Offerings

We all have something to offer.

I’m learning that offering what I have brings God glory regardless of how others look upon my offering or receive it. In God’s eyes, there is no offering too small, too scary, too transparent, too simple, or too extravagant to be viewed with disdain. People may look down upon the offering based on standards of this world, but heaven never will.

Think about what you have to offer then think about the little boy with the five loaves and two fishes. His lunch wasn’t enough to feed the 5000 or even a few. It was barely enough for just him. But it was more than enough for Jesus.

Our offering isn’t about the size or expense of it. When we give with all our heart, our Heavenly Father rejoices. Our offering may be intensely personal or a simple turn of phrase, but if we’re giving it as a blessing then it’s intensely beautiful.

A year ago, I offered my house as a place for a Bible study, and it hurt when other homes were accepted instead. I battled with pain. Was it because I’m divorced? A single mom whose kids are a bit rowdy? Living in a low-income neighborhood? Why wasn’t my home good enough? As I cried out to God, He healed my heart with His gentle love and showed me that as much as I wanted to host His Presence with other believers, it wasn’t the right timing. My trying to fit another activity and present a perfect home would have been overwhelming. The kids and I still needed time to be messy and focus on personal healing.

Now as I offer my second novel, His Cloak of Grace, to agents in the hope of gaining representation to Christian fiction publishers, I’m opening my heart for a series of rejections. But as I’ve learned more about God’s refining process and the worth of every offering, I’m finding that the moments of rejection are just moments on my journey—the journey God has for me. No one can ever take away the value of the message He gave me to share: He gave me the plot and characters to write and no one else has that story to share. His purpose for my writing will be accomplished as long as I’m willing to step out in faith and humbly accept the rejections that come as well as the timing of acceptance—even if that’s just one person at a time instead of thousands.

Think of an altar where offerings are often made. Some offerings are just like that…sacrifices. Sacrifices are the offerings that cost us to give. Maybe our time, our energy, our money. Or maybe like Jesus’ death on the cross, an offering may cost our reputation, our followers, our lives. Yet God says to give it—bring the offering and trust Him with both the cost and the result. After all, without death there is no resurrection power.

Offerings cost us when they’re rejected. They cost us our pride, our confidence, maybe our hope. That’s why Jesus allows the refining, so we learn to place our confidence, pride, and hope in Him. Maybe you’ve experienced rejection. Whether in large ways or small, rejection stings and presents us with a choice: to shut down, react in bitterness and anger, or forgive, let go of self-protection, and move on.

In my life, I’ve made offerings that I thought would be immediately accepted and approved only to feel stunned by rejection and quick dismissal. Does that make my offering of less worth or significance? No, nor does it yours.

The purifying process of God’s grace means sometimes our offerings have to go through fire so that our motives and character are refined. As we surrender to God’s timing and purposes for our lives, we discover a greater beauty in forgiveness, submission, and humility. As we gaze upon the face of Jesus, we see there the scars of a soul submitted to the will of Daddy God. “Not my will, but Yours be done.”

I’m still learning to trust God when an offering is rejected as much as when one is accepted. Both require the grace and strength of God in our lives to fulfill God’s plan and bring Him great glory.