Teaching Kids to Give

if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully. Romans 12:8

Teaching Kids that it is Better to Give than to Receive

Each November and sometimes before, kids of all ages start filling out their Christmas wish lists. I remember as a kid, receiving the Sears Wishbook in the mail. My brother and I would spend hours going through it circling what we wanted, making our lists, wishing and dreaming. Nowadays, kids are bombarded with television commercials and you begin hearing, "Ooh, I want that for Christmas!" As parents, we want the best for our children. We want to give them everything they want, but should we be more concerned for what they need? I will admit, I don't even know what to get my girls this year, although I'm sure I will get a list. With 4 girls and 12 years worth of toys handed down, what else could they possibly need or want? And you know what, they hardly ever play with toys anyway. When they play, they pretend and make use of what they do have. Our blankets are converted into tents/houses. They play school and store and make up stuff or play outside as much as possible. I am thankful for that!

But I got off subject...by the time December first rolls around, the list has grown huge!(typically) Actually, my girls don't have huge lists. Is it because they don't need anything? Grown ups aren’t much better. Our lists aren’t as long, but our gift wishes are more expensive! (Can you say, wishblade or Cricut?) How did this happen? Our kids didn’t just wake up one morning with their hands held out and greed in their hearts. “I want! I want!” is a learned behavior. We have lost sight that it is more blessed to give than to receive.

All day long he craves for more, but the righteous give without sparing. Proverbs 21:26

Where It All Begins

As a child, we are not born with knowledge of our actions. All behavior must be learned. Our first teachers are our parents and guardians. Kids imitate what they see. It is up to us as Christian parents to teach our children to follow the ways of God. That includes teaching them about giving and receiving. They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but if we don’t concern ourselves with giving, how can we expect our children to act any different?

An Unselfish Gift

The story of the birth of Jesus is a shining example of selfless giving. God allowed His only Son to be born, knowing that he would live and die for a world that had turned its back on Him time and time again. God offered His gift of love with no strings attached. We still have the free will to accept or reject His gift.

Freely you have received, freely give. Matthew 10:8

Actions Speak Louder than Words

Get kids involved in their communities. Help them see that there are families who don’t have a home or enough food to eat. Several times a year and especially during the Christmas holiday season, help them to go through their closets and gather together clothing and coats that no longer fit. Kids should come along with you when dropping off the clothes at Goodwill or another agency of your choice. Toys in good condition that aren’t played with anymore can be donated too. I do this with my girls, especially when I want to get their rooms clean and organized. We have a "Blessing Box". I tell the girls, "go through your toys, if it is no longer blessing you because you don't play with it, don't like it or it is broken, than it is time to do something about it." Obviously broken toys go in the trash, but perfectly good toys go in the blessing box. When the box is full, we take it to Salvation Army or Goodwill. Here recently, we attended JesusFest where they were adopting bears. These bears would go to children who would not have a Christmas because their parents were in jail or otherwise unable to provide for them. The girls wondered what happened to the bears I purchased, after I explained, I hope it made them thankful and realize how fortunate they really are.

Soup kitchens provide hot meals for the hungry all year round. Take your kids and let them help prepare and serve. Even at five years of age they can help you serve. Tell them that Jesus did the same thing for multitudes of people. This I haven't done. To be honest, part of me worries about the crack addict that wonders in needing another fix and what could potentially happen. I know I should put my trust in Jesus to protect my girls while serving Him.

Supermarkets and department stores hang paper Christmas trees with the names of children who need gifts for Christmas. Your children could choose a tree and help another child like themselves to have a happy Christmas morning. These are just a few things you can do to help teach your children the importance of giving rather than receiving. If you have any other ideas, please share.

Through your actions, your children will learn that giving unselfishly to another person feels good and benefits everyone. Their Christmas lists may just get a little bit shorter and their hearts will definitely get a whole lot bigger.

Relating to faithbooking

How does this relate to faithbooking? Take pictures of your blessing box and journal about what you gave and to where. Take pictures of your children serving others, record it to remember God's commands and their obedience.

In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Lord Jesus himself said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.' Acts20:35