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The Spirit of Prophecy Volume 3
memory through all time, and her joy in eternity. Her heart went with
her gift, the amount of which was estimated, not by its intrinsic value,
but by the love to God and interest in his work which had prompted
the deed.
It is the motive which gives true value to our acts, and stamps them
with high moral worth or with ignominy. It is not the great things
which every eye can see and which every tongue praises that count to
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our eternal credit, but the little duties cheerfully done, the little gifts
which make no show, and which human eyes regard as worthless. A
heart of love and genuine faith in a worthy object is more acceptable
to God than the most costly gift. The poor widow gave her living to do
the little that she did. She deprived herself of food to give those two
mites to the cause she loved; and she did it in faith, believing that her
Heavenly Father would not overlook her great necessity. It was this
unselfish spirit and unwavering faith that won the commendation of
Jesus.
Many humble souls feel under so great obligations for receiving the
truth of God that they greatly desire to share with their more prosperous
brethren the burdens imposed by the service of God. Let them lay
up their mites in the bank of Heaven. The slender offerings of the
poor should not be rejected; for if given from a heart burdened with
love to God, those trifles in value become consecrated gifts, priceless
offerings, which God smiles upon and blesses.
Jesus said of the poor widow, “She hath given more than they all.”
The rich had bestowed from their abundance, many of them merely to
be seen of others and to be honored of them for their large donations.
They denied themselves none of the comforts or luxuries of life in
order to make their gift, and therefore it was no sacrifice and could not
be compared in true value with the widow’s mite.
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