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, and she had to live on.” (12:41-44)
Man looks at what impresses the eye, but the Father looks at the heart of people. It is not the appearance of your actions that will impress the Father, like the long and loud public prayers that the scribes would do, or the impressive gifts that some give. What impresses the Father is what you do in the secret of your heart, your response to the Love of the Father. In public, the scribes would present themselves pure and holy, but in the secret they would deprive widows of their houses. Here, this widow did the opposite, she did something that seemed very small, looking even disrespectful after all the large gifts given, yet in the secret of her heart she was expressing to God her radical trust and hope.
In the same way, you are invited not to impress people outwardly, but to express humbly to the Father your love and trust in him.
The scribes trusted in their reputation and their financial schemes in order to have enough money. This poor widow did not rely on her appearance or resources but on the living God. She did her offering because she already had learned that the Father cares for her, as he always desires to care for widows and orphans. She was not crazy, wasting her last penny with futility, but was expressing a real adoration to the Father and the confident hope that He would provide for her in her need. She new that her penny, in any case, was not enough for her to live on, she also knew that she needed God’s help, that is why her action was wise to God although it was foolish to men. When you begin to believe that we really act in your world, that the Father is really the creator of the universe, that in me you have real life, then you will begin to trust in us in every practical matters. Then you will rejoice to see our love expressed in your life and through you to others.
Learn from this widow to come to us with humility. Commit to us what you have, your strength, your knowledge and your resources, so that we guide you and protect you in your world so full of appearances and deceptions. In fact, all belongs already to the Father, the creator of the universe, and whatever you believe you possess is in fact something only loaned to you by the Father. When the day of your death comes, you see clearly this illusion of earthly possessions, and how important it is to store treasures in heaven rather than on the earth.
Don’t let humans dictate to you how you should trust God, learn to listen to us in prayer, and we will guide you. There are wolves in your world, who like the scribes look so pious and yet deprive many of their resources. There are also many faithful servants of ours in this world, but in order to recognize them you need to learn to recognize my voice. Read the accounts of my life in the Gospels, and learn to dialogue with me as you meditate these lessons. Learn to listen to us, to trust in us, to recognize my voice so that I can lead you like a faithful shepherd leads his sheep. There are mercenaries who want to deceive my sheep, but if you learn to listen to my voice, I will protect you from them and prevent you from being deceived. If you don’t learn to listen to my voice, it will be very difficult for you to recognize the mercenaries, the thieves or the wolves, and it will be difficult for me to guide you. If you learn to spend time with me, speaking and listening to me, meditating Scriptures and following our guidance, you will remain in my hand and nobody will be able to crush your spirit. You will remain in the hand of the Father and nobody will be able to snatch you away.
The Father is not a pushy lender exacting violence against people at the first disagreement. He is so patient and merciful, yet ultimately He wants to see that you learn to use the resources He provides to love Him and to love your neighbor. This widow had understood a key lesson about what faith is, that the Father could be trusted indeed in all situations, and that expressing her trust and love for Him was of key importance. Have you learned this lesson? Are you focused on the resources you have the impression you can get and hoard by your strength? Or do you focus on the resources the Father shares with you and how He wants you to use them and share them in a way that honors Him?
Don’t focus on appearances but on the heart. The Father is not impressed by external expressions that are empty of love or devotion to him, by gifts that people make in order to look good to others while in the secret of their room they are full of selfishness and bitterness.
Learn to store treasures of love in heaven. Learn to worship the Father in spirit and in truth. Learn to follow our guidance as you learn to recognize my voice through prayer. Learn like this widow had learned that the Father is faithful and will take care of you.
We will then prepare a place for you, and you will begin to experience already on earth what eternal life is, this deep peace that only fellowship with the Father and me can give, a peace that can be received only through the presence of the Holy Spirit in you.
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