A poor widow also came and put in two small coins worth a few cents.
Calling his disciples to himself, he said to them, "Amen, I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the other contributors to the treasury. For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood." (Mk.12:42-44).
In the days when an ice cream sundae cost much less, a 10-year-old boy entered a hotel coffee shop and sat at a table. A waitress put a glass of water in front of him. "How much is an ice cream sundae?" he asked. "Fifty cents," replied the waitress. The little boy pulled his hand out of his pocket and studied the coins in it. "Well, how much is a plain dish of ice cream?" he inquired. By now, more people were waiting for a table and the waitress was growing impatient. "Thirty-five cents," she brusquely replied. The little boy again counted his coins. "I'll have the plain ice cream," he said. The waitress brought the ice cream, put the bill on the table, and walked away. The boy finished the ice cream, paid the cashier and left. When the waitress came back, she began to cry as she wiped down the table. There, placed neatly beside the empty dish, were two nickels and five pennies - You see, he couldn't have the sundae, because he had to have enough left to leave her a tip.
During the time of Jesus there was what they called the Court of Women. In this court there were thirteen collecting boxes each of them was for a special purpose, like to buy corn, wine, or oil for sacrifices. They were for contributions for the daily sacrifices and expenses of the Temple (Barclay). Many people put in considerable contributions. A widow came putting in two small coins. When Jesus observed this, He called His disciples and said to them, "Amen, I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all the other contributors to the treasury. For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood."(v.43-44).
The gesture of the widow teaches us lesson in giving. It reminds us of the phrase “It is the thoughts that count.” Sad to say, however, that this meaningful phrase has just become an excuse for us, which we shyly say when we feel our gifts are not good enough. The advertisements on TV and print media made us believed that the bigger the gift we give the better giver we become. The size and the price of our gifts become the measure of our love and commitment. If this is our idea of giving, we look at it all wrong. Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist and poet, said, “Rings and jewels are not gifts, but apologies for gifts. The only gift is the portion of thyself.” Real giving involves sacrifice. The size and the price of gift never matter so much as its cost to the giver. Our giving only becomes meaningful and noble when it hurts. The tip that the boy left to the waitress was not that much but it made her cry because the boy sacrificed eating ice cream sundae so he can leave her a tip. What is the value of the two small coins that the widow gave compare with others? But since she gave from her poverty, from her whole livelihood, she gave more than everybody else.
True giving happens when we give not from our surplus but from our own poverty. What matters is not how much we give but how much we keep for ourselves after giving. What is left to us is the real measure of our generosity. True giving does not expect something back. We give not because of what we can get in return. We give not because we want to brag or to see our names engraved in the walls of the church. We give because we acknowledge God has been good to us and we just want His blessings to continuously flow. True giving involves ourselves. It entails sacrifice. It also hurts. As we reflect today let us ask ourselves what are the things are we willing to give and to sacrifice for Christ and His Church?
0 comments:
Post a Comment