Frances Eliza Hodgson Burnett, a female British-American novelist and play-write once remarked: “If nature has made you for a giver, your hands are born open, and so is your heart; and though there may be times when your hands are empty, your heart is always full, and you can give things out of that - warm things, kind things, sweet things - help and comfort and laughter - and sometimes gay, kind laughter is the best help of all.” Mark 12:41-44 reminds us: “And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”
The Widow’s Mite is regarded as a small contribution that is willingly given and is all one can afford. A mite, (A Greek lepton) is believed to be a small Roman bronze coin of insignificant value, but regarded in Mark’s Gospel as worth its weight in gold as it was given in the fullness of generosity. Its circa is reputed to be:103-76 BC. 2 Corinthians 9:6-8 reminds us: “The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.”
Generosity can take many forms and guises. It does not always involve money. To give a little can mean a lot to others. We don’t need to be affluent to show magnanimity. Helping another is a form of richness. It comes from within the depths of a bountiful heart, and displays virtue and unselfishness. It portrays consideration or concern for others less fortunate and may not cost that much, except for the value of time. Giving happiness and hope to another reflects the goodness of God in such a way that the receiver may more fully understand the generosity of God.
It could merit the giver with the greatest bounty from God, that of the appreciation and beauty of life itself. Acts 9:36-42 reminds us: “Now there was in Joppa a disciple named Tabitha, which, translated, means Dorcas. She was full of good works and acts of charity. In those days she became ill and died, and when they had washed her, they laid her in an upper room. Since Lydda was near Joppa, the disciples, hearing that Peter was there, sent two men to him, urging him, “Please come to us without delay.” So Peter rose and went with them.
And when he arrived, they took him to the upper room. All the widows stood beside him weeping and showing tunics and other garments that Dorcas made while she was with them. But Peter put them all outside, and knelt down and prayed; and turning to the body he said, “Tabitha, arise.” And she opened her eyes, and when she saw Peter she sat up. And he gave her his hand and raised her up. Then, calling the saints and widows, he presented her alive. And it became known throughout all Joppa, and many believed in the Lord.”
The cornerstone of life could be regarded as the rock on which we dwell. It is the basic foothold by which we live, and contributes significantly to the principles of ethical, or moral behavior. It could be considered as an adjustment of the integrity of our esteemed personal values and actions in life. Henry Kravis, an American businessman and investor once remarked: “If you don't have integrity, you have nothing. You can't buy it. You can have all the money in the world, but if you are not a moral and ethical person, you really have nothing.”
The parable of the tenants illustrates the unrighteous living of some. Mark 12:1-12 reminds us: “And he began to speak to them in parables. “A man planted a vineyard and put a fence around it and dug a pit for the winepress and built a tower, and leased it to tenants and went into another country. When the season came, he sent a servant to the tenants to get from them some of the fruit of the vineyard. And they took him and beat him and sent him away empty-handed. Again he sent to them another servant, and they struck him on the head and treated him shamefully. And he sent another, and him they killed.
And so with many others: some they beat, and some they killed. He had still one other, a beloved son. Finally he sent him to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ But those tenants said to one another, ‘This is the heir. Come, let us kill him, and the inheritance will be ours.’ And they took him and killed him and threw him out of the vineyard. What will the owner of the vineyard do? He will come and destroy the tenants and give the vineyard to others. Have you not read this Scripture: “‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord's doing, and it is marvelous in our eyes’?” And they were seeking to arrest him but feared the people, for they perceived that he had told the parable against them. So they left him and went away.”
The nourishment given to others with an open hand and heart, no matter how small or simple, can not only help to feed them, but the provider as well. That, which is given in kindness and generosity of spirit may benefit the giver’s body and soul. It has been said that giving can stimulate the brain’s mesolimbic pathway, or reward center, while releasing endorphins that create a feel-good factor, it endows self-worth and brings its own individual happiness. Acts 20:35 reminds us: “In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’”
However, if it is done for the wrong intentions, then it is not righteousness, but gluttony of mind and self-importance. Matthew 6:1-4 warns: “Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven. “Thus, when you give to the needy, sound no trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may be praised by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”
Amen.
