Do what you can

There is a story from the Bible that I think describes one of the things that this blog is about. It's about a rich man and a poor woman at the temple donation box, read on....

Near the entrance to the temple was a large box set into the ground where people would deposit their donations. Jewels, gold, silver, coins, all was accepted and it wasn't unknown for people to donate huge amounts. One rich merchant did just that, approaching the box he pulled a number of gold bars from under his expensive cloak and dropped them into the box, before clanking away under the weight of the jewelery he was wearing. 


Next up was a poor woman. Thin, bedraggled and untidy, she was the complete opposite to merchant who had come before her. She took a small copper coin, worth nearly nothing, and deposited in the box before shuffling away with her head down.


Jesus (or Isa) related this story to his followers. The rich man, he said, had given far less than the poor woman. How could this be? his followers exclaimed, One copper coin won't even buy a meal! Jesus explained It is not the quantity that you give, it's the quantity in relation to what you already own. The rich man had many more gold bars, giving away a few was at no cost to him. That copper coin was all the poor woman had and hence, in the eyes of God, she gave far more than the rich man ever gave.

This is a message we should take to heart in our daily lives. You may think you are lesser than someone else because they own more than you, because they donate more than you, because they spend more time in prayer than you, for any number of reasons. But to God, all that matters is you did what you could with what He gave you as a gift. So while someone may be giving gold bars while you only have a copper coin, just make sure that you give that copper coin.

Your coin could be many things. You could be really good at writing, so write and teach. You could find that you have an amazing ability for reading, so read and learn. You could discover a gift for speechcraft, so speak to others. Pretty soon you'll find that what you thought was a small copper coin is in fact worth more than gold bars! It doesn't matter what gifts God has given you, all that matters is you use them to the best of your ability.


Peace


Jack