Washed feet

​3-28-21
This week is Holy Week, so I would like to take a particular event in Jesus' life this week and see what we can learn from it. Today's devotion is based on John 12:3, "Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus' feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume."  
Since they reclined at their meals, people washed their feet which I am sure were pretty dusty after walking all day.  It was a simple act usually done by a slave. In this simple act, Mary washed Jesus' feet with some expensive perfume and then used her hair to dry his feet. Was this normal? It was not, for as we know, it stirred up some rather unkind remarks that evening
Symbolically, Mary points forward to Jesus' crucifixion and burial. More importantly, lavishing Jesus' feet with such a beautiful scent during this moment highlights the reality that he will always be a living Savior, rather than buried and forgotten.
The journey of passion this week heralds the coming of a new era of kingship that is precious, tangible, and shared with many. God comes to us day after day, in Christ, and works through us in his world as we serve, sometimes washing stinky feet, in response to his unconditional love, mercy, and forgiveness.
It is my prayer today that the feet of God walk with you, and his hand hold you tight. May the eye of God rest on you, and his ear hear your cry. May the smile of God be for you, and his breath give you life. May the Child of God grow in you, and his love bring you home. (Robert Mann, 1983)