It's the little things... coins

Like most Kiwis I tend to use a debit card rather than cash when I’m out shopping. The only time I might have a wallet full of coins is when we go to a market, buy fruit from a roadside stall, or answer the door to a child fundraising. I know some currencies have many different coins. Our New Zealand currency only has five different coins. There are three silver coloured coins (10 cents, 20 cents & 50 cents) and two gold coloured coins ($1 and $2). With the current cost of living crisis you need a few gold coins to buy a flat white coffee or an ice-cream.

Jesus spoke of little things. There are a couple of stories he told about coins that I really love. They speak to me of the importance of valuing small things.

There’s the story of the woman who searched for a lost coin. We used to host a regular winter evening storytelling event for Avenues Church called ‘A Good Yarn’. We’d meet in a darkened room lit with the glow of soft lamps, toast marshmallows over a fireplace, and drink hot chocolate or mulled wine. We’d retell or reinact some of the stories Jesus’ told. The story of the lost coin was a favourite and we repeatedly included it over several events because everyone loved it so much.

Jesus told the people another story:

What will a woman do if she has ten silver coins and loses one of them? Won't she light a lamp, sweep the floor, and look carefully until she finds it? Then she will call in her friends and neighbors and say, “Let's celebrate! I've found the coin I lost.”

Luke 15:8-9 CEV