Two Small Coins

The WORD today (see http://usccb.org/bible/readings/061017.cfm) reminds me that God sees the value of what we give him, even if the world does not. 

There are a lot of people who have their favorite sleepwear. They always use old or oversized shirts for sleeping. It makes them feel comfortable and relaxed. They could easily buy new and expensive sleepwear, but choose to use their old ones. These may not be worth a lot, since they are old and worn out, but to the owners, their value is high. Same is true for people who keep old or damaged toys, whose worth may be minimal, but who value these things a lot. God looks at our giving the same way.

God looks at the value of what we give him, not  the worldly worth.

In the gospel, what the widow gave may not have much worth in the world. Two cents may not be able to help the poor that much. It may be practically useless. But its value for the woman is high because it was all she had. Good thing God is not man, and he does not see things the way we do. He does not need money from us to be able to do great things, to buy new things, and to help the poor. What he needs from us is a heart surrendered, a heart ready to give him what we value most, and a heart who trusts in him to make use of whatever we give and multiply it.

Aside from her generosity, we also see the woman’s faith in God. Being a widow, she is practically worthless in society, because without her husband she is nothing. That being the case, she needs every money she has to survive. But her situation did not prevent her from sharing for God’s kingdom. Her situation did not prevent her from surrendering to God. She gave all she had because she had faith that God would continue to take care of her. She gave all she had, because she loves God and wants to share him with others.

The woman may not have given a lot in terms of amount, but she gave everything she had. That may not have much worth in the world’s eyes, but in God’s eyes, that is priceless.

God does not look at the worldly value of what we give. He looks at our hearts as we give. 

May we be inspired and encouraged to give until it hurts, not because we like pain or are crazy, but because we want to love like Jesus did – with pain, dying of one’s self, and putting others first.

Father God,

Thank you for today. Thank you for another day to live. Thank you for another chance to love and serve you. Thank you for another weekend. Thank you for the very inspiring reminder. Lord, sorry for the times I put off giving because I feel that I cannot give a lot. Sorry for the times I give but only out of my surplus. Sorry for not having a giving heart.  Lord, I pray that you help me give you the kind of importance the woman in the gospel gave you. May I be generous, loving and faith filled as her. May  I be willing to give you whatever I have, no matter how painful it may be for me and no matter how insignificant it may seem for me. May I be willing and ready to give you my best. Help me be detached from the things of this world. Help me put importance on you, not on worldly things. And help me have faith to trust in you and surrender. Help me love and give like you do. Amen.

Blessed weekend!

In Christ,

-g-

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June 10, 2017
Saturday of the Ninth Week in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 358

Reading 1TB 12:1, 5-15, 20

Tobit called his son Tobiah and said to him,
"Son, see to it that you give what is due to the man
who made the journey with you; give him a bonus too."
So he called Raphael and said,
"Take as your wages half of all that you have brought back,
and go in peace."

Raphael called the two men aside privately and said to them:
"Thank God! Give him the praise and the glory.
Before all the living,
acknowledge the many good things he has done for you,
by blessing and extolling his name in song.
Honor and proclaim God's deeds,
and do not be slack in praising him.
A king's secret it is prudent to keep,
but the works of God are to be declared and made known.
Praise them with due honor.
Do good, and evil will not find its way to you.
Prayer and fasting are good,
but better than either is almsgiving accompanied by righteousness.
A little with righteousness is better than abundance with wickedness.
It is better to give alms than to store up gold;
for almsgiving saves one from death and expiates every sin.
Those who regularly give alms shall enjoy a full life;
but those habitually guilty of sin are their own worst enemies.

"I will now tell you the whole truth;
I will conceal nothing at all from you.
I have already said to you,
'A king's secret it is prudent to keep,
but the works of God are to be made known with due honor.'
I can now tell you that when you, Tobit, and Sarah prayed, 
it was I who presented and read the record of your prayer
before the Glory of the Lord;
and I did the same thing when you used to bury the dead.
When you did not hesitate to get up
and leave your dinner in order to go and bury the dead,
I was sent to put you to the test.
At the same time, however,
God commissioned me to heal you and your daughter-in-law Sarah.
I am Raphael, one of the seven angels
who enter and serve before the Glory of the Lord."

"So now get up from the ground and praise God.
Behold, I am about to ascend to him who sent me;
write down all these things that have happened to you."

Responsorial PsalmTOBIT 13:2, 6EFGH, 7, 8

R. (1b) Blessed be God, who lives for ever.
He scourges and then has mercy;
he casts down to the depths of the nether world,
and he brings up from the great abyss.
No one can escape his hand.
R. Blessed be God, who lives for ever.
So now consider what he has done for you,
and praise him with full voice.
Bless the Lord of righteousness,
and exalt the King of ages. 
R. Blessed be God, who lives for ever. 
In the land of my exile I praise him
and show his power and majesty to a sinful nation.
R. Blessed be God, who lives for ever. 
Bless the Lord, all you his chosen ones,
and may all of you praise his majesty.
Celebrate days of gladness, and give him praise.
R. Blessed be God, who lives for ever.

AlleluiaMT 5:3

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are the poor in spirit;
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

GospelMK 12:38-44

In the course of his teaching Jesus said,
"Beware of the scribes, who like to go around in long robes
and accept greetings in the marketplaces,
seats of honor in synagogues,
and places of honor at banquets.
They devour the houses of widows and, as a pretext,
recite lengthy prayers.
They will receive a very severe condemnation."

He sat down opposite the treasury
and observed how the crowd put money into the treasury.
Many rich people put in large sums.
A poor widow also came and put in two small coins worth a few cents. 
Calling his disciples to himself, he said to them,
"Amen, I say to you, this poor widow put in more
than all the other contributors to the treasury.
For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth,
but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had,

her whole livelihood."