My wife had a family member who sold perfume and cologne. He always had a good stock on hand. So, once, he gave me an entire box of cologne. I was set. When we left his house, I put the box in the trunk of our car.
And then I forgot about it.
Fast forward about a week or so later. I remembered the cologne. Not because it crossed my mind. But because the box had tipped over and several of the bottles busted. As I'm sure you know, there is such a thing as too much cologne. Way too much. Especially in a sedan.
The smell lingered for weeks. At least weeks.
When I read about the time Mary anointed Jesus, I remember that box of cologne. Of course, I see what she did for its beauty and prophetic insight. But there's one line in the story that gets me every time. After Mary brought her costly perfume, John 12 says, "The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume (12:3).
My cologne wasn't an act of worship like Mary's. It was an accident. But both stories remind me of how what we offer to Jesus fills where we are. Our worship should fill our sanctuaries in a palpable way. Our gifts of service should mean something to someone. We trust our financial gifts have a lasting impact, even an eternal one.
No one in the house with Mary and Jesus could avoid what she did. If you were in another room, you knew something happened. The fragrance lured you into Jesus' presence. And isn't that our hope? That would we do for God's glory leads people to the grace and truth of Jesus?
Mary's act meant something to her, but it also caught everyone's attention. So, may the fragrance of our earnest offerings to God fill our homes and touch lives so that the world may know the love of God.
Stay blessed...john | 
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