I was worshipping on the keyboard and began beholding His beauty. As always, He is glorious in every way, and I was raptured in His presence. All of a sudden, a heavenly being of some sort appeared to my left that was like no being I have ever encountered before. I only saw its face, which, in some ways, appeared like a baby of no particular gender. Its skin was glowing and perfect. Along with me, it was gazing upon Him, and its eyes danced with delight. I will never forget the smile on its face and the glow of utter ecstasy as it “feasted its eyes” on Him. Throughout the entire encounter, it never took its eyes off of Him, and I began to realize that the sole purpose of this being’s existence was to gaze with delight at the Beautiful One. I wish I could find adequate words to describe the look of ecstasy on this being’s face or the sense of pleasure I had in being part of the agreement of heaven and earth in adoring Him. It was a small taste of the highest pleasure. It also brought alignment to my values, which, so many times, are earth-locked and shallow. I often succumb to the lie that “fruitful” has to do with tangibly manifested and earthly measurable “results.” But this being was created solely to enjoy Him and obviously to be enjoyed by Him. It is what Jesus told Martha… that she was “careful and troubled” about many things, while Mary had chosen the “one thing” that was needful: to enjoy His presence. These same cares must be the ones in Matthew 13:22 that choke out His seeds within us, causing us to be unfruitful. I have sung it many times: “We are created for His pleasure,” and, to some degree, I know it well. Yet, there are still layers of ungodly practicality within me that feel this pursuit of pleasure is a “waste.”
Matthew 26:6-13: “Then Jesus went to Bethany, to the home of Simon, a man Jesus had healed of leprosy. A woman came into the house, holding an alabaster flask filled with fragrant and expensive oil. She walked right up to Jesus, and in a lavish gesture of devotion, she poured out the costly oil, and it cascaded over his head as he was at the table. When the disciples saw this, they were offended. “What a total waste!” they grumbled. “We could have sold it for a great deal of money and given it to the poor.” Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Why are you critical of this woman? She has done a beautiful act of kindness for me. You will always have someone poor whom you can help, but you will not always have me. When she poured the fragrant oil over me, she was preparing my body for burial. I promise you that as this wonderful gospel spreads all over the world, the story of her lavish devotion to me will also be mentioned in memory of her.”