The Widow’s Offering

by guest blogger Michael Albanese

My church’s pledge form had come in the mail and sat on my hall table for about a week.

Each day as I came and went to work I would see the envelope and think about all of the

bills I had to pay and the conflict I felt about the spirit of giving that I should show towards

the needs of my church

One morning I read the story of the widow's offering (Mark 12:41) about how a poor widow

gave generously out of her poverty, giving all that she had to live on, in faith that God

would sustain her. Christ recognized this gift as more precious than the offerings of the rich,

who gave out of their abundance.

I realized that more than material poverty, we all come to Christ in spiritual poverty, for as

human beings we have nothing to offer God in return for His gifts. We can only offer

ourselves as servants to the Will of God, giving our whole heart to Him. If we offer all that

we have, giving without reservation out of our heart’s poverty, God will receive us and

welcome us into a life with Him. While supporting my church is an important part of my

Christian calling, God does not desire offerings made out of obligation or ritual, but an

offering made of our heart’s love, given willingly so that we may be called His people.

Jesus’ teaching of “Blessed are the poor, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven” took on an

entirely new meaning for me once I understood this. Acknowledging my spiritual poverty

before God has made me deeply grateful for all that I have, and has opened my heart to

supporting the work of my church and others in need.