There are moments in life that call for something more than a reasonable response.

In Mark 14, Jesus is sharing a meal in Bethany when Mary walks into the room carrying an alabaster jar of extraordinarily expensive perfume. She doesn’t carefully measure out a few drops. She breaks the jar and pours it over Jesus.

Everyone notices.

Some immediately call it wasteful. The perfume could have been sold for more than a year’s wages. Surely there was a more practical, responsible way for Mary to express her devotion.

But Jesus sees something different. He calls what she has done beautiful.

Mary had discerned something the others were missing: this moment with Jesus would not last forever. She might not have understood everything that was about to happen, but she understood enough to know that this was not a moment for holding back.

That challenges the way many of us approach following Jesus. We’re often comfortable giving Him a few drops—some time, some attention, some generosity, some obedience. We want Jesus to matter, but we also like keeping our hands on the bottle so we can control exactly how much comes out.

Mary shows us another way.

Breaking the bottle isn’t about making reckless gestures or destroying something valuable. The bottle isn’t the point. Jesus is. Mary could surrender what was valuable because she had decided Jesus was more valuable.

And something remarkable happened when she did: the fragrance filled the house.

That’s a picture of what surrendered lives can do. Something happens privately between us and Jesus, but its effects travel into our homes, workplaces, schools, friendships, and neighborhoods. The way we listen changes. The way we respond to disappointment changes. The way we treat overlooked people changes. We don’t have to announce our devotion; people begin to experience its fragrance.

Mary wasn’t trying to build a legacy or change the world. She simply recognized the moment in front of her and gave Jesus what she could.

Maybe that’s a better question for us, too. Not, “What enormous thing am I supposed to accomplish?” but, “What is the moment in front of me, and what would it look like not to miss it?”

Reflection Questions

1. What “bottle” are you tempted to carefully control rather than fully trust Jesus with?
2. If your private relationship with Jesus creates a “fragrance” that follows you into other rooms, what are people experiencing through the way you speak, listen, respond, and love?
3. What opportunity, relationship, act of obedience, or responsibility is directly in front of you that you don’t want to miss?