Mark 12:38-44
Lead in: Jesus and his disciples have travelled from Galilee to Jerusalem. At this point in his ministry, Jesus knows his time is short. The hostility of religious authorities toward Jesus has grown to the point that his life is in danger. But for Jesus, there is no turning back. Walking into the temple area, Jesus warns people to beware of those whose lust for power cause them to roll over anyone in their way. Although we may not be the kind of person who lusts after power, at times we may be tempted to roll over anyone in our way.
Prompt: Reflect on a time when you were tempted to roll over the person whom you saw in your way.
Lead in: In Kings 17 and Mark 12, we hear the stories of two widows. Thought of as having no importance, both are relegated to the margins of society. In sharp contrast are the scribes. In their own perceived self-importance, they seek positions of power and places of honor.
Prompt: Like the scribes, if there were times when you sought after a position of power or a place of honor, when would that have been?
Lead in: Spiritual writer Debbie Thomas likens the widow’s astonishing generosity with her offering of two small coins as an act of “holy defiance” in the face of a culture that dehumanized the poor and thought of them as worthless.
Prompt: As you reflect on your life, what generosity on your part would be your act of “holy defiance” in a culture that emphasizes consumerism over simplicity of lifestyle?
Lead in: In I Kings 17, the widow lives in a land where drought had caused a serve famine. Giving of the last of what she has in her jug of oil costs her dearly. In Mark 12, Jesus observes how in contrast to the crowd who gave what they would never miss, how the widow gave of what she would sorely miss.
Prompt: Reflect on a time when your generosity to another cost you dearly.
Lead in: In the story in I Kings 17, the widow gives the last of what she has from her jug of oil, but it does not run dry. Call it the miracle of “the jug that never runs dry”.
Prompt: Reflecting on your life, do you have any “miracles of the jug that does not run dry”
stories?
