In the first reading today, we find the widow in a situation where she only has a little bit of food left. She proclaims that after she makes what she has left for her and her son, they are just gonna “lay down and die.” Elijah tells her that God promises that the jar will not run empty. In faith, she makes Elijah the food first. The jar never runs out. In the middle of a great famine, three people ate out of that same jar, the one that had just enough flour to make a single cake… and it never ran out. Then in the Gospel, we have this widow who is giving her donation to the temple. While others with a great deal of money parade around looking for recognition, she simply bows her head and gives everything she has. It wasn’t much. Pennies. But it was all she had. She was going away with nothing left, no money for food, and no way to earn it. She had given out of her need.
In each of these situations, we get a glimpse into how God sees the world and how God sees us. Looking up at Jesus on the cross, what do we see? What does He have to offer to anyone? He was stripped of all his clothes, exposed to the world. There was no money to trade for freedom; his body was nailed to a cross after being beaten and bloodied. He had no human power to use to brute force His way down. There was no honor left for Him, being hung like one of the vilest criminals, no way to use influence to change the outcome of this event. What does Jesus do? He offers the only thing He has left, His life. He offers it to God in sacrifice for us, for you and me.
All of these stories are about sacrifice. They are about giving from a place that requires giving something up. That’s true love. It’s easy to give out of our “plenty.” When we have hundreds of dollars in our pocket, a dime isn’t a big deal. But, when we have two pennies? Giving those away requires faith. It requires trust. It requires a sacrificial heart.
Let’s go deeper with it, though. What about our own jug? Our own reserves. At the end of the day, when we are running on empty, are we able to give? When we are expected to do something but really, really just want to stay home and relax. What about when our tank is empty? When we seem to have just run out of gas, and our kids need us? After a long day of work and dinner needs to be taken care of, we want to watch a show or just take a nap, but our spouse just needs someone to listen to them? When our hearts are broken, and someone else is complaining about something that seems to not matter at all to us? How do we sacrifice and give of ourselves to them when we feel like there is nothing left in the jar to share?
In those moments. When we put ourselves to the side and place others first, when instead of doing what we want to do, we do what we ought to do; in that giving, in that sacrifice of baring our soul in words or deeds to someone else, that’s where God is found. In generosity and self-giving, we see the heart of Jesus laid bare before us.
It takes being vulnerable. Sacrificing our pride. Simply put.. it takes an act of faith. Trust that the jar will never run empty and that He will give us enough strength and grace to get through. I’d like to encourage you to write down this simple message from God to us from our first reading and to place it somewhere you’ll see it each day as a reminder of what that faith looks like.
“For the LORD, the God of Israel says,
‘The jar of flour shall not go empty,
nor the jug of oil run dry,”
That’s the God we serve. That’s the promise we have, that when we too give out of our need, He’s going to take care of us. So even when your jar seems empty, he’s got you covered. The grace we receive in the Sacraments pours out through us into the world when we let it, and that jar will never run dry.
A reflection on the readings for the 32nd Sunday in Ordinary Time: November 07, 2021