Apr 28, 2020
By Courtney Mattus
One of the things that is of great importance to instill in a child is the spirit of giving.
As a mother of three, the responsibility to create “good humans” weighs heavily on my heart at all times. As a parent striving to raise strong, Christian children, the responsibility is even greater. Let’s be honest. Parenting is an incredibly challenging and difficult blessing to have bestowed upon us and children are going to be the people God crafted them to be. They are going to be sweet, kind, and loving but they will also be fierce and strong-willed. Parents are tasked with being role models to these little ones and encouraging or building their soft characteristics and harnessing the more fierce ones for great causes.
One of the things that is of great importance to instill in a child is the spirit of giving. I truly believe that this can be found in any child. Children are inherently kind and compassionate and without prejudice. This is one of the soft skills that parents have to foster and set as an example. (Mind you, this sounds great in theory, but like any other parent, it can be a struggle as we navigate this world of on-demand everything and entitlement.) There are things that my husband and I strive to do in our daily lives to model this behavior. While I could provide a list at this time of all the things we do to encourage our kids to help others, the bottom line is: PRAY.
First and foremost, praying with your child for those who are sick and in need helps to open their eyes to the trials and tribulations that people (some, just like them) encounter. Encourage them to pray for the church and let them learn of the works of the church…from the mission projects to the construction needs to keep the building up and running and everything in-between. Teach them to pray for the pastor(s). The more they pray, the more their hearts open to the needs of others. Without this understanding, any mission project they participate in or any money they put in the offering plate would be just a motion.
The next step is putting prayer into action. This is the part where parents and members of the church family model the behavior and encourage the younger generations to acknowledge the needs and compassion that they have for others and do something about it. This means giving offering to the church every week. We show children this by putting our money in the plate and letting them see others do it as well. They’ll remember from their prayer time that this money is for God and it is used for His works—the works of the church. We can also put our prayers into action by getting the children involved in activities that serve others and give back to our church or local community. In my household, we sponsor a little girl named Joyce from Uganda. The kids pray for her and write to her and it gives them a strong connection with someone who is less fortunate (in material things—I say this because she is clearly rich in love and Joyce’s faith is strong!).
I am blessed to be a part of a church family that takes part in several activities that foster the spirit of giving in children. One of these is Operation Christmas Child. Through this Samaritan’s Purse outreach, congregation members fill shoeboxes that are sent all over the world to children who need a smile and to feel God’s love. It is endearing to be a part of this and watch many members of the church body assisting children as they fill boxes and see the delight the children find in helping others.
In our church, the spirit of giving is encouraged for the children as young as one year old. At one year old, these little ones participate in children’s choir where a few gracious women provide coins to every child and let the children take turns collecting and giving offering. These little ones also partake in the church-wide “White Christmas” where the Sabbath School classes collect funds and donate them to a family, organization or cause. The littlest guys have been purchasing things such as chickens, bees, and seeds through the SDB Missionary Society and Heifer International for communities that can benefit from them and use them for food production. Our Sabbath School classes teach this and they talk to the children about what they are doing and why. They are teaching them about others and helping to instill compassion and understanding. The older youth of our church do various tasks to serve members of the congregation and community such as cleaning up yards, landscaping, etc., while expecting nothing in return.
I truly believe that teaching children to pray and understand the needs of others is where it all begins. Putting those prayers into action and helping the children learn to move when the Lord leads them is the next step. As parents, we have to pray for our children and their growing hearts of compassion. We also need to pray for guidance to help raise these little people and thank Him every day for letting us “borrow” them while they’re on earth. Yes, the responsibility of a parent is huge. So what can we do? We can teach them to give. Generously. Teach them to serve. Teach them to love. Above all, teach them to pray.
