Happy Giving

TEXT: Mark 12:41-44

You're just not big enough. How many times have you heard those words? Well, did you know that it doesn't matter how big or small you are when you do something for Jesus? What counts is that you do it with all your heart.

One of the things Jesus wants us to do with all our hearts is to give willingly. We may not have a whole lot of money, but that doesn't matter. There are more important things we can give to Jesus than money. We can give Him our whole life! Jesus looks right down into our hearts, and He sees what we want to give. That is what is important to Him.

To help us learn this lesson, there is a story in the Bible about some rich people who came to the Temple. They gave a lot of their money to God. Maybe they even brought bags of money and poured it into the money box there. Jesus was watching them and He knew just how much they gave. He also knew that they still had a lot of money left for themselves.

Then a poor woman came in. Her husband had died, so she was a widow, and had only a little bit of money. Yet, she loved God so much that she wanted to give whatever she could. In her hand she held only "two mites." Two mites weren't worth very much, but that was all the money she had. After giving them, she wouldn't have any money left for herself.

This widow hoped no one would notice her when she went over to the money box in the Temple. Quickly she dropped in her two coins and hurried away. How she wished that she had more to give to the Lord!

Jesus saw both the rich people and the poor widow. He knew what each of them put into that money box. Who do you think gave the most to God? It was not the rich people. Jesus told His disciples that the poor woman had given the most - far more than any of the others. Do you know why? It was because she had given all she had.

We can learn an important lesson from that poor woman. Maybe we can't do great things like some people do. Maybe we can't give lots of money. Still, we can give our best to God. We can give away smiles. Smiles are free and they make people happy. We can give away acts of kindness. Being kind helps others feel good. We can give a helping hand. Everybody likes to be helped. We can give a cheery word to someone. Cheerful words can make sad times roll away.

We can give these things because we love Jesus. He knows when we do them willingly. We should do whatever we do for Jesus with all our hearts. That is what counts!

PARENT'S CORNER

Discuss the word "give" with your child this week. You might wish to give him a small treat to open your talk. Ask him to describe how he feels when someone gives him something. How does God feel when we give something to Him?

Let him draw and color a poster showing things he can give to God. As he illustrates each item, discuss the fact that God is happy when we give with a willing heart. That is one of the ways we can show we love Him.