Giving our best
In John 3:16, God demonstrated the perfect example of love through giving. For God so loved the world, that He gave His one and only son. Today it is not about how much we have, but what matters is the heart, ie how much we are willing to give, that will make a difference. We may not have a lot of skills / limited resources, and hence might not see a lot of results, but give your best and God will honour it.
Luke 21:1-4 - As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. "I tell you the truth," he said, "this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on."
It is easy to talk about giving when people are in a comfortable environment, but in times of poverty / limitations like the poor widow, or even like in John 6:8-13 when the boy only have 5 loaves and 2 fish, when you offer all you have, God can work wonders. At least 5000 men (excluding women and children) did not go home hungry that evening. He is our Father who desires to be close to us, and will definitely give us what we need. However, the principle is always to lay down yourself, and seek 1st His kingdom.
Currently, the pastor of the largest church in the world (>800,000 members), is in South Korea, but if you read what he went through a few decades ago, he experienced a time of crisis when he ran out of money to fund his church building, and construction came to a halt. He ended up having to sell his house and belongings to fund the project. Many nights would be spent weeping in frustration at the construction site and crying out why God allowed this apparent tragedy to happen. Nevertheless, Korean people last time were not very well-to-do, so they would donate seemingly random items. A member of the relatively small congregation gave a fork, which puzzled this pastor, what can be done with a fork? Little did he know, this gesture caught the eye of a businessman, who gave generously. Another incident involved a beggar who walked past the construction site one night as a group of them were praying, and when heard about what was going on, decided to give his broken bowl which he used to beg for money. It was all he had. What can be done with a broken bowl? A missionary who happened to be in the area heard about it and asked if he could bring the bowl back to his home country. Back home, he shared about this incident with his congregation, and in ways nobody could understand, they managed to collect a large amount of money, sufficient to resume to construction project.
To the ordinary spectator, a fork or broken bowl might amount to nothing, but whatever the challenge, Psalm 23 mentions that the Lord is my shepherd - we will have no fear or lackings, peace and security will continue to be with us, coz God is at work with us. He can make the impossible possible.
Walking the extra mile
1 Corinthians 4:15-17 (Timothy sent to teach)
1st mile: The act of sharing / teaching
2nd mile: Passion / attitude of love and care (many guardians, but few fathers)
2 Timothy 1:16-18 (member of Ephesus church)
1st mile: Acceptance of Paul's chains (ie not ashamed of people)
2nd mile: Took effort to search for Paul all over Rome during visit
2 Corinthians 8:2 (Macedonian church)
1st mile: To give
2nd mile: Generosity in extreme trial and poverty
According to the law in ancient times, a Roman soldier on a journey can force any Jews he encountered along the way to carry his bagpack for him up to a mile's distance. In the same way today, we might be required to do something we dislike. What does the world teach? Complain. Protest (this is discrimination / injustice, your human rights have been trampled upon).
What does Jesus say? When people make you walk a mile, you walk with him 2 miles. Easy to say, but when it comes to taking action is another matter. In ministry/serving today, let us not be too calculative in what we do, although we might seem to be doing more than others. However, in the same way as you love your parents, you would be willing to do your best for them, what more God? He does not look at your skill, talent etc, but at your heart.
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