"The man who had received five bags of gold brought the other five. 'Master,' he said, 'you entrusted me with five bags of gold. See, I have gained five more.'"
Right after we get married, Danny and I begin the practice of saving our loose change from the day's expenditures in a plastic container. We fondly call it our "mad money". The kind we will cash in when the container is full and put toward a cabin vacation in the mountains.
It is a slow, ever-so-gradual accumulation of coins. There are times when I wonder as I empty out my change if we will ever fill it to the top. It takes, on average, six months to go from this:
To this:
Amazing! It's so heavy, I find it hard to lift, even with both hands. So, Danny says he'll take it for me to the money sorting machine at our local grocery store.
While he's gone, I think again about how long it took to filly the container. A quarter here. A nickel there. Over and over and over and over. And, every little bit contributed matters greatly in the end.
It's that way with every act of kindness we show someone. A smile. The cheery "hello". That encouraging word. These may seem as inconsequential as a penny at the time. But, when we make these gestures over and over and over and over, something wonderful happens in the bank account of our heart.
It grows! Exponentially! Pennies from Heaven!
And, we are wealthier in spirit than ever we could have imagined.
My phone rings. It's Danny.
"We broke the record today," he announces.
"How much? How much?" I ask excitedly.
"One hundred and sixty bucks," he answers.
"Wow! That's incredible!"
And, indeed, it is. One coin at a time. One kindness at a time.
Incredible . . .
~
Will you enrich the bank account of your heart today?
Will you pray with me?
In all that we do and say, Father, let us practice kindness toward others. Help us to love them as we love ourselves. May the light of Your love and mercy guide us in all things. Amen.
lovely, martha. you send me into my day smiling. thank you! xoxo
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for visiting, Linda!
DeleteGlad this put a smile on your face today.
Blessings in all things!
Oh Martha! How true is this! I thoroughly enjoyed this post and congratulations on breaking your record! Have a great weekend.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for coming by, Nelieta!
DeleteIt is the truth, is it not? :) And, yes, it was such fun to break our record.
Hope you have a great weekend, too, filled with blessings!
Beautiful post Martha!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Roseann! I'm glad you enjoyed it today.
DeleteBlessings!
Just like how every coin will add up into an abundant investment so does every act of devotion and service to God...every prayer, every time we lift our hearts to Him it helps us grow in spiritual abundance drawing us closer to Him.
ReplyDeleteLoved your post. :)
Thanks for visiting, Jessica!
DeleteOh, so true! Investing in God is the best one we can ever make.
Glad you enjoyed today's post.
Blessings!
Martha, you bless me. Investments for the Kingdom are ALWAYS wise. You are living proof!
ReplyDeleteStill rejoicing with you!!!
Thanks so much for coming by, Debra!
DeleteYes, they are the wisest investments we can make, and thank you for these all-too-kind words.
Rejoice in the Lord always, I say, rejoice!
Blessings!
Oooo you gave me a very good idea Martha :) Maybe instead of putting large bills in the piggy bank, I'll put in coins...
ReplyDeleteI remember my dad asking me to invest on a condo, to get myself a husband and raise a lot of children ~ I wish it were easier... not everything could be bought by money... I said I invest in children (my little pennies to Heaven) :P Maybe I wouldn't see the results now but I do pray that all of them will become good citizens of the world in the future...
I love those random acts of kindness ~ reminds me so much of St. Therese of the Child Jesus. Maybe at times they do look trivial but in God's eyes, they are precious stones. And they do create ripples... I love love that effect...
I pray with you, may our hearts be flooded with so much love so we could spread God's fragrance everywhere we go...
and may we learn to be generous ~ knowing that it is in giving that we receive :)
Lots of love Martha :* I'll share this post to the children today :)
Thank you, as always, dear Melissa, for stopping by!
DeleteThe children you teach are, indeed, your pennies from and to Heaven. Telling them about God and sharing His love with them is an investment both in your life of faith and in theirs. Don't doubt for a moment that your kindness toward them will be remembered and will go a long way in shaping their character and strengthening their faith.
I love, too, what you said here about the ripple effect. It may be a tiny stone we toss into the pond, but the ripples reach out and touch every inch of the water's surface.
Thank you for praying with me and for sharing this story with the little ones. I pray it will be a blessing for them.
Blessings to you!
Oh, and do save those coins . . . :)
Hi Martha:
ReplyDeleteLike a stone thrown into a body of water, the ripples reach out exponentially touching every bit of the shore. Even after the ripples reach the shore, they continue to reverberate. It's much like your coins filling your container. The ripples and the coins continue to affect their environment. There is plenty of coins as there are plenty of ripples. Keep filling your container.
--
Chris
Thanks so much for visiting, Chris!
DeleteThe ripple effect - exactly, my friend! And, rest assured, we will continue to fill both the container with coins and the world with kindness.
Blessings!
What a wonderful way to compare kindness to collecting coins one by one. Absolutely true. Each small kind deed accumulates in the bank of our hearts. Beautiful as always,my friend. God bless.
ReplyDeleteThank you for stopping by, Rimly!
DeleteI'm so glad you liked the comparison. Yes, indeed, our hearts are made that much richer with every investment in kindness.
Thanks for your sweet comment, my friend.
Blessings!
How beautifully written Martha -Pennies from the Heaven. Yes they are - our blessings, the love and friendship we are surrounded with....it is all priceless and unmatched for!
ReplyDeleteHave a wonderful weekend ahead!
Thanks for dropping by, Me, and for your sweet compliment.
DeleteOh, yes, there is nothing that can enrich us more than love and friendship and kindness. You are so right!
Hope your weekend is wonderful, too!
Blessings!
Martha, that is the way it goes...one penny, step, smile, hugs at a time. One small step and then another and another until you reach your goal.
ReplyDeleteI have a plastic container like yours and I do the same thing. It's amazing how things add up!
Sending love this morning. Thank you for reminding me that no matter how small the contribution, life accepts them all!
Love!
Leah
Thanks so much for stopping by today, Leah!
DeleteIt's neat to know that you, too, save coins in a container. Oh, yes, they do add up and so do our acts of kindness, no matter how small they may seem at the time.
Sending love and blessings back at you!
Martha...this is great. Every drop and every penny counts. Call it co-incidence, we too have the same habit. But, we have been collecting it, haven't counted how much...it is still piling up.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for visiting, Janu!
DeleteYou're collecting, too? That's great! It's fun to see how full the container can get and then cash it in. Every penny does count, for sure!
Blessings!
so lovely post.
ReplyDeleteFollow each other.
Thank you for visiting, Izdiher!
DeleteIf you send me the link to your blog, I'll be glad to check it out.
Blessings!
What a great analogy Martha! I do think that the good we do in the world multiplies, sometimes very slowly but it does grow.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for stopping by, Lynne!
DeleteGlad you liked the analogy. And, yes, the growth may be slow, but sharing kindness is worth every tiny gesture.
Blessings!
I used to do this when I was in school and would look forward to Christmas as that was when I'd use the money to buy presents for the family and some little prize for myself.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you reminded me... we all need to make one little step at a time to reach our goal. I so needed to hear that!
Thanks so much for visiting, Anne!
DeleteSaving change is a great way to buy those little extras for a special occasion like Christmas.
And, indeed, the small steps we take do add up and our goal will eventually be reached.
Glad the post reminded you of these things.
Blessings!