November 18, 2017September 26, 2019 familyflourish

Teaching Our Kids to Live Generously: A Guest Post by Megan Lacefield

Guest Posts

Megan and I were at the same conference last February, a conference that changed me–LIT. Because of this conference, almost 300 of those who attended are in an active Facebook group, where many of us feel we have been knit together as sisters. Of course, then, when God gave me the opportunity to attend another conference, Declare, I immediately wrote to my LIT sisters and asked who was going to be there. Megan and a few others responded, and I was so glad when we were able to talk in person at Declare. I loved this girl and her personality as soon as I met her, and I know you’ll love what she has to say about generosity–a topic related to thanksgiving. I’m glad to introduce you to Megan Lacefield, who is guest posting for me today! When you’re finished reading, I’d love for you to head over to her blog, Everydaypearls.org, and read more of her wise words.

by Megan Lacefield

No one wants selfish kids. We want our kids to live generously with their time, talents and treasures. As parents, our heart is to raise them well so that when they leave our homes they live a life that makes a mark on their world. The truth is, they can make a mark on their world whether they are two or twenty-two.

When my son was a young teenager, he had a lawn-mowing business. Many of his customers were friends from church, but he learned a lot in this season about hard work, commitment and how to handle money. My husband, Chad, is passionate about obedience in the area of tithing because we have experienced first-hand the blessing that comes from trusting Him. Riley would turn in his tithe envelope on Sundays just like his dad.

One Sunday, he got paid at church for one of his jobs, so he had cash in his pocket. At the end of the service, my son watched his father do something he had seen many times before; Chad gave to someone because there was a financial need, and he felt God’s prompting. Without talking to his dad or even knowing why Chad had given this stranger across the room anything, Riley decided to give as well. The best part of the story is that my son had two bills in his pocket, a smaller bill and a larger bill. Anyone would expect a kid to give the smaller bill and keep the larger one for themselves, but that day, my son acted with generosity and love fueled by obedience to what God was asking and gave the larger bill. It brings joy to watch our kids live generously.

GENEROUS; ADJECTIVE – kind: willing to give money, help, or time freely.

I love how the dictionary defines it, but how is it defined in your life? Take a look at a few ways you can gauge your family’s generosity. When we talk about being generous, we aren’t necessarily talking about what you do and don’t do with your money. It’s about the heart behind the matter. There is so much blessing for the giver when we give.

“I could have no greater joy than to hear that my children are walking in the truth.”

3 John 1:4

I know we WANT our kids to be generous but the truth is, it starts with US. So, here’s our quick and easy how-to guide to generosity. I don’t pretend to have all the answers or the perfect kids. I’ve asked other parents and compiled this in hopes that it will encourage and challenge you!

Live Generously

Live a generous life! Sounds simple, but let your kids see you give in obedience to the church and as an offering to the people and opportunities God places in your life. Give away what you don’t need anymore because someone else does, or even better, give away something just because someone else needs it. Sometimes our kids are willing to give away something they love if we show them a need that someone else has. Our lifestyle will teach!

Talk about Generosity

Don’t miss an opportunity to tell your kids about how God has charged us to be generous. And not just with our money or possessions but with our time. When we spend time with people when we go to a nursing home or help a stranded person change a tire, we are living generously. Take every opportunity you can to share about the times you were able to be generous, a way that someone else was generous with you or a way you saw someone else being generous. Our words teach!

Practice Generosity

Empower them. Brainstorm ways that you as a family or they individually can be generous with what they have and even give them the means to do it. Set aside some money each month for your kids and challenge them to come up with their own ideas of how they can be creatively generous. I promise; your heart will be even more blessed to see this heart of generosity well up in your kids as they become actively generous. Our experiences teach!

Retell the Stories

Evaluate how your family has lived generously and how it impacted someone else.

Celebrate your kids for their efforts and pray with them that God would continue to grow and use your family in this way. Remind them that these are stories to be told…because we don’t know what God might want to do through our story in the life of someone else. Sharing our stories will teach!

Deuteronomy 15:10 talks about how we should give freely to the poor. Our heart won’t be grudging about it, and because of this, God will bless us in all we do (my paraphrase). But the poor isn’t just isolated to the homeless people in a shelter and the give isn’t just the money we have or don’t have. The poor can be someone who is down and out and just needs a little love and encouragement. Help your kids find those ways to be generous, too!

All we have isn’t ours anyways. It’s all a gift from the Father entrusted to us to be faithful with the things we have. Sometimes we keep our stuff for a long time. We are also challenged to give up something we really like or give away what we don’t need. A generous heart comes from a thankful heart. So, as we head into Thanksgiving this week, talk about being generous and then be intentional and set aside some time to actually live it out.

Praying for you and your family! Share any ways your kids have been generous or any ideas for implementing it!

Meet Megan Lacefield

Megan Lacefield has been married for 22 years to her high school sweetheart, Chad. She is the mother of two inspiring adult children: Chandler, 21 and Riley Chad, 18. Megan has been described as powerfully passionate and a big-picture visionary willing and ready to share truth and wisdom gained on her journey. She is profoundly practical, engaging, and downright real. Her passion is to speak, write, and encourage couples and women, both young and old, and provide them with doable ideas and tangible tools to empower them to live their priorities and love their lives. Follow Megan on her blog EverydayPearls.org or on Facebook!

Book Giveaways

I’m in the middle of a drawing for a lovely Bible, the Illuminated Bible, Art Journaling Edition. This Bible is so beautiful, and it could make a wonderful Christmas gift for someone you love.

If you’d like to enter in my drawing for this free Bible (retailing at $44.99):

• Click the button “follow” in the place under my picture (top right of a computer and way down below the comments on a phone) where it says, “Follow Blog Via Email.” Once you hit the button, it should give you a place to type in your email address. You may have to follow up with an email sent to you to fully subscribe, so check your spam folder if it doesn’t arrive in your inbox.
• Please notify me in a comment of your name so I will know who to congratulate if you win!

To earn more entries, or if you’re already following my blog,

• Share this post or THIS POST via social media. Each share to a different social media venue earns you one entry (up to three).
• Let me know in a comment where you’ve shared.
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Giveaways are open to residents of the continental U.S. and Canada and are only open to those who have not won from me in the last year.

I will announce the winner on Wednesday, November 22, so look for it! If I don’t hear from the winner within a week, I will draw another name. Thank you!

I still haven’t been able to get in touch with the winner I drew for Rick Warren’s God’s Big Plans for Me Storybook Bible, so I’ve drawn a new name. The new winner for this child’s Bible is: Heather Beauchamp! Heather (great name, by the way), please contact me at heather.bock[at]glimpsesofjesus.com by next Saturday, November 25 with your address if you want me to have the Bible sent to you. If I don’t hear from you by then, I will draw another name.

Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway.  Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation.  I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post. Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway.  If you have won a prize from our sponsor Propeller /FlyBy Promotions in the last 30 days on the same blog, you are not eligible to win.  Or if you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again.  Winner is subject to eligibility verification.