When Jesus paid the Bride Price of His Life at Calvary He purchased so much more for us than just our salvation. He also redeemed for us our inheritance as His Sons & Daughters, including everything that Adam and Eve lost in the Garden of Eden which includes living, breathing, moving and being clothed in His Glory just as they used to be! And being able to talk to the Father face to face! So go forth Sons & Daughters of the Living God moving in & releasing His glory in the midst of the earth, in perfect  communion with the Father!

And I heard the Spirit of God say, “Chosen”! You are Chosen My Beloved. You didn’t just fall into salvation. You didn’t just happen to be saved. You didn’t just apparently find this Great King of Glory. No! You were Chosen! You were Chosen to be the Royal Bride of My Son -full of grace and truth. Chosen for just such a time as this. Chosen, and with all the Honor and all the Authority that is due the Royal Bride of Christ. And with being Chosen you are also Sent. Sent to preach this Glorious Gospel -to tell the Good News of Hope, of Love, of Redemption, of Salvation end of Restoration to a people lost in darkness without Hope, without Light and without Life -to bring those who are appointed and called to be heirs of salvation into the Glorious Kingdom of your Great God and King!

Remember the widow who went to the Temple to worship God? Two of the Gospels tell her story –Luke 21:1-4 and Mark 12:41-44. All the rich came and put in large offerings but this poor widow came and all she had was 2 mites, the very smallest of coins, and she gave ALL she had. This was such an extravagant act of worship that it not only made Jesus stop but He also had to call His disciples to come see this amazing act of trust in the Father and abject abandon in worship.

This widow could have had much to accuse God for, and many wouldn’t have blamed her if she instead stayed home and felt sorry for herself, and maybe held on to her 2 mites rather than giving to God. She had much that she could grumble or complain about. For starters, she was a widow, which meant that she had been married but lost her husband, so now she was alone. Which leads to the 2nd thing Jesus said about her –that she was poor, which was more than likely because she was a widow. The man who was her protector, her love, her provider –was gone! And there were very few jobs for single women in that day and age. And she was a poor widow in Israel -a nation under the heavy handed occupation of Rome and the despotic rule of their puppet king Herod.

So this widow had 2 mites –that was ALL she had! It’s said that a mite was worth about 6 minutes of an average daily wage. So according to Jesus, that was ALL she had & she gave it ALL!

Now some may think that’d be a scary thing to do. When all you have is 2 small coins maybe enough to buy a small loaf of bread, and you have no bread, and you give it anyway! Well here’s a thought. Maybe when all you have is not enough to cover all you need, then you might as well give ALL you have to the Father “who supplies all your needs” (Philip. 4:19).

And then there’s woman with the alabaster jar of ointment who lavishly poured it out on the feet of Jesus at the dinner party. None of the others present were concerned about this extravagant act of worship. Some were more concerned that she was a sinner. Others accused Jesus of not possibly being a prophet because if he was, he would know who she was and would not have allowed her to touch him. Still others were more concerned about this wanton wasting of a jar of perfume that was worth about one year’s wage. Jesus rebuked them all saying, “Why do you trouble the woman? For she has done a beautiful thing to me… In pouring this ointment on my body, she has done it to prepare me for burial” (Matt. 26:10 & 12). Then Jesus said an amazing thing. “Truly, I say to you, wherever this gospel is proclaimed in the whole world, what she has done will also be told in memory of her.” (v. 13). This offering of worship not only drew Jesus attention but also became a memorial to her throughout all generations.

May our offerings of worship draw the amazed attention of the Most High and become a memorial to us of our devotion to Him throughout all generations.