Like the widow from Zarephath, who baked a cake for Elijah with the small amount of flour and oil she had left for herself and her son, the widow in the temple gave all that she had—her whole livelihood—to God. Such generosity springs from great faith in God’s love for us and sincere gratitude. It is important that we regularly reflect on who we are and whose we are. At our baptism, we are called “a child of God, for so indeed we are.”
Do we acknowledge and accept God as Father and Creator? Are we grateful to God for all that He has given us? Is our gratitude to God reflected in our generosity, like the widow of Zarephath and the widow in the temple? Jesus was not favorably impressed by the large sums that the wealthy contributed out of their surplus wealth. How much of what we have is because of what we want, not what we need? How much of what we claim to be “mine” is actually surplus that we could share with others in need? How much do we give back to God out of all He has given to us?
