Widow’s Mite

                                                                 

The man in the designer suit and polished leather shoes casually mentioned that he had given $10,000 toward the fundraiser at the church.  “It is such a good cause. I just had to do it,” he said with a tone of humility.

Across the room a woman dressed in a faded dress with scuffed shoes placed her $10.00 check into the offering box. She said nothing.

Which one of these would Jesus praise? Those of us who grew up in church are familiar the story of the widow whose offering was only a mite, the smallest Jewish coin at that time. After Jesus had observed the givers, He said: “Truly I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all; for all these out of their abundance have put in offerings for God, but she out of her poverty put in all the livelihood that she had. (Luke 21:3-4). 

I am well familiar with this Biblical incident. This year, however, is the first time that I noticed the time period when this event took place. The story of the widow took place during the last week of Jesus’ life.  Jesus knew that the crucifixion was only days away.  He was bombarded by questions from the chief priests and scribes who were trying to trap Him. There were many things He wanted to say to His followers this week. Jerusalem was overflowing with Jews who had come to celebrate the Passover; He had lessons to teach them in the synagogue. A lot was going on. The widow quietly gave her offering and no one noticed.  No one, that is, except for Jesus. He did see her, and her generous offering has been documented in the Scriptures for over 2000 years. 

No one is unimportant to Jesus. No act of kindness goes unnoticed by Him. Jesus considered the poor widow to be as important as the wealthy donors. He saw her as important as the Jewish leaders or His disciples or the multitudes who followed Him.  He saw her.  He knew all about her life. He knew how little money she had. He knew what had prompted her to give. He was not too busy to notice her. 

Most of us live quiet lives. We may never be interviewed on tv or written about in the newspapers. But Jesus still sees us. He cares about the happy moments that bring us joy. He cares about our problems. Wars may be raging and horrific tragedies may be occurring in the world. But He never minimizes our less dramatic needs.  He sees us and He cares.

Thank You, Jesus, that You care about ordinary people. Thank You that You see each of us and care about every detail in our lives.