LAVISH IT ON JESUS
LAVISH IT ON JESUS
Bending down to pick up the pieces of broken bottle, a tear rolled down Eden’s face onto the smoothly tiled floor. What was wrong with her; she wondered? This was the third bottle of expensive fragrance that had slipped from her hands in the past month. She now found herself jumping at every sound since their house had been burgled a couple of months ago. She had been inconsolable when it happened but her husband Fred had assured her that it would never happen again and yet she couldn’t shake off the feeling that someone was lurking behind the shadows. Just as she was sweeping up the last bit of glass, her husband walked in and she went to him and began to apologise for her clumsiness and carelessness. He held her close and assured her once again that all would be well. She scolded herself for wasting all the fragrances he kept replacing, one after the other. And then this time, her husband laughed and asked her to seat down.
“Eden”, he started, “I have known you for years now and I am certain that you are not a wasteful person”. “I know you are shaken but that will pass.” “Give it time my love. You will be fine”.
“So then, why are you laughing, Fred”? asked Eden.
He smiled and said; “You keep going on about the cost of the fragrances I bought. And I am reminded of the scripture where the disciples of Jesus were angry at a woman who poured a jar of expensive perfume on Jesus head. How expensive could all these ones possibly be in comparison to the contents of that alabaster jar”? Please do not worry about that. “While he was eating, a woman came in with a beautiful alabaster jar of expensive perfume and poured it over his head. The disciples were indignant when they saw this. “What a waste!” they said.” Matthew 26: 7-8 NLT “As much as I am not encouraging you to be jumpy and to keep breaking things about the house I am seriously thinking about ways and things that we can lavish on Jesus. He certainly does not need our fragrances now”, Fred chuckled. Eden smiled and as she relaxed against the back of the chair she held her husband’s hands and said: “Ooh that is so true, my love”. “I am going to challenge myself over the next seven days and just lavish on my Lord”. “I will pour out and lavish my time praising, dancing, worshiping, adoring and just loving Him. I will read about Him, I will talk to Him in the place of prayer.” And her husband Fred encouraged her to do just that.
So Eden went ahead as she purposed in her mind. She spent most of her waking moments over the next seven days, just dancing around the house, breaking into song and sometimes just whistling. She could not praise Jesus enough. She sang hymns of praise, read the psalms and proverbs. She knelt by her bedside, knelt down on the kitchen floor or anywhere else she was led to and said a word of prayer and thanksgiving. She lay flat by her bed sometimes and just quietly sang worship songs. The more time she spent, the more time she wanted to spend lavishing her praise on her Lord and Saviour. Unfortunately though, a few of her friends got upset with her because she was not returning their calls promptly. But that did not stop her.
By the end of just one week, Eden was completely changed. All the fear and anxiety had disappeared. She was calm. She saw the good in situations again. She brightened up. All the negativity was gone.
As the year 2021 comes to a close let us, like Eden, purpose to lavish our time on Jesus. It will be time very well spent. Praise is where He dwells. Let us praise Him and bring Him into our camps this season. It will take our attention off all the things that have not gone as we planned. It will bring healing to us. It will repair our frailty and any hurt or badly damaged emotions.
LET US LAVISH OUR TIME ON JESUS.
OLUYINKA EGO-MARTINS©