God At The Treasury

Mark 12: 38-44
As he taught, he said, ‘Beware of the scribes, who like to walk around in long robes, and to be greeted with respect in the market-places, and to have the best seats in the synagogues and places of honor at banquets! They devour widows’ houses and for the sake of appearance say long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.’
He sat down opposite the treasury, and watched the crowd putting money into the treasury. Many rich people put in large sums. A poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which are worth a penny. Then he called his disciples and said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the treasury. For all of them have contributed out of their abundance; but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.’

A visiting priest, who was a former prison chaplain, described an incident he had witnessed one evening while at the prison giving a homily on love. It was a cold night and one inmate had arrived inadequately dressed in a thin shirt. He sat in his chair huddled and shivering.  Another inmate had arrived wearing a jacket and he also had a blanket draped over his shoulders. While the priest was speaking, the inmate with the blanket walked over to the one that was shivering and placed the blanket around his shoulders.

A simple gesture. Nothing hugely dramatic. It was about as earth shaking as a widow dropping a few pennies in a treasury box. Why then did we all feel deeply moved as the priest described this incident? If we had been asked, we may have said something about how beautiful it was to hear of a prisoner being so sensitive to the suffering of someone else and we would have been partially right. But pushed to elucidate further, we might have realized that it felt like we had been exposed to the presence of something holy, beautiful and powerful. Pushed a little further yet we might have said, “I felt like I saw God.”

Jesus deliberately sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people ostentatiously putting in their contributions. He just sat and watched. Was he waiting for a poor person to come and contribute just so he could give his disciples an object lesson? Or did he have an appointment? Perhaps the Father had said to him, “Watch the treasury. I will meet you there.”

So, he watched and waited. He watched as people rich in gifts, skills and talents as well as money moved confidently up to the treasury and deposited their contributions. One could be forgiven for looking for the Father somewhere amongst these people. After all, he is God, King of the Universe, the source of all riches, power, gifts and glory. Would he not come in great dignity, in a mode that would cause people to stop, fall on their knees and gaze in wonder and awe? Would he not be robed in majesty and grace? Wouldn’t he present himself as Power personified? That’s what the people in the temple would have watched for if they were told that God the Father was going to make an appearance.

Not Jesus.

I can see him sitting impassively as he watched the people dressed in fine robes parade by. These were the main supporters of the temple, the decision makers, the movers and the shakers, the fine upholders of the law. They were the leaders, the ones that were respected, depended upon, noticed and honored.

Then the shabby widow appeared. To most observers there, if they had deigned to look at her at all, she had three strikes against her. She was a woman. She was a widow. She was poor. In other words, in their eyes she was less than nothing. She had no money, no viable skills, no education and no husband to give her status and, what’s more, she knew it. Yet, she gave freely to the temple in the sight of those who looked down on her. She supported a community that was unaware of her needs, judged her as a sinner, labeled her and ignored her. Nobody was waiting for her or impressed by her presence. But she came anyway. She came and gave the little she had to give.

Just as our hearts leapt within us upon hearing of the prisoner who shared his blanket, Jesus’ heart leapt within him and he said to himself, “There is my Father.”

This Gospel passage is not just speaking about the important spiritual requirement of being generous with one’s possessions. It is also presenting us with a stark image of a fundamental aspect of God. We are all aware that we have an obligation to give but without the understanding of how small acts done with great love have the power to make God present in our world, we remain limited in our capacity to experience his presence or help others experience him. Giving in love opens up holy spaces in our lives where God can be totally present to us and to those around us. 

We have a terribly difficult time shifting our minds away from the world’s definition of value and effectiveness. We think in terms of important acts with tangible results. We value quantifiable outcomes that proclaim a program’s or a person’s effectiveness. Grand actions are fine but they are not necessarily evidence of the presence of God and they certainly are not evidence of our own intrinsic worth.

The Father’s whole nature could be witnessed in the widow – and in the prison inmate. It is God’s nature to come and generously give all he has to a world that does not desire him, recognize him or value him. In love he pours out more than just a portion of his abundance; he pours out everything he has and everything he is. Even Christians often don’t fully realize how personal that outpouring is because many lack a face-to-face experience with the God of generous love.

How can you experience the living presence of God? Give. Give with love and do it often. It doesn’t have to be money. It doesn’t have to be big. Give assistance. Give a word of praise or encouragement. Give a hug. Give recognition. Give a meal. Give company. Give gratitude. Give whatever you can wherever you can – but give it with love. Before long you will know that God is indeed with you. You will see him beaming at you in small places and you will encounter him in the people you serve.

When our son had an accident, my husband went to help him and his wife look after their four children, two of whom were seven month old twins. My husband went with the mindful intention of lovingly serving the family in any way he could. He babysat, changed diapers, fed babies, drove kids to school, cleaned, shopped and did whatever else was needed and he did it all with conscious intentional love. Later he said that whenever he would go to get the twins out of their cribs, they would give him huge happy smiles. With tears in his eyes he said, “It was as if God was smiling at me.”   

Fill your life with small acts done intentionally with great love and you will see God himself smiling at you in the sacred spaces you have opened up.

It’s the way he comes.