Inspired by a sermon by Pastor Terry Moore of Nags Head Church
“But this I say: He who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and he who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.” (2 Corinthians 9:6)
When we talk about having God’s best, we’re not talking about anything money can buy. We’re talking about the kind of harvest that circumstances can’t take—peace, purpose, and an eternal legacy. But if we want that abundant life, we must evaluate our situation according to God’s economy. I recently realized I was measuring by the wrong standard. I was looking at my exhaustion and giving and assuming the size of it proved my devotion. I was looking at how hard I work and concluding that God had to bless me. But here’s the profound lesson God is teaching me: He isn’t measuring my life by what I give Him—He’s watching what I hold back. Wow, mind-blowing, right?
Jesus made this clear in the story about the widow’s mite in Mark 12:41-44:
“Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents. Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, ‘Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.’”
WHY exactly did Jesus say the widow put more into the treasury than all the others?
Because everyone else gave out of their abundance while she gave out of her poverty. They gave a portion and kept plenty. She had two coins—her whole livelihood—and she gave both. You see, Jesus doesn’t measure the size of our gift. He measures the gap between what we have and what we give. He’s not impressed by the size of our offering, but rather by what’s left in our pocket.
God looks at what HE has given US—and evaluates what part of that we are keeping off limits to HIM.
I need to live like a STEWARD of GOD’s resources instead of thinking I’m the OWNER! And what really challenged me is that the Bible ends the story right there. We never find out what happened to her. Jesus doesn’t tell us if she went home and found her neighbors had done a big food pounding for her, or if she went home to nothing. We don’t get to see God’s provision play out. I think that is the whole point. If we need to know the outcome of her giving before we call her faithful, we’d be measuring her trust by what God already did, not by what she trusted God to do.
Trust in God with a confirmed safety net isn’t really trust at all—it’s simply a calculated risk.
The widow’s trust was complete. She gave all she had to live on before she knew how God would provide. That’s what trusting God 100% means. One holds nothing back and then…anticipates God’s glorious plan. The other keeps a hand on Plan B until the outcome is guaranteed. We will never be able to say we trust God completely if we always have a Plan B. The widow gave ALL. Jesus used this same word, “all”, just a few verses earlier, in Mark 12:30 when He commanded:
“Love the Lord your God with ALL your heart and with ALL your soul and with ALL your mind and with ALL your strength.”
The Greek word “all” is holos (ὅλος) — meaning “whole, entire, complete.” It’s not a majority; it is the totality, with nothing left. It’s the root of words like “holistic,” which means “nothing kept separate.” That’s the word used for the widow’s two coins—it was the whole of her living. Those two coins were her resources for both today and tomorrow. She handed both to God with no Plan B, without confirmation of the provision for tomorrow.
Oh man! What a tremendous lesson! I CANNOT keep part of anything (my time and resources) from God and still call it my ALL. That is simply lying to myself. I’m cheating my life out of God’s blessings promised in our sowing and reaping. I want to live in the reality of God’s truth, don’t you? I don’t want to miss out on even one blessing!
We are given an amazing example of what “all” looks like from the Macedonian churches in Second Corinthians 8:1-5:
“And now, brothers and sisters, we want you to know about the grace that God has given the Macedonian churches. In the midst of a very severe trial, their overflowing joy and their extreme poverty welled up in rich generosity. For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability. Entirely on their own, they urgently pleaded with us for the privilege of sharing in this service to the Lord’s people. And they exceeded our expectations: they gave themselves first of all to the Lord, and then by the will of God also to us.”
Their money wasn’t even the point. It followed because they had already handed over themselves. That’s the biblical order of giving. We offer pieces—our time, our money, our Sunday morning—without ever offering ourselves. We convince ourselves that the fragments are enough of “all” to be considered God’s definition of “all.” But God set the standard for “all.” He gave HIMSELF completely before He asked us to give anything. God is not asking us to match the amount. We cannot. But what born again believers are empowered to do is to give—our “whole living,” every nook and cranny.
For me, right now, God is challenging me to give up my “me time.” After a full day with people—clients, staff, ministry—I want silence and alone time. I guard these small pockets of time jealously. That’s not a bad thing. Rest is good. Quiet is good.
But the GOOD things God gives us don’t become the BEST things until they’re given back to Him.
Amidst my challenging struggle to lay that “me time” on the altar, I’m finding that God brings eternal blessings and opportunities into the space I was protecting. God wants what I’m protecting for myself because He wants to bless me with more than I could have without giving it to Him.
My friend, this isn’t a devotional about giving money. It’s about giving ourselves and letting go of what we’re holding onto so God can bless us with HIS eternal blessings. God wants the part we’ve been holding back because He ALWAYS does our lives better than we do.
Prayer:
Father, search me; You know my heart. Reveal my thoughts and the pockets of my life I’m keeping to myself. Help me trust You and give me the strength to lay it ALL on the altar. Lord, I want to give my holos—with nothing withheld. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
