I did it!
“The reaction from the disciples and their host was immediate. I think it was Judas who said, ‘Why wasn’t this ointment sold and the money given to the poor?’
“I began trembling, but again Jesus saw into my heart. And what do you suppose he said? ‘She has done a beautiful thing to me. . . . She has done what she could; she has anointed my body beforehand for burying. And truly, I say to you, wherever the gospel is preached in the whole world, what she has done will be told in memory of her’ (Mark 14:6, 8–9).
“Yes, it was extravagant, but in the light of God’s unthinkable gift of His Son, how could I do less?”
Father, teach me to give without holding back, just becaus I love. Give me the courage to follow my heart.
By Marilyn Morgan King |  |  | |  |
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