Only be careful, and watch yourselves closely so that you do not forget the things your eyes have seen or let them fade from your heart as long as you live. Teach them to your children and to their children after them. Deuteronomy 4:9
“Our generosity, or lack thereof also serves as a witness to our children and grandchildren. Many of us intentionally work to train our kids about giving and generosity, and this is a good thing, but we know that children grow up to demonstrate more of what they caught from us versus what they were actually taught.”
Mike Slaughter in The Christian Wallet: Spending, Giving, and Living with a Conscience (Louisville: WJKP, 2016) 81.
Our generosity is a witness. How we handle money testifies to what we believe. It’s a sobering and powerful idea that we must be careful to demonstrate a consistent example of faithful discipleship for our children. We do this by simply living how we want our children to live. For them to follow in our footsteps, our walk must be consistent with our talk.
The key here is to abandon our pride! Rather than trying to “have it all together” for our children (whether they are young or grown) we must, with childlike faith, talk about what we are learning about the various facets of giving through the journey of life. This invites them, regardless of their age, to join us in the journey of living with humility and generosity.
Frankly, I believe our grown children, Samuel David and Sophie Victoria, are loving, kind, and generous because their mother (and my dear wife), Jenni, whose birthday we celebrate today, consistently sets a loving, kind, and generous example. Happy birthday, Jenni! We love you and celebrate how Christ shines in and through how you live, give, serve, and love!