Giving Out of Poverty
Click here to listen to this sermon. “[Jesus] 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, all she had to live on’” (Mark 12:43-44). Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ! When I started out as a pastor, the congregation I served published a list of giving, breaking it down into the number of anonymous family units giving at various levels: those who gave nothing during the year, those who gave 1 to 100 dollars, 101 to 200 dollars, 201 to 300 dollars, and so on. Because they had been doing this for many years, the list came out before I had a chance to offer any input. During the next year, I had a number of opportunities to discuss with the church’s leadership some of the stewardship implications of such a list. On the positive si...