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Are you giving all that you can?

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The Lesson of the Widow’s Might, inspired by a very interesting piece of jewelry that was donated to the Owego Open Door Mission recently (pictured below, right), inspires us to think about what we are willing to sacrifice for those in need.

The Lesson of the Widow’s Might (also known as Widow’s mite) can be found in the Synoptic Gospels of Mark 12: 41-44 and Luke 21: 1-4.  Jesus shares a story at the Temple in Jerusalem about a widow who donates all that she can offer, which happens to be just two mites. A mite, also known as a lepton in Greek, was the smallest and least valuable circulation, worth about six minutes of a daily wage.  Jesus explains to his disciples that the small sacrifices of the poor mean more to God than the extravagant, but proportionately less, donations of the rich.  Jesus observed that the widow gave most likely everything that she had to give while the rich gave only a proportionately small portion of their wealth.  He explained how much these small sacrifices meant to God.

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A bronze mite, also known as a Lepton (meaning small), minted by Alexander Jannaeus, King of Judaea, 103 - 76 B.C. obverse: the blooming lotus scepter of ancient Egypt in circle, reverse: star of eight rays. (Pictured left) The mysterious carved wooden necklace with coin from Jerusalem that came into the Mission as a donation. (Pictured right)

The Tioga County Open Door Mission, a local, faith-based, 501c3 non-profit organization, has been committed to providing support for our community in need since 1968, whether it is providing a bed to sleep in for men who find themselves homeless or clothing and food for someone who finds themselves in a crisis situation.  Due to the fact that we are a private organization, rarely receiving any government funding, we rely heavily on the kindness of neighbors helping neighbors in our community.  Every little bit, every little coin, every effort counts. For instance, our Pennies for Poverty jars, located at both our Owego and Waverly location, collect spare change from people’s pockets and have allowed us to do more in our Outreach work providing help with heating and utilities through a long winter helping to ease times of despair.  Did you know that just one dollar can buy us 7lbs of food through the Food Bank of the Southern Tier to stock our local food pantries?  Donating your time is another alternative learning about the many ways that we serve our community.  If you are interested in volunteering or making a donation, please contact us at (607)687-1121 or visit one of our locations.

The Tioga County Open Door Mission at 425 North Ave. in Owego, NY

The Red Door Thrift Store and Community Center at 359 Broad St. in Waverly, NY

References: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lesson_of_the_widow%27s_mite