Luke 20:41-21:4
Luke 21:3-4
In today’s scripture, Jesus is teaching the disciples about giving. He wants them to understand the importance of giving with love and compassion. During this time, the scribes were obsessed with following the law including giving to the church. First in line, they brought many coins of small denomination so the coins would rattle loudly as they dropped them into the treasury. Next in line is a widow, poor in finances yet rich in her love of God. Embarrassed perhaps by how little she had to offer, she quietly slips her last two tiny coins into the collection. Part of the treasury might well have been used to care for widows and orphans; thus, she may not have even been expected to give. She felt immensely blessed by God’s love, and in turn, she gave with her heart.
Today is the seventy-first anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. We admire and remember the ultimate gift that so many gave on that day. Their lives were given serving and defending their families, their country, and their God. Theirs was truly a gift of heart.
It is likely the widow never knew that Jesus used her loving spirit to teach his own disciples a lesson in giving with love. The scribes, well, I think they would be proud that we still remember them so many years later; they had a knack for missing the point!
Prayer:
Dear Lord, we pray that we give generously with our hearts for the right reasons.
Paula Miller