The Anointing at Bethany

BY Jakell Farmer

In October of my first semester in college, I repented and gave my life to Christ. As a young believer I wanted to know everything I could about Jesus. I remember being in my dorm room, joyful tears streaming down my face as I learned how to study my Bible for the first time. The deep satisfaction of knowing my faith was real kept my fervor for the Lord strong. During Christmas break, my boyfriend from high school proposed. Though we were young, my family liked him and saw him as a good option for marriage. Though many transitions were happening fast, I was joyful for the season.

Shortly after giving my life to Christ, I had joined a women’s discipleship group. We shared our joys and struggles and helped one another walk in truth. One afternoon, I met with my group leader, and she challenged me to lay my relationship with my fiance before the Lord. 

I had prayed many times before about my engagement. Though we both professed faith in Christ, my fervor and excitement for the Lord was starting to become a point of tension. After much prayer, I made that very difficult decision to call off the engagement and ultimately end our relationship. He was quite angry and hurt. My family thought I was taking my relationship with God too seriously. It was truly a difficult season of feeling misunderstood, seen as bizarre and over the top. But that one decision greatly changed the trajectory of my life from that moment on.

In our reading today, we met a woman who makes quite a scene showing her great faith in Christ. In this account, we don’t have a description of who she is or how long she has been following Jesus. We don’t even get her name in this version of the story. Her anointing of Jesus was bold, beautiful, very costly, and she was ridiculed for it. But whatever fears or apprehension she may have had prior to this moment did not keep her from publicly worshiping the Messiah. Her actions tell us she understood who Jesus was and acted upon this knowledge regardless of the cost, financially or socially. 

Following Christ will inevitably put us in some awkward situations. Many will question the decisions we make. Many will lack understanding, believing we are wasting our time, money, and resources on the things of God. Many will wonder why we chose to live in certain neighborhoods or question the company we keep. But we can take heart in knowing that when we walk by faith, we can rest assured our heavenly Father sees our good deeds and we will not be scoffed at by the Most High. May we find His presence an embrace worthy of such devotion.