“Mary took a pound of expensive ointment made from pure nard, and anointed the feet of Jesus and wiped his feet with her hair.”
John 12:1-8
A new mindset has the power to deliver hope.
A new mindset can set the tone for so many new things in your life. If you were trapped in a certain way of thinking, your new mindset can transform any situation with fresh possibilities and opportunities. What you think matters.
Some people feel or believe something so strongly that they are willing to give sacrificially for a cause or person. We have all heard the story, “The Gift of the Magi.” We usually hear about it around Christmas time. Written by O. Henry in the early 1900’s, it is a heart-warming story of sacrificial giving among a married couple. Unbeknown to her husband, his wife cuts her beautiful hair to buy a chain for his watch, while he sells his treasured watch to buy combs for lovely her hair. They both gave what meant a great deal to them personally in order to show the depth of their love toward each other.
A new mindset compelled Mary to anoint Jesus with a costly perfume.
In John chapter 12, we read about how Mary, the sister of Lazarus, showed her love and devotion to Jesus through her actions. She used a pound of pure nard, worth about a year’s wages, to anoint Jesus’ head and feet. (The account in John just mentions his feet, but in Matthew 26:7, and Mark 14:3 the accounts mention his head.) It would have been rare during that time to have a woman take her hair down in public, but she took her hair down and used it to wipe Jesus’ feet. Taking care of someone’s feet was the job of a servant, and her mindset was to express her devoutness to Jesus.
There were costs involved in this activity. Mary had the monetary cost of the pure nard. However, there was also the cost of letting down her hair in public and using her hair to wipe his feet. At the risk of being misunderstood and judged by those who thought she wasted the expensive oil; Mary assumed the role of a servant. Because she had a mindset of worship, Mary’s love compelled her to act. Her desire was to give to the Lord and express her complete dedication to him. She did not know that she was anointing Jesus’ body for his burial. And she did not know that her story would be told for hundreds of years in memory of her. Her mindset was one of reverence and adoration – worship.
A new mindset gives you confidence to do what is needed in each situation.
Your mindset matters for so many things. If you think you can do something, you will work at it. If you keep telling yourself that you can’t do something, you won’t. This applies to so many areas in life, including the changing of eating patterns to become healthy. There is a cost involved in change. It will cost money, time, effort, and maybe even grieving over giving up things you used to have. If your mindset is healthy living, you can make the changes step-by-step and find yourself living the healthy life you have always wanted.
Questions:
Do you think you have a healthy mindset?
If your default thinking is negative, is there anything you can do to change your thinking?
How would your co-workers, closest friends and family members describe your mindset?
What commitments are you prepared to make in order to achieve the life changes you desire?