“Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny. Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything,¬ all she had to live on.” Mark 12:41-44 TNIV

Listen to All He Had – She Said

“To your left Elda. No honey, your other left.” The man gently tapped his wife’s shoulder and pointed toward the hall.

The glass doors of the conference hotel slid open then closed as an elderly man guided his ailing wife inside. Her makeup pristine, dress perfectly pressed, purse neatly dangling from the bend in her elbow. She nodded and smiled. Her eyes gazed at us, but through us, as she passed.

After three trips to get their luggage, the man stopped in front of us. “Are you a praying bunch?”

“We certainly are. Can we pray for you?” my friend asked. The man’s eyes followed his wife as she shuffled up the hallway.

“My wife has Alzheimer’s and this is likely to be our last trip together. I’m losing her. Will you pray for her? But you’ll have to pray without me… she’s wandering.”

He nodded and rushed toward her. His wife stopped, eyed him and cocked her head to one side as if to say, You look familiar. I know you, don’t I? He brushed his hand across her cheek with such tenderness I thought of Christ wiping away the tears of Mary and Martha. They turned and walked hand-in-hand toward their room.

Too often we measure our giving in dollars and cents, giving ourselves more “credit” than we’re due. The size of the check dictates the authority and prestige we have. Seldom do we consider the small gifts…the gestures that cost us little, as real treasures. But God sees the heart of the giver, not the glitter of gold. Jesus offered an example of a woman who gave all she had…her last penny. But it wasn’t the value of the coin that mattered. It was her total commitment to a God she couldn’t see, touch or hear. It was her willingness to give to a God who we sometimes lose as we wander.

With tear-filled eyes we watched as the couple shared an intimate moment. The man grasped his wife’s hand and kissed it. He’d bathed her, dressed her, helped her eat and then cried out for us to pray for her. He had, from the day they’d married and every day since, opened his heart and given all he had to the woman he loved.

We who stumble blindly down dark hallways, losing our focus, memory and purpose, have become the bride of Christ. And yet, even in our state of blindness we are called to give… a smile, a coin, a prayer, a gesture of encouragement. We are called to give what we have, however small it seems. Follow Christ’s example and give all you have of yourself… and Him.

Eddie Jones and Cindy Sproles are friends and cofounders of ChristianDevotions.us. They cowrite the popular He Said, She Said devotions and host BlogtalkRadio’s Christian Devotions Speak UP! along with Scott McCausey.

And now you can catch them each Friday evening at 7 p.m. on He Said, She Said Radio! (Call in number, 646-929-0706 ). They travel with Christian Devotions Ministries teaching the art of writing devotions at writers conferences across the country. Eddie and Cindy are featured in Faith & FINANCES: In God We Trust – A Journey to Financial Dependence. Read Cindy’s devotions.

Publisher: Lighthouse Publishing
ISBN: 978-0-9822065-4-6
Price: $9.95