Hello, friend, and welcome to this daily encouragement from our daily bread.

I'm Elisa Morgan, and I'd like to share today's reading with you that I titled

Unapologetic Tears.

I'm sorry, Karen said, apologizing for her flowing tears. After the death of her husband,

she stretched herself to care for her teenage kids. When men from church provided a weekend

camping excursion to entertain them and give her a break, Karen wept with gratitude,

apologizing over and over for her tears.

Why does so many of us apologize for our tears?

Simon, a Pharisee, invited Jesus to dinner.

And in the middle of the meal, as Jesus reclined at the table, a woman who had lived a sinful life brought an alabaster jar of perfume.

Luke chapter 7 verse 38 says,

As she stood behind Jesus at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears,

then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them, and poured perfume on them.

Unapologetically, this woman freely expressed her love and then unwound her hair to dry Jesus' feet.

Overflowing with gratitude and love for Jesus, she topped off her tears with perfumed kisses,

actions that contrasted with those of the proper but cold-hearted host.

Jesus' response?

He praised her exuberant expression of love and proclaimed her forgiven.

We may be tempted to squelch tears of gratitude when they threaten to overflow,

but God made us emotional beings, and we can use our feelings to honor him.

Like the woman in Luke's gospel, let's unapologetically express our love for our good God who provides for our needs and freely receives our thankful response.

Today's Our Daily Bread Devotional Scripture reading is from Luke chapter 7, verses 36 to 44.

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