Bringing Gifts To God

Read to your children the story in Deuteronomy 26:1-11 about bringing gifts to God. It is a story of a thankful family bringing gifts of food to God's house for the minister or priest to use, possibly to give some to the poor!

With Ethan doing chores now, he is receiving a commission (yes, we do call it a commission! He is only paid for the chores that he does, it is not an allowance given 'just because'). My husband and I have pondered upon many questions pertaining to this new addition in raising our child! We believe that we have made it clear to him that giving to God is so important!

Do you ask yourself the following questions? If so, I propose some answers to think over! These are just my own personal opinions - not a study course in giving! ;) But I will say that we have been successful so far in beginning to teach our son about giving!

*Are children exempt from giving?

No! We might think about it by asking: Are children exempt from Christianity? (Giving, we know, is simply part of Jesus’ “everything I have commanded you” in Matthew 28:20.)

The answer to that question is clearly NO! In fact, Jesus says, the kingdom of God belongs to children in particular (Luke 18:16). And if children can be Christians, then children can certainly give to the Lord, right?!

The Bible teaches that giving is the privilege and responsibility of all God’s people, regardless of age or income. Teach this to your child!!!

* At what age should children start learning about generosity?

As early as they can understand! My son is four, but I think that we could have taught him to be Giving before now!

The words of Moses to the people of Israel are relevant in this regard: “These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up” (Deuteronomy 6:6-7).

By the things parents say and do in the home, day in and day out, they teach their children how to live! Toddlers may watch you put money in the offering plate. School-age children may give out of their own money (this is what Ethan does - he takes 2 dollars out of his weekly commission and gives it to church). Adolescents may give out of their own babysitting income! But whatever their ages, you have a chance to teach your children about generosity—and God’s generosity in particular—by the things you say and do in their presence today!

*When the offering plate comes around at church, should I give my children pocket change to put in it?

Giving children spare change to put in the offering plate is certainly okay, but there may be other and perhaps better ways to teach them about giving to the Lord! For example, depending on their age, parents might want to pay their kids in return for small chores around the house, and then teach them to give an offering from their own income! Or parents might want to take them along to bring a meal to a needy family, so that they see more concretely where their offerings go! Giving children spare change for the offering plate is fine, but it is good to consider other teaching opportunities as well. Parents should use creative means to teach their children about God’s generosity and our response!

*How can I encourage my children to talk with their friends about giving?

I think that there are several things parents can do! First and most importantly, they can talk about and model generosity, so that their children learn it by example (Deuteronomy 6:7).

If kids learn at home that giving is important, they will naturally talk about it outside the home.

Second, if it is very important to you, you may want to simply suggest to your children that they talk about giving with their friends!

Third and finally, parents should probably not worry about this issue. Children need to understand God’s gift to them before they can talk meaningfully about giving with their friends!

Hope you find this helpful!!! :)