I received a note from my sweet niece a while ago. There were flowers and butterflies colorfully drawn in crayons and there at the top she had scribble a thank you. I wouldn’t sell it to you if you asked. It reminded me of the gift I gave my mom in elementary school: a tin can to which I affixed cut and rolled pages from magazines. Each student in my class made one of these gems and placed a thick piece of yarn along the rim. It was simply ugly.

I don’t know what teacher thought this was a nice gift for our moms but my mom still has this silly thing, this piece of art that I made, tucked away in her house. It is still ugly to me but when I brought that silly thing home I was very proud to offer it to my mother and she praised my skill. I had forgotten that last part but such things mothers do not forget.

I am sure the gifts I proudly offered God are merely the silly things of a child—but He receives them with joy. He is satisfied with my giving from my poverty, in the midst of my More >