Today's Daily Lesson comes from Mark chapter 12 verses 41 through 44:
41 He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums.42A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny. 43Then he called his disciples and said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. 44For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.’
At the little church where I once served as youth and children's minister and was later ordained there was an older woman who the preacher brought to church week by week, after he picked her up from her apartment. She was a widow and lived alone in one of those old, industrial-tiled buildings with drab lighting and walls and not enough air conditioning for those hot and humid North Carolina summer days. Every Sunday morning and Wednesday night Rev. Gayle would stop by to pick her up because she didn't have a car. She didn't have much of anything.
When Irie and I got married we invited the whole church to the shower in the fellowship hall and in with Rev. Gayle walked this woman with a nicely wrapped gift in her hand. I couldn't believe it.
Later during the shower, as we opened the gifts, the attendant handed us that little package. We read the card, written neatly and with kind and loving words, then opened the package: a pair of good quality, but gently-used towels. Irie and I were both so touched.
We received a lot of good gifts that day. But that's the one we remember most. The widow gave what she could. And we were honored by the gesture.
We're still very honored by the gesture.
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