The Bible teaches us much about generosity – God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7), we are to be generous and ready to share (1 Timothy 6:18) and, in Jesus’ own words, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). Sometimes our greatest teachers and examples come in small packages! It is a great joy to see children model generosity, and in 2019 ABCS ministries were blessed by several kids who gave out of the overflow of their hearts and care for hurting children and families.
LynnLee inspired us by donating to New Life Pregnancy Center for her tenth birthday. She and her family, the Powells, have been regular volunteers and ABCS supporters for years. One morning while the Powell family prepared brochures for the New Life Pregnancy Centers, LynnLee noticed a section that said, “How your support helps.” She saw an option to sponsor a New Life Pregnancy Center for a day by donating $100. LynnLee decided to raise the money to support a center for her birthday. She surprised the pregnancy center staff with $126, making her humble birthday wish come true.
Connaley told her parents that she wanted to do something to help serve others. She went to work collecting notebooks for the back to school supply drive hosted by Casa de Amor, a Community Resource Center. With the help of her family and church, Connaley was able to exceed her goal of 300 notebooks, gathering 504 notebooks for children in need.
Girl Scout Troop 534 wanted to give back to families less fortunate than them. They bought Thanksgiving dinners for six families in the New Life Transitional Program. The girls used part of their money earned from selling cookies to purchase the meals for these hurting families. The troop was awarded badges for budgeting, financial literacy and philanthropy for their act of giving.
Joshua and his mom, Raquel Williams, have found a way to make giving back extra fun! “Super Joshua” dresses up as a superhero with a cape to collect items for the Community Resource Center at the Phoenix ABCS office. The first year, when Joshua was just three years-old, he collected food items and this summer he collected socks. Super Joshua was excited to share: “Together, we collect 642 pairs of socks. Wow! That is a lot of socks.” For Raquel, seeing her son engaged in helping others is a true blessing. “As a believer who follows Jesus, we want to instill Christ-like character in our children. I think that’s a good measure of success. It just helps to give me hope that they are able to serve at such a young age.”
These amazing kids demonstrate what it means to be the hands and feet of Jesus. It is never too early to learn and teach others about Biblical stewardship. We thank God for these faithful little givers.