Many of us feel we have nothing to give. Money is tight. Time is short. We think generosity is for people with more than we have.
Jesus noticed a woman who had almost nothing, and he said she gave the most.
The temple box
Jesus was in the temple in Jerusalem, sitting across from the box where people put their offerings. He was watching them give.
Many rich people came and put in a lot of money. People probably noticed. Big gifts get noticed.
Then a poor widow came. A widow in those days often had no one to support her. She dropped in two small copper coins, the smallest coins there were. Together they were worth almost nothing.
She gave the most
Jesus called his followers over to him. The Gospel of Mark, one of the four accounts of Jesus's life, records what he told them.
And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury:
Mark 12:43 · King James VersionThe original Greek
καὶ προσκαλεσάμενος τοὺς μαθητὰς αὐτοῦ εἶπεν αὐτοῖς· Ἀμὴν λέγω ὑμῖν ὅτι ἡ χήρα αὕτη ἡ πτωχὴ πλεῖον πάντων ἔβαλεν τῶν βαλλόντων εἰς τὸ γαζοφυλάκιον·
Found in Codex Vaticanus (about AD 325), Codex Sinaiticus (about AD 350).
Then he explained. The rich gave out of what they had left over. She gave out of her poverty. She put in everything she had to live on.
Nobody else in the temple saw what she did. Jesus did.
What it means for you
Generosity is not about the size of the gift. A small gift that costs you something can be bigger in God's eyes than a large one that costs nothing.
It is also not only about money. You can give an hour to a lonely neighbor, a meal to a tired family, a ride to someone without a car. Those gifts count.
We are often slow to give, all of us. We wait until we have more. But this widow did not wait. If all you have is two coins, or one free evening, that is enough to give. Jesus notices. He noticed her when no one else did, and he notices you.