Teach Your Children to Give to God

What to Do

The bible says, “Train up a child in the way he should go; and when he is old, he will not depart from it (Proverbs 22:6). Today, I want to pair that verse with another. Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me. But you say, In what way have we robbed You? In tithes and offerings (Malachi 3:8).”

Giving to God is an act of worship and obedience. And while we can excuse children from many responsibilities, this is not one. We never excuse them expectations to obey God.

Train up your child to honor God with [their] substance (all they have) and with the firsfruits of all [their] increase (Proverbs 3:9). Teach them to give God their first and their best- and not just the bare minimal (a tithe), but tithes and offerings. Teach them to give, not just of their money, but their best in every way possible- to honor God is all their ways.

These are lessons to train them in from a young age, ones that we hope will follow them into their old age. What better thing to train them to do, than to honor God in their youth- even if they don’t yet know the theology of the Christian faith.

How to Do it?

Now, I was taught to move the decimal place one space to the left. Sometimes, I have to still right that down if the amount I’m tithing on is not a nice round number. So, you might have to teach your children how to do something similar. I haven’t been able to find an easier way. But for younger children, you’ll have to do the math for them.

 Talk About it

Talk to them about how God uses that money to care for the house of God, the people of God who serve the house of God, missions and ministry, and to help the needy. Let them know it also teaches us to trust that God can take care of with the 90% that’s left over- especially when we make wise choices. Read the rest of Malachi 3 or Proverbs 3.  Spread your lessons out over time and look for every day teachable moments.

Conclusion: Go Deeper

Make sure you are modeling these lessons before them. Teach them, not just the mandate of tithe and offerings; not just the mechanics of how to calculate it; not just the practicality of how that money is used; but to have a generous heart that desires to give to God, to honor Him, and to help others. Teach them that our Father really does know best. That’s a legacy worth leaving future generations.