Give of Your Spirit
Desert Mission has officially kicked off its stewardship campaign, and it’s got us thinking about generosity. Specifically, how can we encourage young people to be generous, and what can they do to put their generosity into practice?
The discussion of what generosity means is one in which kids of all ages can participate. Its precise meaning is ‘giving more than was necessary or expected,’ an idea that’s pretty easy to communicate to young people. For the smallest kids, you might describe being generous as ‘sharing with a happy heart.’
As you deepen your discussion, you might consider the ways in which we can be generous – with our time, with material things, with our spirit – and the ways our generosity might look at the different places we go – home, school, and of course, church.
We’d like to offer a few concrete ways in which your entire family can give of your spirit right here at church. First, make our prayer list part of your prayer list. The names you hear read out loud each Sunday are also printed in our weekly newsletter. Pray over your fellow congregants, and consider reaching out personally to them as well. Send a letter, a drawing, or a card. If you’d like to make a video call or visit, check in with the Care team (Mike and Ralph) or Jen, who can help connect you and make sure the person is comfortable being reached out to in that way.
Second, when we pass the peace of Christ at the end of each service, introducing ourselves to others and getting to know them, encourage your entire family to participate! Bring the kids in your family to church with you and make sure they know that they’re a part of this congregation too. You never know when you’ll make somebody’s day just by saying hello and asking them how they’re doing. And by extending a hand in friendship, whether in church, at school, or elsewhere, you will likely make your own day better as well.
It’s likely your kids can come up with some additional ideas for how to open their hearts and show generosity of spirit. Share those ideas with us on Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram! We are all, from the smallest humans to the tallest, striving to become the best of who God created us to be, and generosity of spirit is certainly a quality to cultivate throughout our lives.
