What are you willing to break?

There is a song that I have loved for many years. It always seems to come back just when I need to hear it, Alabaster Box by CeCe Winans.

The room grew still as she made her way to Jesus
She stumbles through the tears that made her blind
She felt such pain, some spoke in anger
Heard folks whisper, "There's no place here for her kind."

Still on she came, through the shame that flushed her face

Until at last, she knelt before his feet

And though she spoke no words

Everything she said was heard

As she poured her love for the Master 

From here box of Alabaster

This song alludes to a story that is found in Matthew 14:3-6. 

3 While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of Simon the Leper,
a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard.
She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.
4 Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, "Why this waste of perfume?
5 It could have been sold for more than a year's wages and the money given to the poor."
And they rebuked her harshly. 6 "Leave her alone," said Jesus. "Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me."

These verses do not convey much information about the bearer of the alabaster box except that it was worth a year's wages and that she broke the jar. For a woman in this time to sacrifice the contents of this jar was to sacrifice the security that came with a year's worth of wages; a security that was not easy to come by for a woman.

In addition, she broke the jar that was made of alabaster which is very strong. She did not need to break the jar to empty it of its contents. But, she chose to break the jar in order to make sure that every single bit of the perfume was used on Jesus and that nothing was left behind, not one ounce. 

And I've come to pour, my praise on Him

Like oil from Mary's alabaster box

Don't be angry if I wash his feet with my tears

And I dry them with my hair

You weren't there the night He found me

You did not feel what I felt

When he wrapped his love all around me and 

You don't know the cost of the oil

In my alabaster box

I can't forget the way life used to be
I was a prisoner to the sin that had me bound

And I spent my days, poured my life without measure

Into a little treasure box I'd thought I'd found

Until the day when Jesus came to me 

And healed my soul with the wonder of his touch

So now I'm giving back to Him 

All the praise He's worthy of

I've been forgiven and that's why
 I love Him so much.

All too often, we spend our days pouring our lives into things that we can hold onto and show off to the world. When we pour our lives into things for our pride, wealth, or accolades, we are setting up idols. In doing this, we are saying that our most priceless possessions are these things - our pride, wealth, accomplishments, relationships, and material items. This is not how we were meant to live our lives.

And I've come to pour, my praise on Him

Like oil from Mary's alabaster box

Don't be angry if I wash his feet with my tears

And I dry them with my hair

You weren't there the night He found me

You did not feel what I felt

When he wrapped his love all around me and 

You don't know the cost of the oil

In my alabaster box

We were created to pour our lives out onto others. In Matthew 14:3-6, it shows that the woman broke the jar of her most priceless possession in order to cover Jesus with the perfume, to give honor, in an incredible act of love. In the same way, we must break open the jars of our most priceless possessions whether they are pride, relationships, material items, et cetera. We must break them open and pour it out to Jesus, to give him all and everything. To hold nothing, not even one ounce of our life, back from Him.

He is deserving of our every breath, every thought, every spoken word, every action, and every beat of our heart. Pour out your life to Him and He will show you how to pour your life out onto the people surrounding you. As you pour out, He is faithful to fill and refill you so that you may be poured out again. It is in this, that we find that perfect fulfillment of our lives.