Poured Out for Purpose

Bible Passage

Luke 7:37-38, 44, 47 (KJV)

Luke 7:37–38 CSB

And a woman in the town who was a sinner found out that Jesus was reclining at the table in the Pharisee’s house. She brought an alabaster jar of perfume and stood behind him at his feet, weeping, and began to wash his feet with her tears. She wiped his feet with her hair, kissing them and anointing them with the perfume.

Luke 7:44 CSB

Turning to the woman, he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she, with her tears, has washed my feet and wiped them with her hair.

Luke 7:47 CSB

Therefore I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; that’s why she loved much. But the one who is forgiven little, loves little.”

Introduction: The Alabaster Box—A Moment in the Margins

Step with me, church, into the candlelit hush of a Pharisee’s house.

Smell the aroma of judgment in the air.

See the faces turned away, the whispers swirling, the eyes rolling as a woman—uninvited, unwelcomed, unworthy in their sight—slips into the room.

She carries no title, no pedigree, no invitation.

But in her trembling hands, she holds an alabaster box—her most precious possession, her life’s savings, her silent testimony.

She kneels at the feet of Jesus.

Tears stream down her face, washing away the dust of rejection.

She breaks the box.

She pours out the ointment.

She anoints the Master.

And in that moment, what the world called waste, Jesus called worship.

What the crowd called shame, Jesus called salvation.

What the critics called a scandal, Jesus called a memorial.

Church, don’t you know—God sees what others overlook!

God honors what others ignore!

God uses what others discard!

If we forget where we came from, we won’t know where we are going!

Mary Beatrice Davidson Kenner: The Hidden Genius with the Unopened Box

Now, let me bring you from the ancient house of Simon to the humble home of a Black woman in North Carolina.

Her name is Mary Beatrice Davidson Kenner.

Born in 1912, raised in a family of inventors, Mary was a child with a mind full of ideas and hands ready to build.

But the world had no room for her gifts.

Doors of education closed because of her color.

Opportunities slammed shut because of her gender.

She worked as a florist, a federal employee, a caretaker—always inventing in the shadows, always dreaming in the margins.

At age six, she tried to invent a self-oiling door hinge.

As a young woman, she designed a sanitary belt to help women move with dignity and freedom.

But when she tried to patent her invention, she was told, “We don’t do business with colored women.”

She held five patents—more than any other Black woman in U.S. history.

Yet she died with little recognition, no fortune, and her name nearly erased from the books.

But church, let me tell you—God keeps records that the world can’t erase!

God sees the gifts you pour out in secret!

God remembers the sacrifices you make in silence!

Mary’s inventions changed the lives of millions—women, the disabled, the overlooked.

She poured out her alabaster box, not for applause, but for purpose.

She gave her best, not for profit, but for people.

And though the world called her invisible, heaven called her invaluable!

The Power of the Overlooked Gift: When Worship Becomes Breakthrough

Church, the woman with the alabaster box and Mary Kenner had this in common:

They were both overlooked.

They were both underestimated.

They were both uninvited to the table.

But they both had a gift that the world needed.

The woman’s worship prepared Jesus for His burial—her act was a prophecy, a breakthrough, a legacy.

Mary’s inventions prepared women for freedom—her work was a blessing, a breakthrough, a legacy.

Both poured out what they had, not knowing if anyone would notice.

Both gave their best, not for recognition, but for redemption.

And both were remembered by God, even when forgotten by men.

Church, don’t you know—your gift may not make headlines, but it can make history!

Your sacrifice may not be celebrated, but it can set captives free!

Your obedience may not be rewarded by men, but it is recorded in heaven!

Present-Day Parallels: Black Women in STEM—Still Pouring, Still Pressing

Let me talk to the daughters of Mary Kenner in this house.

Let me speak to the sons and daughters who feel overlooked, underestimated, uninvited.

Today, Black women are still the fastest-growing group of entrepreneurs in America.

But they are still underrepresented in STEM.

Still fighting for patents.

Still pressing through closed doors.

Still pouring out their gifts in a world that too often looks the other way.

But God is raising up a generation who will not be defined by rejection, but by revelation!

God is calling you to pour out your alabaster box—your ideas, your inventions, your innovations—for such a time as this!

Don’t let the world’s “no” stop your “yes” to God!

Don’t let the pain of the past paralyze your purpose for the future!

Don’t let the silence of men drown out the applause of heaven!

If we forget where we came from, we won’t know where we are going!

But if we remember—if we remember the Mary Kenners,

the women with the alabaster box,

the ancestors who pressed through pain to pour out purpose—then we will rise!

We will invent!

We will innovate!

We will inspire!

Closing

As I Close,

Somebody’s alabaster box is about to break!

Somebody’s hidden gift is about to be poured out!

Somebody’s overlooked idea is about to change the world!

Don’t you dare hold back your worship!

Don’t you dare hide your invention!

Don’t you dare bury your talent!

Because the same God who saw the woman in the Pharisee’s house...

The same God who saw Mary Kenner in her workshop...

The same God who sees you in your midnight hour...

That God is calling you to pour out your gift!

Break the box!

Let the fragrance fill the room!

Let your worship shift the atmosphere!

Let your invention bless the nations!

Let your story inspire the next generation!

If we forget where we came from, we won’t know where we are going!

But if we remember—if we remember the tears, the trials, the triumphs— then we will know that our history is the seed of our destiny!

So rise up, church!

Pour out your purpose!

Break the box!

Bless the world!

And let the world know—God uses the overlooked to bring overflow!