Living GenerouslySample

Generous With How We’re Perceived

While we can’t control what people think of us, we can choose to live generously when it comes to how we’re perceived. That means, we can let go of our fear of rejection and instead wholeheartedly embrace a life of unashamed faith in Jesus and compassion for the people He’s given us to love.

I struggle with this aspect of generosity because I like to be liked. I don’t want to rock the boat in any way or endure others’ disapproval. But sometimes, like Mary, we need to be willing to have our motives questioned or to be judged for doing the right thing. What others think is important, but it’s not the most important thing.

In Luke 10, Mary sits at Jesus’ feet, showing she considers herself His disciple. Except, only men could be disciples. For the men present, her outlandish behavior only gets worse when she anoints Jesus’ feet, uncovers her hair, and takes on the position of a servant by wiping His feet. Next, her wastefulness is criticized because the perfume is so expensive. We can take courage from Mary’s actions, because it’s actually ok to shock people with our culturally offensive, yet undeniably compassionate, behavior. We can be known as those who embody guts and grit, tenderness and compassion.

Despite the hostility she faces, Mary believes her radical intervention is the loving thing to do, and that swamps any concerns over how she’ll be perceived. She’s unthreatened. People’s opinions are irrelevant compared to the opportunity to express her love for Jesus. Let’s gladly surrender our reputations to God, happy to get egg on our faces if it means advancing the good news. Jesus is highly protective of Mary when the disciples criticize her, telling them in no uncertain terms to back off (John 12:7) and explaining that Mary has anointed His body for burial. Astonishingly, Jesus mirrors and reinforces Mary’s provocative behavior in the next chapter, by stooping to wash His disciples’ feet and commanding them to love one another in this same way (John 13:5-15, 34-35).

The willingness to turn accepted norms on their head to bring God’s Kingdom into a world that doesn’t recognize it isn’t about being troublemakers. It’s about acting out our faith. Jesus was willing to be misunderstood and rejected because of His great love for us. We can be too, because of our great love for Him. Jesus said, ‘Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on My account.’ (Matthew 5:11) Mary embraced this truth, showing insouciant generosity with how people perceived her as she loved on Jesus. Her brave example has inspired believers for thousands of years. Being generous with how people perceive us is a powerful way of expressing our faith in a generous God. It will take courage, determination, and resilience, and we may be treated unfairly. Thankfully, our love for God can overwhelm any reluctance to be criticized or misperceived, enabling our love to be meaningfully experienced by those around us.