Two Small Coins

I was reading in Luke this morning about the widow who dropped two small coins in the offering.  Jesus noticed her even if no one else did.  It made me stop to think about how we treat offerings.
First, it was never the size of the offering.  There is nothing too small to give to God and there certainly nothing that is too big.  In fact, whatever we give cannot be big enough.  I know people who give generously but they give out of their abundance and not our of their very existence.

Second, it is not about a percentage.  Some people give ten percent or twenty or even ninety percent but that was not the point with Jesus.  The woman gave one hundred percent.  She gave all she had to live on.  It would have been easy for her to give one of the coins and kept the other as she did need to buy food and after all, she did give fifty percent. 

Some how today we make a big deal about the size of the gift.  We visit a museum and see plagues that tell us that Mr and Mrs So-n-so gave such a large gift.  There will be no such plagues in heaven but there will be a special place for the widow who gave the two small coins.

The other day I received a cheque for $500 that I didn't expect.  I thought of spending it on myself after all I wanted a new camera but instead I put it aside and sent $300 to a friend who was a retired missionary.  As I started to feel good about myself I realized that I still had kept $200 for myself.  I sent the $300 and it didn't make any difference in my life at all.  It certainly wasn't anything like the widows two small coins.  I gave out of surplus not out of my very existence. 

Just one more thought about giving.  Too often we give because we get a tax deductible receipt.  Now if the receipt is available we should take advance of it so that we can give even more but that should never deter us from giving.