The Widow's Might

On the Jukebox: "When you Believe" by Michelle Pfeiffer
Quote: "If you can't accept anything in faith, you are doomed to life dominated by doubt." ~ Miracle on 34th Street
Flair: Mighty Mite

There are some people who believe the age of miracles is past. I pity them for they know not the goodness of God unto his children. They do not understand that the Heavens are open and we are encouraged to seek for blessings as well as guidance. They also fail to learn that we are blessed more abundantly for our obedience.

I have been pondering obedience lately, specifically how sometimes in our day and age it becomes easy to justify not fulfilling all that the Lord requires of us. I was watching the Glenn Beck show last week. He had John Huntsman on as his guest and they were discussing the how Obama's new stimulus package enslaves the American people. One thing they brought up was that there are proposed changes to the laws regarding charitable donations so that they will be taxable.

With all the hoopla abounding in California surrounding Prop 8 (same sex marriage rights) there has been grumblings about taking away the LDS Church's tax exempt status because of the amount of money that was pumped into the campaign by its members. These two examples just go to show that Satan is trying to frustrate the works of God. Unfortunately, if such changes were made I believe there are some members who would struggle to pay their tithes and offerings because they wouldn't be deductible. Personally, I think it's silly because it's just giving back to God a pittance of what he has blessed us with. It's not really about money. It's about spiritual and temporal blessings.

Many Church members are suffering through economic strife at the moment. It seems every week I hear of some member of my ward who was laid off, furlowed without pay, or such. These are lean times in more than one sense of the word. However, it is also a season of feasting among the famine. I understand the phrase the windows of Heaven. So what if the door was shut - ie: the job dried up? Rich blessings are poured out daily upon my household because we have been obedient to the law of tithing and the counsel of our Church leaders to give a generous fast offering. You're talking to the woman who once filled her entire freezer and fridge with chicken for less than $25 and who got a fully furnished living room at auction for less than the cost of the couch...

If an accountant were to add up what we made in the last year and then subtract our financial obligations (house payment, student loans, car payments, cost of daily living...) they would discover the mystery of what I call Celestial math. How can a household that brings in practically nothing be sustained without going into debt or turning to others for help? To a regular accountant this will not add up. When we had our taxes prepared the person assisting us noted that our donations were equal to my yearly paycheck and that I essentially worked for my Church. My response was, "Isn't it great?" because I understand how faith works.

Just because times are hard does not mean I am going to quit giving a fast offering. My tithing check has dwindled (it's still ten percent of what we earn) but my fast offering is still what would be deemed 'very generous' because I know that we are blessed according to our faith and obedience. This is not a new principle, the Liahona which directed Lehi and his family worked the same way. We have many examples of of faith and works in the scriptures. I prefer to liken the scriptures to myself and learn (prove) for myself the truths therein.

I was discussing this with a good friend this week. She also echoed that faith without works is dead. Exercising our faith is important because like our physical muscles our spiritual ones can also atrophy unless we use them. We both agreed that we would rather be the ones giving to the Church than receiving from it and that by exercising the Widow's might we will keep from being in the situation of relying on anyone other than our Heavenly Father for assistance. My point is that even when we have little to offer we should give it freely and with perfect faith.

I love the painting "The Widow's Mite" by James C. Christensen. I used it for the piece of flair. I read an interview with the artist regarding the piece. Christensen tells us, "And Jesus and His disciples watched, the town's rich men made an ostentatious show of putting their gold and silver in the Temple treasury. They watched, judging each other and proudly displaying their own grandiose offerings. It was a show of reverence instead of the real thing. Then, into their midst walked a poor widow. She came simply and without fanfare, unaware of the impression she made. While the rich men looked in disdain at her pittance — she hadn't even troubled to carry the coins side by side to increase their gleam — Jesus understood that this poor woman's small gift was of a magnitude unattainable by mere wealth.

"I pictured this widow as young," says James Christensen. "Suppose she had children? If so, her gift was greater still. But she didn't think of how large or small her gift was. She merely gave what she had. I wanted to show that purity of thought and action. In The Widow's Mite, the lights and shadows are symbolic of spiritual and worldly power. The woman glows with an inner light. By contrast, the rich, bejeweled city fathers are in the dark. Even the widow's clothing, though ragged, glows with a celestial light. The point here is not money, it's what we are willing to give of ourselves."