Love Expressed

Last night I read the story of the woman who entered the Pharisee's house to anoint Jesus' feet.  As well as the following paragraph regarding the women who provided for the needs of Jesus and His disciples as they traveled.  (Luke 7:36 - 8:3)  I was so touched by Jesus' treatment of women, especially in that time and that society.

The Pharisee invited Jesus into his home for a meal, yet he did not even offer Jesus the rudimentary courtesies one would normally offer to any guest in their home.  This spoke volumes, I am sure, to Jesus as to the Pharisee's attitude toward Him as well as his motives for the invitation.

As they reclined at the table, a woman entered the room.  She was a sinner, evidently well-known as such, but she had the audacity to enter into this 'religious' man's house.  Can you imagine the courage it took?  The side-ways sneers and whispers her presence must have elicited.  But she stood behind Jesus, as though not wanting to draw attention to herself, and stooped to minister to Him.  Weeping, her tears wet his feet, which she dried with her hair, continually kissing his feet.  Then, opening an alabaster vessel, she poured out a perfumed ointment to anoint them.  The fragrance must have filled that room.

I can well imagine the Pharisee silently smirking as he said to himself that if Jesus were a prophet He would surely know the type of woman she was and would 'of course' have draw back in horror that she should dare to touch him.  But Jesus knew his heart and plainly read his thoughts.

And so, after gaining the Pharisee's permission to speak to him, Jesus said:

'When I entered your house, you gave Me no water for my feet (to wash them from the dirt of the roads), yet she has washed My feet with her tears and dried them with her hair.  You gave Me no (welcoming) kiss, yet this woman has not ceased kissing My feet since I came in.  You did not anoint My head with olive oil (mark of respect for a visitor), yet this woman has anointed My feet with fragrant oil."

Then Jesus goes on to say that it has to do with love.  "I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven for she loved much.  How powerful is that!

Then, as I read on, in Luke 8, there were certain women who provided for Him from their substance.  These women had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities.

All this made me think about how I express my love for Him.  And I am very sad to say that for the past several years, I have not been doing well in that department.

So, last night I prayed about it.  I asked Jesus to show me how I could express my love for Him.

Years ago, I was involved in many things because of my love for Him.  I wrote these type of postings, just motivated by the awe and love I felt for Him, wanting to share that with others.  I sang in the choir and for different church programs, and I also taught women's Bible study for a time.  But as I contemplated these things, I hesitated.  All of them, for me, now seem to get tangled up with both pride and/or fear of rejection.  So I was hoping that He could show me another way I could express my love that would be, for me, free of those constraints.

This morning it hit me -- like a ton of bricks.  Some people don't know me well enough to know that I am naturally a slob.  I guess for me, cleanliness, tidiness, and order just have never been that important.  I don't think it was for my mom and dad, so maybe that is where I learned it (well, that is sort of an excuse any way).  But following in my mom's footsteps, I am not big on entertaining or having folks drop by -- mainly because I know they would be shocked.  But for whatever reason, it has never bothered me, except when I worry what someone would think if they knew.

Anyway, as I said, this morning it hit me that one way I could express my love for Christ would be to make my home, my body (another area where I am sorry lax), and my life more inviting for Him.  I could think of the Pharisee that was so lax in making Jesus welcome in his home, and do what I can to make my home a place that I would imagine He would find comfortable and peace-filled.

YIKES!!!  God, really, did You have to pick the area of secret sin that I have given over to especially in the past few years?  Couldn't You suggest something more 'spiritual?'  Something more fitting my 'druthers?'

Well, it is going to take a lot of praying to take this through more than the first gung-ho effort.  With working from home, my life has been so sedentary (sitting in front of the computer most of the day), that I have been having trouble with my back, shoulders, knees, and ankles.  So, this will be a push for me, not just to get started but to keep going.  But it will be totally and completely a work of love to accomplish it.

What do you think God might suggest to you as a way for you to express your love for Him?  I would love to hear about it.