GoodNews Florida

(BUFXBZ#MWE 4VJUF #PZOUPO#FBDI'- “She has done a beautiful thing to me” (Mark 14:6). Their names are not even mentioned, and yet the Lord bestowed the highest praise on three women who demon- strated courage in difficult cir- cumstances. Their ordinary lives are not memorials for us to simply admire, but to emu- late, compelling us to love the Lord more deeply and trust him more completely right where we are today. We meet one woman as she entered Simon’s house in Bethany “with an alabaster flask of very expensive oint- ment, and she poured it on his head as he reclined at table” (Matthew 26:7). Some of the disciples berated her for wast- ing that precious commodity, but Jesus defended her, ap- plauding her for the sacrifice. While the religious leaders were circulating like vultures waiting to pounce on Christ, and with Judas moments away from delivering up his friend for crucifixion, this one woman annointed the Savior without even realizing she was preparing his body for burial. Her extravagance min- istered deeply to Christ, and her story still inspires count- less others to minister in “beautiful” ways to the Lord. Earlier in the gospel, an- other brave woman bearing the weight of a dreadful blood disor- der reached out to Christ in the middle of a great crowd. “She had heard the reports about Jesus” (Mark 5:27) and believed them. After years where physi- cians pocketed all her money with failed treatments, she rec- ognized Jesus as the answer. In spite of the odds stacked against her she knew Jesus would make all the difference in her life. She reached out her hand for his garment “and im- mediately the flow of blood dried up, and she felt in her body that she was healed of her disease” (Mark 5:29). Jesus called this woman “daughter” and ap- plauded her for her faith. She in- spires us to trust Christ for our impossible situations, to reach out to him no matter how des- perate our circumstances may appear. The poor widow who gave “all she had to live on” (Mark 12:44) also received the high- est commendation from Christ. She dropped “two small cop- per coins” into the offering box in the temple, and Jesus “watched” her do it. He noticed her, this one with no significant role in society, with no means of supporting herself, with hardly anything to offer. He saw her, and he loved what he saw. Humility. Generosity. Sur- render. Perhaps in heaven somewhere there is a record kept of how much treasure has been given to the kingdom of God by those compelled to fol- low this one widow’s sacrifice. Three women far removed from our world propel us to make a difference right where we are, for the sake of our Lord who has made all the difference in the world. Elizabeth Mitchell serves at Boca Raton Community Church along with her husband Pastor Bill Mitchell, and is part of the faculty of WorldLead, mentoring and training leaders worldwide. Visit her blog at Journeyfortheheart.com. 63/:B61/@3A7;>:74732 E7B6;3;03@A67>A/D7<5A @OQVSZ.R^QP]QOQ][’eee2>10]QOQ][ 4OQSP]]YQ][ 2>10]QO @OQVSZ6cS`bO/@<> <ObW]\OZ0]O`R1S`bWTWSRW\4O[WZg>`OQbWQS #$ #! $ B`O\a^O`S\b>`WQW\U :OPa 7[OUW\U C\ZW[WbSR/QQSa 7\6]caS@F2Wa^S\aW\U Beautiful Applause Elizabeth A. Mitchell Good News Palm Beach County