Mark's Sunday School Review

Most of us are familiar with the story of “The Widow’s Mite” found in Mark 12:38-44. In this story Jesus points out how the widow gave a small amount and people with much gave much. The difference is that those that had a lot were giving from their surplus and did it flamboyantly. The widow on the other hand, gave everything she had quietly.

Often this story is connected to monetary giving. I think it is about much more than that. I think it is about where the widow’s heart was. Her giving came from her heart and was rooted in faith. She realized that everything is from God and belongs to God. We have just been given the opportunity to manage a portion of it here for a short time.

We need to be willing to give of what we have been given. This includes talents, knowledge, and money. It is about sharing God’s gifts from our heart, not our wallet.

Pastor Lee shared a O. Henry short story, “The Last Leaf”, about a young girl with pneumonia who decides that she will die when the last leaf drops from a dying vine outside her window. Her neighbor, an elderly artist frustrated by his inability to paint what is in his heart, follows the example of the Savior and makes the ultimate sacrifice to save her life. In doing so, he creates the masterpiece he has been struggling to paint. http://www.eastoftheweb.com/short-stories/UBooks/LasLea.shtml

Share from your heart that which you have been given.