My friends,

     I want to tell you a story.  This is a true story.  It’s about a man named Danny.  Danny lived in a group home just down the street from the first church I served.  He was what we call today a ‘special needs person’.  Raised a Catholic, he never caught on that he attended a Methodist Church.
     He came from a city, he told me.  Which one, he couldn’t remember.  But it was far away.  “Now I live in the country and I like it here,” he confided.  Danny was in church every Sunday.  He sat near the front and never participated in anything but the Lord’s Prayer.  And the offering.
     He always gave his $2.65 every week – in change.  “Danny,” I told him one week, “I know you’re on a limited budget, so you don’t have to give to our offering.”
     “Oh I know, Father,” he responded through the smile he always wore, “But I want to help other people because I know other people help me.”   He went on:  “I get ten dollars a week for my allowance.  Every Monday I go for lunch at the diner.  And every Wednesday I buy a pack of cigarettes.  And everything I have left over I want to give to my friends here so they can help more people.”
     Well, that was a rough year for me.  I was working full-time in ministry.  I was commuting daily to Rochester, NY to complete my masters degree.  Our daughter Joanne had just been born.  And every night I told God, “I don’t think I can take any more.”
     Then one Sunday, Danny handed me a poem as he was going out the door.  It was written in his scrawl on a paper napkin.  I really don’t know if he wrote it himself or if he copied it from somewhere.  But I want to share it with you.  These words were truly a gift of love:

Captain thy Ship
              O Ye Seaman of the Sea.
            And be not dismayed
               when the storm gets rough,
            for I am sure you will find
               that the sea will be calm.
            But pause
               now and then,
                 And ask His guidance
                         ‘til the voyage ends!

     Danny couldn’t possibly have known how much I needed those words at that time.
     Months later, on a Sunday, the worship service came and went –without Danny.  I inquired at the group home and learned that he was moved to another facility downstate.  I didn’t have a chance to say good-bye.
     After a long time had passed, I got a strange-looking envelope in the mail.  It was large and worn and heavy.  And it was addressed, “the priest of the church near the post offise, Millerton, pa”  A note from Danny!
     I tore open the note and out dropped $2.40 – all in change – and a napkin.  On the napkin was written, “Father, sorry I can’t send more money.  Smokes cost more here.”
     I was so happy I cried.
     I took the change over to the church later that day, and placed it in the offering plate.  When Sunday came and the collection was taken, I lifted the plates for the prayer of thanksgiving.
     As I stood in front of the congregation in that moment of silence, I knew that there were folks there who were able to give a set portion of their income.  I knew that there were well-to-do people who, out of their incredible generosity, supported the ongoing ministry of the church.  I knew that there were many people who gave the couple of bucks they thought the sermon was worth.  I knew that there were a handful who didn’t like some decision the church council made, and so were withholding their offering. 
     And then I thought of the $2.40 on the bottom of the plate.  And I remembered the man (or was he an angel?) who taught me the joy of giving.
     Simple giving.  Giving because other people will benefit.  Giving because your faith compels you to give.  Giving up a luxury for yourself in order to provide a need for someone else.  What a better place this world would be if we all had Danny’s simple faith and generous spirit!
     Be generous in what you give.  Be generous in the love you give to others.  Be generous in the care you provide for your family.  Forgive generously.  Show kindness generously.  Support God’s work generously with your time and finances and commitment.  You’ll never regret it.  Never. 
     God has been so generous to us.  Look at the miracles we’ve seen recently.  Look at the signs around us that God is at work in our midst.  Look at what we’ve come through!  Praise God for his generous blessing!
     Let’s mirror that generosity.  Let’s show each other – our community – the grace and power of simple giving.  That which was shown to us in the life and death of Jesus Christ our Lord.  And even that which was shown to me in the life of a simple man, years ago.
     I miss you, Danny.

Pastor Jon West