Broken & Spilled Out
This is an entry in the choir devotional book by Sherrie Hawkins
Mark 14:1-11
The gospel of Matthew (26:6-13) records this same event of a woman coming into the home of Simon the Leper in Bethany to anoint Jesus for burial. However, I love the description in Mark’s account, particularly verse 3 where it reads “she broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.” There was no turning back, no keeping just a little in the jar for later, no holding on to just a remembrance of what she once had. How powerful...Can we be so open to the Lord? Breaking open our lives, our minds, our hearts so totally. No holding on to even a small part of our own will, not just a little of what I want.
The song was copyrighted in 1984 and I remember hearing it for the first time around that time. As a young mother I remember asking myself: “Do I have that complete commitment, am I completely broken and spilled out for You, Jesus?” That question still rings in my ears today when I hear that song. With so many demands on our lives today, pressure from every direction trying to set priorities for us, the story of the woman in Bethany is a reminder that Jesus calls us to be surrendered to Him “in sweet abandon” so that we can be “used up for Thee.”
Lord, let me daily be broken and spilled out in sweet abandon for Thee. Your ways are so much higher than my own, and You can do far more with what little I have than I could ever do alone.
Mark 14:1-11
The gospel of Matthew (26:6-13) records this same event of a woman coming into the home of Simon the Leper in Bethany to anoint Jesus for burial. However, I love the description in Mark’s account, particularly verse 3 where it reads “she broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.” There was no turning back, no keeping just a little in the jar for later, no holding on to just a remembrance of what she once had. How powerful...Can we be so open to the Lord? Breaking open our lives, our minds, our hearts so totally. No holding on to even a small part of our own will, not just a little of what I want.
The song was copyrighted in 1984 and I remember hearing it for the first time around that time. As a young mother I remember asking myself: “Do I have that complete commitment, am I completely broken and spilled out for You, Jesus?” That question still rings in my ears today when I hear that song. With so many demands on our lives today, pressure from every direction trying to set priorities for us, the story of the woman in Bethany is a reminder that Jesus calls us to be surrendered to Him “in sweet abandon” so that we can be “used up for Thee.”
Lord, let me daily be broken and spilled out in sweet abandon for Thee. Your ways are so much higher than my own, and You can do far more with what little I have than I could ever do alone.
David said it all: I saw God before me for all time. Nothing can shake me; He's right by my side. I'm glad from the inside out, ecstatic; I've pitched my tent in the Land of Hope. I know You'll never dump me in Hades; I'll never even smell the stench of death. You've got my feet on the life-path, with Your face shining sun-joy all around.
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