I have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth. 3 John 1:4.
The question isn’t really “How do we pass generosity to our children?” The question is “How do we pass the life-giving gospel of Jesus to our children?” Once they grasp the gospel, they can’t help but become givers.
Through Generosity Path, I am blessed to serve wealthy Christians from all over the world. These givers ask how to disciple their children in generosity. I asked my friend Niel here in Jakarta about this. He said:
“How to pass wealth and generosity is a subset of that larger spiritual problem. The core issue is universal and ubiquitous. Every Christian generation must find a fire that burns for the gospel, a fire that burns so bright that they cannot but pour their lives and fortunes into it.”
Cameron Doolittle in “Teaching Generosity to Children” on the Ministry Fundraising Network blog post dated 3 April 2017. I read this post the day before I left and thought it was worth sharing widely. As I travel to the Philippines via Japan, I am thinking about Generosity Path and asking God to bless their global efforts.
These thoughts resonated with me because over the past two weeks, my wife and I enjoyed time with our daughter and her boyfriend in California and then with our son in Florida. They growing up, and it’s rewarding to see the life-giving gospel of Jesus at work in their lives.
This post inspires me to encourage them and their peers in the next generation to focus on the life-giving gospel. It transforms all who receive it to give their “lives and fortunes” to God’s work for His glory! Generosity will be simply a by-product of their vibrant faith.
Father in Heaven, by your Holy Spirit, make the fire of the life-giving gospel of Jesus to burn brightly in our lives, in our children, and among their peers, as a light to our neighbors and the nations for the glory of Jesus. Amen.