Draw some coins from your purse or pocket, explaining that they are often described as ‘small change’. Comment that, when counting our change, we don’t very often look closely at the coins themselves, but each is carefully designed and made at the Royal Mint.
If younger children are present, demonstrate, along the following lines, how the coins are of different sizes and shapes and formed of different materials.
Which is the smallest? (Five pence piece.)
How many faces (sides) are there to the edge of a 20 pence or 50 pence piece? (Seven.)
Some coins are a copper colour, made from copper-plated steel, while others are silver in appearance, made from nickel-plated steel.
Mention that it may even be possible to find some hidden treasure in small change! In 2008, some new design 20 pence coins (only 250,000) were accidentally produced without a date on either side. (Details can be found on the Royal Mint’s website.) These are worth far more than 20 pence to collectors! Is it possible to find one? Look carefully!
Explain that the designs on the reverse side of some coins show parts of the Royal Shield of Arms. Different UK coins each show a part of the Royal Shield of Arms — and when you put them together, they create the full royal coat of arms. This clever design symbolises: England; Scotland; Wales; and Northern Ireland. So next time you’re checking your change… you might be holding a piece of royal history without even realising it!
Observe that small change is often collected for charities such as our collections for Positive Life Kenya. Each small contribution helps to make a larger gift – just as the individual pieces of small change form a larger picture.
Introduce our Gospel reading (Mark 12:41-44) that tells how even the smallest coin can really matter. Ask a group of children to make a big thing of pouring lots of coins into a collecting bowl and one secretively placing in two pennies.
The widow’s offering
One day Jesus and his friends sat in one of the temple courts. It was a very busy place. Lots of people were there, leaving gifts of money in the collecting boxes.
Some rich people gave large amounts of money. They liked to show off. They wanted everyone watching to see how rich and generous they were.
Jesus then spotted a poor widow quietly making her way across the temple court. Looking around to check no one saw her, she dropped two of the smallest coins into the collection box.
‘Did you see that?’ Jesus asked his friends. That widow has been more generous than anyone else. The rich people gave what they could easily afford, but the small coins she gave were all she had to buy food today’.
Conclude with the following thought that small coins can mean a lot and small change can add up to make a big difference. Perhaps we should look more closely at the coins in our purses, pockets and money boxes.
Time for reflection
Coins come in different shapes and sizes and can be spent in many different ways, but every coin has two sides. Along with the happiness of getting, we can experience the joy of giving. Stewardship month is an annual reminder to us that that is so when it comes to the contribution we make as Christian disciples; when it comes to the money we give back to God, the talents we use in his service, the community contribution we make and the environmentally-friendly actions we take.
Our Parish needs a whole series of small contributions at present as we need new volunteers across the whole range of our ministry. The packs that you have been given include more information about Stewardship and response forms to help you think more about the ways you give currently and what might be possible in the future. The packs include a form you can fill in to offer your help.
When it comes to our financial giving, we have faced significant challenges as for a long time we haven’t been able to give the Diocese the Parish Share that is needed to cover the cost of clergy and the other support that the Diocese provides. We are gradually increasing the amount we give to the Diocese for our support year-on—year and have raised funds for the first two Phases of our repair project. However, we need to maintain and improve that situation this year, so ask that you reconsider your giving at this time and use Stewardship Month to decide what you can contribute to St Catherine’s and our Parish in future. There are forms in the Pack which can be used if you want to start giving or if you are able to change what you are giving.
For those who are tax payers there has for some time been a way of increasing the value of the gifts you give. Gift Aid enables us to reclaim the basic rate tax from HMRC for those who are taxpayers, so for every £1 that you give we can claim an extra 25p. That means that, if you are a tax payer, we need you to fill out a Gift Aid declaration form in order to reclaim that money. There’s a copy in the Pack for you to fill out. There are three ways you can give using Gift Aid. The Parish Giving Scheme provides simple and secure ways to give regularly to this church; online, by phone, or by posting a giving form. Joining PGS means they claim the Gift Aid and send it direct to our Bank Account. You can also use our yellow envelopes for cash donations or fill in the Gift Aid declaration on the Card Reader where giving using your bank card.
Jesus commended the widow for giving the small amount that she had. We need the contribution that you can make to our Parish, however small it may seem to you, and in whatever way you can make that contribution. Thank you so much for all the ways you give currently and the different contributions you make. They are vital to the mission and ministry of our Parish and we are very grateful for them. The mission and ministry of this church is the combined effect of the contributions that each of us make. We need you now, more than ever. God has given you resources, time and talents, so this Stewardship Month I encourage you to reflect prayerfully on all that you can and do give back to him in order that together we can combine our individual offerings to make a bigger impact for him. Amen.
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