10. THE BEST VERSION OF MYSELF: HELP

Thursday, March 7th

Read Mark 12:41-44 (copied below).

Follow Jesus…

While Jesus is teaching in the temple, he notices this poor widow placing two small coins into the treasury. The widow’s mite will not make much of a difference for the treasury, but Jesus finds her offering significant, for she has given all that she had. This becomes another teaching opportunity for Jesus to share with his disciples. Jesus values her heart, her intention, her humble generosity, more than any difference she can make.

to be the best version of myself…

This lesson encourages me to not be intimidated by the immensity of a problem or the smallness of me. I alone cannot resolve global issues such as hunger, poverty, injustice, oppression, or depletion of our earth. But I can feed my neighbor, help someone in need, speak up for others, tend our local environment, and support organizations that work for the greater good in our world. Like the widow, I can contribute the resources I do have–all gifts from God–with a generous spirit and genuine compassion.

In his book, On the Brink of Everything: Grace, Gratitude, and Getting Old, Parker Palmer encourages us to “take on big jobs worth doing, jobs like the spread of love, peace, and justice.” We may never be fully successful with undertakings such as these, but he adds:

“Our heroes take on impossible jobs and stay with them for the long haul because they live by a standard that supersedes effectiveness. The name of that standard is faithfulness—faithfulness to your gifts, to the needs of the world, and to offering your gifts to whatever needs are within your reach.” ¹

for the world.

God, Infinite Love,
Help me to live in faithfulness, always doing what I can with the gifts and resources you have generously given me. Let my love join with others, rippling out into the world in wider circles of compassion and care. May I never shrug my shoulders because “there is nothing I can do,” but offer my hands to your loving service, to do all that I can do with your help and guidance.

The reading for Sunday (10th) is Matthew 15:32-38.

¹ Palmer, Parker. On the Brink of Everything: Grace, Gratitude, and Getting Old. ReadHowYouWant, 2019.
This photo (taken my Karen in Peak, SC) inspired an image of smalls acts of kindness winding their way to join with others.

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Mark 12:41-44 (NRSVUE)

He sat down opposite the treasury and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny. Then 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. For 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.”