Pennies From Heaven

Some of you reading my blog may not remember the song, “Pennies from Heaven.”  It was first recorded in 1936 by Billie Holiday. It became a very popular song toping the charts for 10 weeks.  The song was then recorded by 15 other artists before being inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2004. 

When that song popped into my head last week, I began to think about it.  Pennies are not worth much, but we need them.  They are tossed in fountains and stored in jars.  Maybe the small insignificant things in our eyes are really very powerful gifts from heaven that we are to freely give away and receive.

I believe it’s a two-way street, giving and receiving. What does that take?  It takes love.  Love for another human being.

Giving: We were created to give away what the Lord gives us, love.  We need to be able to deliver those pennies from Heaven to those in need in a manner that glorifies Him.  It should not matter what people may look like or their social standing etc. Our job is to shower God’s love on people via our mouth, hands and prayers.   1 John 4:19 We love because He first loved us.  These gifts, or pennies from Heaven could be: words of encouragement, a meal, a sincere compliment, an act of kindness, a thank you or a question like, “How can I pray for you today?”

Receiving: We should not let our pride stop us from accepting gifts of love.  I have come to understand that when we deny someone the ability to give us a simple gift, we may be denying the God who put it on their heart to do so. 

I had this idea a few weeks ago.  I thought it might be good to make up business cards saying:  Thank you for your smile and kindness today, God Bless you!  Number 6:24-26 “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.”’ Maybe add John 3:16 & 17 for example.  OR   maybe, for those I see having a bad day I could have similar cards saying, “I see you are struggling, Numbers 6:24-26 (type it out and other verses), “I will be praying for you. God knows who you are.  John 3:16 & 17.  This is just an example of one of the things I could do for a complete stranger. Or, if given the opportunity, I could ask them, “How can I pray for you today?”   For people I know, I obviously would have the freedom to do even more things.

Pennies from Heaven tossed on society.  Tiny little acts of love and kindness that may seem insignificant and not worth the bother to many people.  But to the one needing to receive them, the one lost, broken-down and battered soul, it may mean everything. 

May the pennies in your pocket or purse remind you of the love of God that has been showered on you.

Prayer

Lord God, Creator of all things beautiful, open our eyes to the needs of others.  Give us unique and kind ways to show your love.  May we spread your pennies from Heaven all around and may lost souls find their way to you.  May we abound in the joy of your love as we glorify you with our acts of obedience and human kindness.  I thank you Lord, you are worthy to be praised.

In Jesus name, amen.

God Bless

Sally