“All these people gave their gifts out of wealth, but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on” (Luke 21:4).

My time on this earth is a precious gift to me.  But I often feel like I never have enough time.  There’s so much I want to do if I could only find the time.  Time feels like the one thing that’s always in the shortest supply.  If I could have more of anything, it would be time.  

In this story in Luke’s Gospel, Jesus is watching the crowd of people bringing offerings to the temple treasury. He notices one specific woman. As he watches, what does he see?

Jesus saw that this widow gave far more than the wealthy.

Jesus saw that she was indeed poor.

And he saw her gift was all that she had to live on.

The widow’s gift is extraordinary because she gave deeply of what she had, not just her “extra” like the other wealthier people in line.  She gave what others around her would say she couldn’t afford.  

But Jesus never said she couldn’t afford it.  

Thousands of years later, I find myself confused by and judgmental of her gift.  Her offer was so meager, it wouldn’t make much of a difference compared with the wealthy gifts of others. Why wouldn’t she have kept her money, and let others with the abundance of money do the work? But as meager as her gift appears to me, it is extraordinary to Jesus.  And the widow gave it freely.

Just like Jesus sees the widow in this story, Jesus sees me.   Jesus reminds me that he’s not asking me to hit a certain threshold before it becomes important.  He’s asking me to share something that’s deeply valuable to me.  When Jesus puts opportunities in front of me to volunteer in my community, serve at church, or spend time I don’t think I can spare, it’s because Jesus knows I can give deeply of my time.

At the end of the story, we don’t see a miracle.  We don’t read about the widow being miraculously saved from poverty. It doesn’t appear to us that she’s soaring. But like the widow, as I give deeply of my time in the name of Jesus, I can feel myself soaring.  It’s not because of a reward, or a moment of miraculous intervention in my life.  It’s because I’m seen by Jesus, and I’m loved by him.  Through my valuable gift of time, I’m honoring the gift of life he gave to me.    

Is Jesus calling you to give something you believe you cannot afford? Don’t stop yourself from giving because you’re judging your offering as too small or insignificant.  Jesus sees you, and he loves you.  He knows how generous you can be and wants you to soar!