Mark 12:41
Mark 12:41 Sitting across from the temple treasury, He watched how the crowd dropped money into the treasury. Many rich people were putting in large sums. 42 And a poor widow came and dropped in two tiny coins worth very little. 43 Summoning His disciples, He said to them, "I assure you: This poor widow has put in more than all those giving to the temple treasury. 44 For they all gave out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she possessed--all she had to live on."
Our church, like so many others, loaded up trucks and trailers with goods and took them to people who were in need after Katrina. I will never know the extent of the sacrifices made to fill those vehicles, but two of them touched me in a special way.
The first one was my brother. I am the only one of my family in church, and while I dearly love my brother and his wife they don't tend to be the most reliable of people. He had told me he would bring some water to us before we left for church, but he didn't show up. I stopped by his house and no one answered the door. "About typical", I thought. When I got to the church (clear across town) he was just finishing unloading his truck. He had brought us 25 cases of water! I said "I thought you were going to buy a case or two?" He said "You know sis, I was. But when I had put 4 cases in my cart it just wasn't enough. This represents a little over $100, and for us that just isn't a big deal."
The second one was a woman on my street. I live in a very Hispanic neighborhood. Since my Spanish is limited, I made a poster (hoping the translation program online was accurate) and went up and down my street. I knocked on the door, said "Hola! Muy pocito Espanol" (Hi, I only speak a little Spanish) and held up my sign for them to read. One woman asked me "Do you need ....which I understood and then a whole list of words I did not recognize. "Si", I replied "Todos, todos" (all) Hoping she would understand I needed anything and everything. She brought me three bags of food and clothing and then reached into her pocket and pulled out 3 crumpled dollar bills. "Muy pocito" she said. (It's very little) No, muchas gracias!! Thank you very much I said! It brought tears to my eyes. Here was a woman, living in poverty herself, that was apologizing for not being able to give more. Truly, that woman was blessed and my heart was blessed by her giving.
While I know scenes like this were played out all over the United States, I was truly touched and humbled by the outpouring of love exhibited by everyone who contributed to our efforts to make a difference.
In His Service, For His Glory
Deborah
Our church, like so many others, loaded up trucks and trailers with goods and took them to people who were in need after Katrina. I will never know the extent of the sacrifices made to fill those vehicles, but two of them touched me in a special way.
The first one was my brother. I am the only one of my family in church, and while I dearly love my brother and his wife they don't tend to be the most reliable of people. He had told me he would bring some water to us before we left for church, but he didn't show up. I stopped by his house and no one answered the door. "About typical", I thought. When I got to the church (clear across town) he was just finishing unloading his truck. He had brought us 25 cases of water! I said "I thought you were going to buy a case or two?" He said "You know sis, I was. But when I had put 4 cases in my cart it just wasn't enough. This represents a little over $100, and for us that just isn't a big deal."
The second one was a woman on my street. I live in a very Hispanic neighborhood. Since my Spanish is limited, I made a poster (hoping the translation program online was accurate) and went up and down my street. I knocked on the door, said "Hola! Muy pocito Espanol" (Hi, I only speak a little Spanish) and held up my sign for them to read. One woman asked me "Do you need ....which I understood and then a whole list of words I did not recognize. "Si", I replied "Todos, todos" (all) Hoping she would understand I needed anything and everything. She brought me three bags of food and clothing and then reached into her pocket and pulled out 3 crumpled dollar bills. "Muy pocito" she said. (It's very little) No, muchas gracias!! Thank you very much I said! It brought tears to my eyes. Here was a woman, living in poverty herself, that was apologizing for not being able to give more. Truly, that woman was blessed and my heart was blessed by her giving.
While I know scenes like this were played out all over the United States, I was truly touched and humbled by the outpouring of love exhibited by everyone who contributed to our efforts to make a difference.
In His Service, For His Glory
Deborah
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home