The Widow's Mites

In Mark 12:41-44, we are told the story of the widow who gives a gift of two mites into the treasury.  While, to many others, it may not have seemed like a lot, it truly was a lot to offer.  The widow truly gave all that she had when placing those mites into the treasury, and she did so because she loved the Lord more so than anything else.  She understood the true meaning of loving God with all your might.  Loving the Lord is the first great commandment.  As we follow this, we are able to do so much more in our life.  She truly sacrificed all she had.

Even though the widow gave less money than the wealthier people, she gave her all.  This was an acceptable offering to the Lord because the widow didn't hold back.  While she may not have had a lot, she understood the importance of giving back to the Lord, and she did so with what she could.  Those who were wealthier held back, and didn't give what they should have, because of greed and pride.  The widow didn't show signs of these.  She had faith, love, and understanding.  By having all those, the Lord was able to see that, while this may have been a huge sacrifice in the widow's life, she truly loved Him, and wanted to give back.  2 Nephi 25:23 applies to this because, at the end of the verse, it states, "... it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do."  The widow did all she could do, and that is all the Lord asks of us.

Besides the donation of money, I, personally, can sacrifice my time in order to do the things the Lord wants me to do.  This will help me better follow the widow's example of sacrifice and obedience because I will be sacrificing more of what I have for the Lord, and showing my love to Him by doing so.

There is a lot we can learn from this story, and we should take the things that we learn and apply them to our lives.  I know I plan to do so, from now on.