Midweek Musing- January 7, 2026

In 2nd Corinthians 8:12 Paul talks about giving, and for once he puts it plainly: “If the eagerness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what one does not have.”

This text which was actually saw at another church while attending a Christmas’s concert on their pew offering envelopes really made me think. And what I realized is there is a temptation many of us carry around like a segment of Marley’s chain when we consider our giving. This temptation is the belief that our offering to God is somehow inadequate unless it looks like what it used to be or what we wish it could be. We often compare ourselves to an unrealistic standard and decide that what we have to offer is so unworthy we hide them from the world and even God.

We tell ourselves we would give if only… If only we had more time, more energy, more strength, more money, more clarity, more youth more talent, more…

We imagine a future version of ourselves who is finally able to serve God “properly.” And in the meantime, we discount what we have right now.

But Scripture, and life, keep reminding us that God does not ask for what we wish we had. God asks for what we do have.

Friends over time, life changes. Bodies change. Circumstances change. Capacities change. Finances and resources change. And with change so does the shape of our service.

There was a time not all that long ago, though it feels like a different lifetime, when I could lift the big cafeteria tables and move them all by myself so the floor could be cleaned. No help needed. No hesitation. Just grab, lift, move, repeat. It was efficient. It was productive. And, if I’m honest, it felt good to be the one who could just handle it.

Fast forward a few decades and a few birthdays past fifty.

Technically, I can still lift those tables. Barely. But now there’s a very real chance that doing so would end the night with ice packs, Advil, and a long conversation with my lower back about poor decision-making and bad life choices. What once felt like strength now feels like a real gamble.

But here’s the thing: while that has changed, my ability to serve has not disappeared, it has simply shifted.

What I can do now is model gratitude for those who help with the task. What I can do now is show that it is not weakness to ask for help. What I can do now is name out loud that shared work is holy work. And while my contribution looks different than it once did, it is no less important, no less faithful, and no less pleasing to God.

I was reminded of this recently while watching an old Christmas movie, yes on the Hallmark Channel. It was one of those with a Salvation Army Santa ringing a bell on a cold sidewalk. Something about that image—someone faithfully serving in whatever capacity they could—brought to mind a story about General William Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army.

Near the end of his life, Booth’s eyesight began to fail. Eventually, his doctors told his son Bramwell that nothing more could be done. When Bramwell shared this with his father, the old man asked quietly, “Do you mean that I am blind and must remain blind?”

“I fear it is so,” his son replied.

“Shall I never see your face again?” Booth asked.

“No,” Bramwell said gently, “probably not in this world.”

The old man reached out, took his son’s hand, and said words that still echo with holy wisdom: “God must know best, Bramwell. I have done what I could for God and the people with my eyes. Now I shall do what I can for God and the people without my eyes.”

That is the heart of faithful living.

Not clinging to what was.

Not lamenting what might have been.

But offering God exactly who we are, exactly where we are, exactly as we are.

Our call is not to give God the service we once gave, or the service we imagine we should give, or the service someone else can give. Our call is to give God the service that is ours to offer today.

And when we do—whether lifting tables, asking for help, ringing bells, offering gratitude, or simply showing up—we discover that God has a way of receiving it all, blessing it, and using it for good.

Because faithful service has never been about how much we can lift.

It has always been about what we are willing to place in God’s hands.

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Alleluia Amen.

Blessing to you all.