Weighing

In the Book of Samuel, we read that when Hannah was chided because she had no children, she went to the Temple especially to ask God to give her a child. After Samuel was born, his mother took him up to the Temple, and in her prayer of thanks to God she spoke of actions being weighed.

People generally count or measure our actions, but you will notice in the Bible that God always weighs them. What does this mean? Why, that our heavenly Father looks into our hearts to see why we have done this or that action. In short, He looks to see the motive that inspired the action. What is motive? Here is a little story as an illustration: One day a few boys were playing in one of our busy streets, and near them was an old lady standing on the edge of the pavement, nervously waiting to cross the road, for her sight was not good, and she hesitated to make the attempt. One of the boys, noticing her, left his playmates and helped the old lady to get safely across. None of the other boys troubled about her, but their playmate's action was inspired by a good motive, and that was kindness and respect for old age. God weighed the boy's action, and it outweighed the thoughtlessness of all the other boys.

I have a very beautiful watch, subscribed for, and given to me, by hundreds of comparatively poor people. The motive of these friends was to show their love and respect for me and this was of more value than the beautiful watch itself. One boy may put 6d. into the missionary box and another only one penny—God weighs their motives, and perhaps finds that the one penny weighs more than the sixpence, because the boy who gave it may have gone without something so as to be able to give it; while the other boy, who had much more pocket money given him, scarcely missed the sixpence.

Once Christ sat in the entrance to the Temple and watched a number of rich people putting their money into the treasury. Presently a poor widow came and put in a farthing. Christ weighed the gifts, and said: "These of their abundance cast in unto the offerings of God; but she of her penury hath cast in all the living that she had." "This poor widow hath cast in more than they all."

The widow's gift was the heaviest and the most valve able in the eyes of Christ. Here is a girl, proud as a peacock, dressed in fine clothes, very selfish and thinking; only of herself and never of others. There is another girl, not so finely dressed, but who is kind to everybody, and always ready to help others. God puts the two girls into His scales, and the girl who showed kindness weighs most.

"We become like our best or our worst." Let us remember that actions make our character, and one
we shall all go into God's scales and then receive His blessing, or, be sent from His presence.