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We don’t know her name only her love. When Jesus was in Bethany at the house of Simon the leper, a woman came to Him with an alabaster flask of costly fragrant oil and poured it on His head.  Set free from torment and now living with new hope, she came to pay her debt the best she could. But some disciples including Judas asked why the fragrant oil was “wasted?” GK Apoleia” Literally “ruined to perdition.” 

300 denarii was close to a year’s wage. That is extravagant worship. You can’t accurately ladle out worship, so she poured it out.  Worship is wasteful; it is always excessive, even over the top. You can only pour it out unmeasured. Extravagant worship always exposes the hard, pragmatic, selfish or merely natural mindset

Judas also asked why her passion and devotion were not used to help the poor. But worship is not about being helpful or alleviating need. Meeting a need is a good thing to do at any time but it is not worship.  Worship is given to the One who has no need - we worship because it is we who have the need to worship.

Tellingly, when Jesus was describing Judas later, as the “son of perdition”, he used the exact same word "wasted", meaning “ruined to perdition.”  When a man calls wasted a thing that God esteems, God who wishes to esteem every man's life, may call it wasted.

Friends, the extravagance of our worship and how we rejoice in extravagant worship by others, is a good indicator of our heart and our future.

 Worship is the gyroscope of the soul. Worship is a sign of right order in the universe. When men and women worship God they begin to find out what they are born for and the benefits that God plans for them. Worship is all about God, but it benefits us. 

Worship lifts a man out of obscurity. Of course, God knows every person and loves them, but people don’t really appear on His “radar” until they begin to worship Him. Worship will lift a man to his place in history.  Gideon worshipped God and discovered he was a mighty man of valor. Moses was unknown till he bowed at the flaming shrub and Isaiah was just the son of a rich man until he saw the Lord high and lifted up. When people worship, they become what they were intended to be.

Worshipping Jesus is the only way to get the best from our life and our day. When Jesus was visiting His friends in Bethany, Martha was busy in the kitchen but Mary sat at His feet.  When Martha later complained to Jesus that Mary wasn’t helping her, Jesus said that Mary had chosen the best part. On an average day, there are tasks to complete and people to relate to, but they can never become the best they could be, till we have done the best part of the whole day, which is to worship Him.  Without the best part of the day in place, all other parts are ill-placed and unaligned. We may have a wrong perspective, or life’s priorities may become distorted like Martha’s. She believed that love was best shown by industry, not intimacy even in inactivity.

Being “unproductive” is not a virtue in the world or even in the kingdom of God but imperative in the very presence of Jesus. Our importance and what we can do for Him, is zero compared with what He can do for us as we worship.

Friend, to become the person, the father or friend, we were intended to be, and even to have the day God intended, choose to be a worshipper.

Gideon’s men quietly picked their way in the darkness around the Midianites’ camp. At the signal, they broke their clay vessels, revealing their flaming torches. The Midianites felt outnumbered by the great army that they thought had come upon them. It's amazing what God can do with people who have the lamp in their vessels and are willing to obey and break it in the battle. (Judges 7:19).  The Word of God is the lamp (Psalm 119:105).  And that lamp can be hidden inside our hearts (the vessel).  David said he hid God’s Word in his heart so he might not sin against God. If there is no Word stored in our heart, there will be no victory in the field.  It is the Sword that works, not garlic. How many of us still memorise scripture?   The Bible has to be more to us than an App on our phone next to Instagram and Facebook.

When Paul and Silas, vessels for God, were broken by imprisonment, they sang. Their faith-filled songs sounded so good, God turned up and every prisoner's bands were loosed - not just the Apostles. When a woman broke her alabaster vessel to worship Jesus, the room was filled with the fragrance of devotion.

Friend, today, we may find someone who is sick, or who needs our prayer of faith, or we have the opportunity to share the good news with them. Breaking our vessel is taking the risk to step out and to do it. Whenever we allow the Word of God and our devotion to shine out of our lives, there will be a breakthrough. In our lives and theirs!

Blind Bartimaeus heard that Jesus was passing by. He reached out and received his sight. He left behind his mat, his garment and his begging. Others in the Bible had their lives changed, too, because they received something from Jesus. The adulterous woman couldn't believe what happened. She was brought before Jesus to receive judgment, but she received mercy instead. (John 8) Zacchaeus received value, and Peter received forgiveness.

Jesus is not trying to take something from us, He is always trying to give something to us. What do we have, and what will we ever have that we do not receive?  We have nothing valuable that never came from Him.

We need to be good receivers. It is the hungry, the thirsty, and the needy that receive from Him. The only thing that hinders us from receiving is not knowing our need, not knowing He is close by, or not asking. Everyone who received knew there was no life in temple programs or rote prayers, but only in a Person. When we receive from Jesus, we receive Life.  God is so good that it always brings Him more joy to give to you than to receive from you. Blind Bart received sight and followed Jesus in the way. The more we see of Jesus, the closer we will want to follow. Not as beggars but as sons.

Friend, when you receive from Jesus, your words, your position and your garments change. If you are ready to follow Him, call out to Him, "who is coming your way" and receive.

God emptied heaven to bring us back to Him by sending His Son on a mission. God said to Joseph, “Call him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” God saw the manifold sufferings of people, but He was dealing with the root of our problem, because humanity’s deepest issue is not economic, social, racial, or educational—it is sin. Today, the media pours out details of the hate between nations, neighbours, and bus riders, but they never mention the Hope: Jesus Christ, who came to save us.

When a PhD cheats on their taxes, and a school leaver pays theirs, the difference isn’t education; it’s sin. When MPs on both sides of the house commit adultery, the issue isn’t politics; it’s sin.  Both rich and poor can become depressed or suicidal, because the cause isn’t money; it’s sin. When suburbs with the greatest public amenities and services still lead in social problems, it's not the environment; it is sin.

Socialists insist our problem is financial inequity, solved by redistribution and taxes. Humanists reject the idea of sin, but, embarrassed by growing evil, blame society and its institutions. New Agers and Avatars tell us cosmic consciousness will solve our problems, but our “godness” is slow coming. Secularists place their hope in technology, but our kids are emotionally sicker. Some psychologists say people's problems come from the suppression of desires and instincts. But their solution to release those drives to be “free,” sounds dumb to me.   Atheists claim that everyone is without sin and is evolving towards utopia. I haven't noticed. They confuse capacity with choice: Though we are created for worship and love, we still choose wrong. So the Scripture is true, “All have sinned… and fallen short of God's requirement” (Romans 3:23).

Everyone has a diagnosis and a cure. But if the diagnosis is wrong, the solution is hopeless. By all means, let's help the poor, alleviate symptoms and suffering and educate all who want to learn. But until we realise the problem is not in our purse or in our parliament, but in our hearts, true change can never come. Only the blood of Christ removes the guilt of sin. Psychiatry may expose it. Psychology may help us cope with it. But only Emmanuel—God with us—can pardon it and remove it. Only Christ the Saviour can save us from the penalty and the power of our sin. Thank you, Jesus!!

Ps. Have a brilliant Christmas celebration with your family and friends. See you in 2026!

Ancient darkness whispers through ancestry, culture, and superstition. The Jews in John 8 clung to Abraham’s name, convinced their genealogy guaranteed God’s favour. But Jesus shattered their illusion: “Your father is the devil.” Pride in their past blinded them from seeing God in the flesh standing before them.

Their ancestors had wandered, been exiled, colonised, and mistreated. Survival stories became identity anchors, but identity rooted in history or offence didn't grant salvation.

Some ancient peoples worshipped the true God of Abraham. Others bowed to animist spirits dwelling in the wind and stones, or to pantheist visions of a divine creation and universe. My own Celtic forebears revered ancestors, feared curses, and read omens in shadows. Bagpipes I love; haggis, not so much. But superstition and mythical gods bound them to fear, not freedom. Even today, international recognition and adoption of indigenous knowledge is not a path into the light.

Jesus spoke to this confusion. He says: “My words are the Truth; if you follow them, you will walk in freedom.” He and His words are the measure of reality itself. And He warns: “If anyone from any age or place isn’t following me, they walk in darkness.”

Friends, culture is a gift. Language, food, family, and traditions should be celebrated. But culture cannot save. Genealogy cannot redeem. The Jews were culturally awakened but spiritually blind. Embrace what Christ redeems in culture, reject what enslaves, and remember: Jesus alone reveals the Father. He is the Truth, the measure of all knowledge, the light that shatters ancient darkness.

The other night we saw the movie “What About Bob? a man trapped in unreality, plagued by compulsive behaviours who believed he had many illnesses despite no medical evidence. While Bob lives in unreality, he mirrors our spiritual state before we met Christ.

In Mark 5:15 Jesus met and delivered the insane man from the tombs, who then sat listening at Jesus' feet, clothed, and with a sane mind. He was free of demonic thoughts and ready to follow and witness for Jesus. That is sanity!  Scripture teaches that without Jesus, we are literally insane—our minds darkened, our perceptions distorted, our fears unchecked, but when we are born again, God gives us a spirit of power, love, and a sound mind.  (sōphroneō: saved and sane 2 Timothy 1:7)

Every person, including PhDs, politicians, parents and preachers who reject Christ, are biblically insane, believing things about the universe that are not real. Atheists who have no access to the spiritual realm brazenly claim that God does not exist. Marxists believe joy comes from the state controlling all things. Materialists believe happiness is owning more. Modernists trust only science or themselves.  Pantheists believe they can meet god by touching their hair to a branch of a tree. Woke believe that the “marginalised” are always right, and postmoderns tell themselves that deconstructed relationships are better than marriage, when even recent secular research says different: “Adults who are married report being far happier than those in any other relationship status, according to a Gallup Poll published Friday. 9 Feb 2024. Married couples report higher trust and satisfaction in their relationships compared to unmarried cohabitating partners, according to the Pew analysis. 21 Apr 2024. Couples who are merely cohabiting might be less willing to invest in their relationship and associated social networks as compared to couples with the relational stability that comes with marriage. Statistically, cohabiting men are four times more likely to cheat than husbands, and cohabiting women are eight times more likely to cheat than wives.” Blekesaune, 27 Mar 2021.

 Yet, people choose to live in unreality and self-selected echo chambers, education and media reinforce their delusions. Unbelievers live in a frightening world—without God, hope, or help. And sadly, for some people, it is literally traumatic. For them, denial can become a comforting defence, but it cannot deliver.

So, friend, how is your sanity? Are you seated at Jesus’ feet, clothed in His love, filled with gratitude, and ready to tell of His goodness? Yes? Great! People so need to meet Jesus, because until they do, they’re just nuts.

In 2016, we were running late and trying to get to the airport in Portugal. On the motorway, the GPS was slow to refresh and appeared to say to turn right. We did and ended up on one of the longest bridges in the world. We couldn't turn around for 20 kilometres! There are moments in life when it feels like you’ve taken a wrong turn and ended up on a bridge you never wanted to cross. Maybe it’s a financial burden, a health crisis, a broken relationship, or a spiritual dry spell. We didn’t plan it, but here we are.

David returned to Ziklag to find everything gone—his city burned, his family taken, and his men ready to stone him. David had every reason to collapse under the weight of grief, fear, and exhaustion. But in that moment, when no one stood with him, David did something powerful: “But David strengthened himself in the LORD his God.” 1 Samuel 30:6. He didn’t have answers. He didn’t have support. But he had a history with God. Kings need to know how to stand alone. It was only a short time after that, that he was crowned King.

Encouraging yourself in God doesn’t mean pretending everything’s fine. It means remembering who He is, what He’s done, and what He’s promised. It means choosing to believe that God who blessed your going out is still with you in your coming in—even over a bridge you hate.

Friend, your bridge isn’t forever and God isn’t finished yet. So look up and go ahead. Encourage yourself that God is still good, still present, and still in control. Because crowns come to those who are faithful in trials. And by the way, we just made it to the check-in, and they opened the bag drop again, just for our bags!

Abraham looked up and scanned the heavens. As a million stars twinkled, he thought, “How can it be?”. Childless Abraham was given a promise—his descendants would be as numerous as the stars. But then came the test: offer up Isaac, and incredibly, he did. “By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac…” Hebrews 11:17.  God didn’t explain or reassure. He watched. Because sometimes silence is not absence—it’s examination. The teacher doesn’t speak during the test.

Usually, the promise from God comes via a process and a test. We love the idea of increase, but we often resist the path that leads there. Yet there is no glory without a story, or a crown without a cross. Tests are not meant to hurt us—they’re designed to reveal us. They expose what we believe, what we fear, and what we’re willing to surrender. And if God seems silent in the test, it is not rejection—it’s refinement. It is not because He’s distant, but because He’s developing something deeper in us. We want to skip the process, but the process is what makes us like Jesus.  Our Father who loved, called and tested Abraham is developing us too.

Friend, don’t stumble in the silence. And when the Father speaks, you’ll find that you’ve grown closer and stronger and more ready for the promise than you ever imagined. Keep walking. Keep trusting and keep surrendering, and you will find that He has a resurrection of the promise and a supernatural provision for you.