Saturday of Week 9 in Ordinary Time (Year I)
Tobit 12:1,5-15,20 | Tobit 13:2,6-8 | Mark 12:38-44
Then he called his disciples and said to them, ‘I tell you solemnly, this poor widow has put more in than all who have contributed to the treasury; for they have all put in money they had over, but she from the little she had has put in everything she possessed, all she had to live on.’ (Mark 12:43-44)
How much are we willing to give to God?
The leftovers, a whole 2 minutes after work and nightly TV, or just before falling asleep in bed? That’s easy.
Actually setting aside a “tithe” of time for our Creator? That’s a little more difficult.
How far are we willing to go to help the less fortunate?
Volunteer vacations, where other folks figure out the logistics, and I just lend a hand in teaching personal hygiene or erecting a small shack, to the obvious joy of the beneficiaries? Sign me up!
Helping out at a hospice, where a pervading sense of doom undercuts whatever good I try to do, and I’m never quite sure if my cheerful demeanor is actually hurting those who are simply waiting to die? Um…
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I wish I could say that there’s a simple solution to all that.
I wish I could say “there’s an app for that!”
I’m still figuring out my own answers, but I’d like to think that I’ll be a lot closer to the poor widow in the end.
Lord, make me know Your ways, teach me Your paths. Guide my very self to love and serve my neighbors, so that all may know and love You. Amen.