But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life. John 4:14b

Abundance

             To look at her you would never know she has cancer.  At the women's retreat this past weekend, to see this woman's face beaming with the love of Christ, to hear her positive comments, her teasing and joking, "I hope somebody knows CPR!" as she leaped around participating fully in the hilarious skits that she and her small group had dreamed up, you would never have known that her doctor had just told her earlier in the week that her numbers weren't good, and that there was nothing else he could do for her. Most of the women at the retreat had no idea that she was even ill, let alone that her doctor had decided to discontinue her treatments. But I knew, and melancholy me, a person who has the bad habit of becoming too easily discouraged, watched this woman's genuinely joyful spirit with awe and admiration. It would have been understandable if her face had shown some discouragement, and she must have been exhausted from the taxing weekend, but there she was enthusiastically spilling joy all over everyone in the room!  It had to have cost her dearly.

            What did Jesus say to his disciples about the widow who threw her two mites into the treasury?

Assuredly, I say to you that this poor widow has put in more than all those who have given to the treasury; for they all put in out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty put in all that she had, her whole livelihood.  Mark 12: 43-44

            From this woman's wonderful, godly example I learned that it's not the abundance or greatness of your gift of service to the Lord that matters, it's the measure in which you choose to pour it out. In what measure do I pour? What about you? Are you pouring your "whole livelihood" into the treasury of the Kingdom of God, or only a tiny portion of the abundance with which He's blessed you?

            After all, how much of Himself did Jesus pour out for you and me?

            Of the woman who broke open her alabaster flask of spikenard and spilled out its costly contents to anoint Him, Jesus said, She has done what she could (Mark 14: 8a). Oh, what a joy it would be if someday, Jesus could say those same words about you and me!

 Daye Phillippo

April 2012