Jesus said that this woman who had broken her alabaster box to anoint Him for His burial would never be forgotten wherever the gospel is preached. In other words, she Would always be on God's mind. Do you want a visitation from God?
You will have to make room for Him in your life, no matter how crowded and cluttered it may be at this moment. Sometimes it means your most treasured things may have to be broken to release the fragrance God remembers.
Your brokenness is a sweet-smelling savor to God. He collects every tear that drips from your chin and flows from the corners of your eyes. The Bible says that He has a bottle of memories to hold every tear you've shed. (See Psalm 56:8.) He loves you, so steal away to your secret prayer place and pull out that "alabaster box" of precious anointing you've been saving for such a time as this. Break it at His feet and say, "Jesus, I love You more than anything. I'll give up anything; I'll go anywhere.
I just want You, Lord." Make no mistake, it took humility for Mary to wipe the Lord's feet with her hair. The Bible says a woman's hair is her glory (see 1 Cor. 1 1: 15), so Mary used her glory to wipe the feet of Jesus. Middle Eastern women in Jesus' day generally wore their hair "up," and it was often wrapped in a turban or veil when they left their homes for public places. So Mary probably had to unwrap or "dismantle" her hair to wipe the Lord's feet. I don't want to offend anyone, but it is important for us to understand what that really meant to Mary's reputation. Open sandals were the most common footwear, and it was customary for guests to leave their sandals at the door when they entered a house.
Since most travelers in Israel shared the main roads with camels, horses, and donkeys, it was impossible to completely avoid the droppings of these animals all day long.
Sandals provided some protection to travelers, and it was unthinkable to wear them into a person's house. Nevertheless, it was certain that the residue ofthe day's journey (including the odor of the animal droppings) was still deposited on a guest's unprotected feet. For this reason, the dirty job of washing the animal droppings off of everyone's feet was reserved for the most insignificant servant of the household. .
Any servant who washed a guest's feet was automatically considered the one "who doesn't count, the unimportant expendable slave," and was openly treated with disdain.
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What a picture of humble worship Mary provides. She dismantled her "glory," her hair, to wipe animal waste from His feet. Our righteousness and glory are nothing but filthy rags, fit only to wipe His feet! (See Isaiah 64:6.)
If you really wanted to dishonor and humiliate a person who entered your home, all you had to do was make sure that your servants didn't bother to wash his feet. This was especially true in a Pharisee's house where outward cleanliness meant everything.
Jesus clearly says that when He entered Simon's house, no one washed His feet (refer to Luke 7:44). It is almost like Simon wanted Jesus there, but he didn't want to honor Him. How often do we want God present in our services but refuse (or ignore) to worship Him as we should?
