A few months ago I received a letter that touched my heart. Let me share a portion of it with you, using fictitious names so that anonymity will be preserved:

"Dear Dr. Bouknight: My name is John Brown. I have been a member of Christ Church for four years. At that time a very dear friend, Jean Smith, invited me to attend the 9:45 service. Christ Church has been the only tangible thing in my life to remain a 'sure thing' during these last four years. I have experienced the highest highs, and the lowest lows (spiritually, physically, emotionally, and financially) since becoming a member of this church. In these four years I have made commitments each year to return more than 10 percent of my income to the church for use as God led the church leaders. Even when I was more than $12,000 in debt, and had to get a cash advance on one of my credit cards in order to pay the minimum balance of my other bills, I continued to give to the church first. The Lord demonstrated to me each month that my faithful giving would be rewarded by him, and it was. Sometimes in the form of unexpected income, sometimes in the love and support of folks like the Smiths, and sometimes in the form of deeper and more significant spiritual growth that would not have happened for any other reason."

That letter humbled me. It made my tithing seem small by comparison. His giving reminded me of the only financial gift publicly commended by Jesus: two tiny coins offered by a nameless widow.

Let me set the scene for you. Jesus and the disciples were in the section of the Jerusalem Temple called the Court of the Women. In this area were thirteen brass receptacles, shaped like trumpets with the large end pointing upwards. Each receptacle represented a different item in the Temple budget, some to defray expenses and others to help the poor.

Some rich folks came by with lots of those heavy Roman coins. They would look around, hoping to have an audience. Then they would sort of "slam dunk" those coins into those brass receptacles, creating all kinds of racket. People noticed and were impressed. But Jesus was not. But then a poor widow slipped up to one of the receptacles and dropped in two tiny mites. These coins were called "leptons" which meant literally "thin ones." These two mites combined were worth 1/40th of a penny. They could purchase nothing more than a small crust of bread.

Only Jesus had ears sharp enough to hear the widow's mites being dropped. He was impressed because a helpless ward of society had just sent 100 percent of her wealth as a valentine to God. Jesus made sure that his disciples understood what the widow had done, and in the process he ensured that the world would forever be influenced by those mighty mites. Even today those tiny coins, and the one who gave them, set the standard for every gift. Two weeks from today, over a thousand families in Christ Church will submit financial commitment cards for the year of 1997. Each of those commitments will be judged by those mighty mites.

BECAUSE OF THOSE MIGHTY MITES, WE MEASURE A GIFT,FIRST, NOT BY ITS COUNT BUT BY ITS COST.

Some members of this church give $50,000 per year. Some give $50. I cannot tell you which of those gifts is larger, unless I know how much it cost you to give it. Every good gift must express sacrifice. Long ago King David set us a standard when he said, “I will not offer to the Lord something that cost me nothing.” Jesus' complaint about the gifts of the rich folks was that they gave out of their surplus; no sacrifice was required.

Mother Teresa of India has said, “If you give what you don't need, it isn't giving.” She told of a beggar who contributed to her ministry his total day's beggings. She said that gift meant more to her than winning the Nobel Prize.

In every congregation I have ever served, I have had a number of widows who had little or no income other than a social security check. Yet, they gave 10 percent of it off the top for God's work. I have always considered these women to be the biggest givers in the church. If you can give 10 percent of your income to Christ Church and never have to skip a single luxury or deny yourself a single indulgence, you better raise that percentage. Raise it until you can feel a pinch of sacrifice. Those mighty mites demand it.

BECAUSE OF THOSE MIGHTY MITES, WE MEASURE A GIFT SECONDLY, NOT BY WHAT IS GIVEN BUT BY WHAT IS KEPT.

Here is a vital question: What percentage of my income must I keep in order to make ends meet, with God's help? That's a faith question. I am asking how much I believe God is able to stretch my income and grow me in the process. Some loving critics would say, “Bill, don't get hung up on numbers. The trouble with the tithe is that it is so legalistic. Just tell people to give whatever they feel like giving, and don't worry about the percentage it represents.”

But have you noticed that in all significant matters we demand precise numbers? Would you be satisfied to have your monthly bank statement say that you have approximately $2000 in your account, give or take a couple of hundred? When your doctor checks your blood pressure, you and he are interested in a specific number. Jesus told a parable of 99 sheep that were safe in the fold but one was lost. Jesus didn't say that the shepherd had a bunch of sheep or a large flock of sheep. The number was important because in the parable sheep represented people.

I heard about a cute elderly lady who got stopped for speeding. She was going 70 in a 40 mile per hour zone. The policeman asked her, “Why were you going so fast, ma'am?” She said, “Sir, the sign back there said 70.” “No ma'am,” he replied, “That wasn't the speed limit. That was the highway number. This is highway 70.” “0 my goodness,” she said, “I'm sure glad you didn't see me back there on highway 129.” Numbers are important. Ask a highway patrolman or a mortgage banker or a math teacher. The most important number on your pledge card is not the number of total dollars you commit. It is the question on the card about what percentage of your income you are willing to commit. That's the faith question. The Biblical minimum is 10 percent. You can commit more than 10 or less than 10. The number is vitally important because it is the clearest faith statement you can make other than a declaration of faith in Jesus Christ. You will be saying on the card, "I am willing to live on less than 100 percent of my income, believing that God can stretch my income wondrously while simultaneously building my faith."

My wife and I believe that God can make 88 percent of our income, even before taxes, go farther than we could make all 100 percent go. That's a faith statement.

BECAUSE OF THOSE MIGHTY MITES, WE MEASUER A GIFT, THIRDLY, NOT BY MONEY BUT BY SPIRIT!

Consider that widow. She was giving the sum total of her meager possessions; yet she. did not seem to be dismal or sad. I can only conclude that she had a history. Like most widows of her day, she had been in many tight spots. Yet, God had been with her consistently. Therefore, she was grateful. Given a choice between buying a crust of bread or saying a tangible "thank you" to God, she chose the path of gratitude.

Some evaluate God as they would a presidential candidate. They ask, "Am I better off now than I was last year--financially, domestically, and in terms of health?" If not, they see no need to be grateful. But that widow looked deeper than her bottom line. She had found God to be that mighty rock who is bigger than the bottom line, stronger than the medical prognosis, more secure than a deed with one's name on it. This widow knew that even on the darkest day, underneath are God's everlasting arms. Almost exactly a year ago a young adult in our congregation touched my heart with this letter:

"I joined Christ Church one year ago. At that time I made a decision to tithe. One year ago my cancer reoccurred. I am here to testify that during the past year God has been gloriously faithful." Long ago a certain Jerusalem widow would have offered a similar testimony.

Jerry Clower, our Baptist friend from Mississippi, has written a book entitled "Life Ever Laughter." In it he tells about a lady who said to him, "Mr. Clower, I heard somewhere that you are a storehouse tither; you give ten percent of each and every dime you make to the First Baptist Church in Yazoo City. Then as the Lord blesses you, you give over and above your tithes." "Yes, ma'am," Jerry replied. "Well," she said, "If I made the kind of money you make, I would be a storehouse tither too." "Wait a minute, darlin'," Jerry said, "I was a storehouse tither when I was selling fertilizer and owed everybody in Mississippi. But the Lord found me faithful when I had a little. Now he's trusting me with a bunch." Jerry went on to say, "If someone wrote a check for the entire budget of my church, it would not affect my giving one bit, because no one is going to take away from me the beautiful, wonderful, blessing of sharing."

I doubt that the Jerusalem widow was a violent woman. But I suspect she would have fought anyone who tried to prevent her from expressing her gratitude to God. Isn't it ironic that the model gift selected by Jesus was so tiny that it would buy nothing but a crust of bread? Yet, ever since it has been shouting down through history an eternal story of sacrifice, faith and gratitude. Oh, the might of the mites! Only Jesus had ears keen enough to hear the faint pings of those tiny coins dropping into the receptacle. But the echo from those pings has been resounding across the centuries. Even today, those mighty mites and the widow who gave them set the standard by which all gifts are judged.

Slightly over a year ago I was in Pskov, Russia, visiting our sister church there. One day Pastor Nellie Manonova took several of us to visit the historic fortress or "Kremlin" in Pskov. Seated on a dirty pad beside the walkway were two small children, a boy and girl, ages about 5 and 7. Obviously, they had been placed there by a guardian to beg. Their little hands were open and turned upwards as their brown eyes scanned the passers-by. Nellie stopped and spoke with them. She knew that the parents could be alcoholics or simply unemployed. Then this woman who earns $200 per month decided that if a risk was to be taken, it must be on the side of compassion. She placed some money in the hands of the children. We who wallow in luxury followed her example. I doubt that the angels hardly noticed our gifts. They were surplus funds we would never miss. But I am certain that the angels cheered the kindness of Nellie.

Two weeks from today you will write on your pledge card a sequel to the widow's story. Will our stories bring Christ glory?