Together We Give
Mark 12:41-44
Our story comes from a book in the Bible called Mark.
The Bible tells us many things about Jesus. One day Jesus and His helpers were at the temple. The temple was in the city of Jerusalem. Many people went there to worship and learn about God.
Jesus sat across from the place where people put their gift offerings of money.
Tromp, tromp, tromp. Jesus watched as many people came to put their offering or gift in the offering containers.
Some of the people Jesus saw were rich and dressed in beautiful clothes. They were carrying big bags of money. The rich people looked around to make sure everyone was watching them. Then they put some of their money into the offering container. Clank, clank, clank, clank. It made a very big sound. The rich people were happy that Jesus saw them putting lots of money into the offering container. They wanted Him to notice that they were giving lots of money.
But this did not make Jesus happy. Jesus knew the rich people had lots of money. They gave because they were supposed to and wanted everyone to know they gave.
Then Jesus saw a poor woman come to that place in the temple. She did not have beautiful clothes on. Her clothes were old. She carried a very small bag of money. This was all the money the poor woman had.
Clink, clink. The money made a very small sound The poor woman had no money left at home, but she was happy to give all she had to God. She gave because she knew she was supposed to and she wanted to.
Jesus told His helpers, “The rich people gave some of their money. They gave gifts because they wanted to show off."
"But the poor woman gave all she had to God because she loves God and wanted to give her gift to Him. She gave the best offering of all.”
The poor woman gave a gift of love to God. We can all give to God.
Our story comes from a book in the Bible called Mark.
The Bible tells us many things about Jesus. One day Jesus and His helpers were at the temple. The temple was in the city of Jerusalem. Many people went there to worship and learn about God.
Jesus sat across from the place where people put their gift offerings of money.
Tromp, tromp, tromp. Jesus watched as many people came to put their offering or gift in the offering containers.
Some of the people Jesus saw were rich and dressed in beautiful clothes. They were carrying big bags of money. The rich people looked around to make sure everyone was watching them. Then they put some of their money into the offering container. Clank, clank, clank, clank. It made a very big sound. The rich people were happy that Jesus saw them putting lots of money into the offering container. They wanted Him to notice that they were giving lots of money.
But this did not make Jesus happy. Jesus knew the rich people had lots of money. They gave because they were supposed to and wanted everyone to know they gave.
Then Jesus saw a poor woman come to that place in the temple. She did not have beautiful clothes on. Her clothes were old. She carried a very small bag of money. This was all the money the poor woman had.
Clink, clink. The money made a very small sound The poor woman had no money left at home, but she was happy to give all she had to God. She gave because she knew she was supposed to and she wanted to.
Jesus told His helpers, “The rich people gave some of their money. They gave gifts because they wanted to show off."
"But the poor woman gave all she had to God because she loves God and wanted to give her gift to Him. She gave the best offering of all.”
The poor woman gave a gift of love to God. We can all give to God.
Bible Paraphrase: Worship the LORD. (Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness; tremble before him, all the earth. Psalm 96:9 NIV)
Text Truth: We can all give to God.
Read Mark 12:41-44. Many people were giving large amounts of money, yet Jesus commented on the poor woman. While her gift seemed small, it was her willing heart that made a difference.
She “put in everything—all she had to live on.” Her gift was not small. Second Corinthians 8:12 says,
For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have.
We can all give to God. We sometimes give time, money, possessions, or actions to God. Whatever we give can be given as an act of worship from a willing heart to a loving God who is ready to accept our gift.
Show your child things around her classroom and the church that the offering helps purchase. Your child might enjoy selecting a Bible storybook to give to her classroom or a toy to give to the nursery.
You’ll Need: an old oatmeal container with a slit cut in the plastic lid, tissue paper, construction paper, other decorative supplies, crayons or washable markers
Let your child decorate the oatmeal container. Write the Lesson Focus on the container (“We call all give to God”). Place it in a location for the whole family to use for several weeks. Then, donate the money to your church or another Christian organization.
Read books about giving to God. As you choose a book to read, remember that we can give more than our money to God.
Give your child two play coins. You could make “coins” from shiny greeting cards or foil. Tell the story from your Bible as your child acts the part of the woman giving all her money to God. Encourage your child to set aside some real coins for Sunday school. Let your child know that giving is one way we worship God. Then say the memory verse together.
Take a walk with your child in your neighborhood or throughout your church. As you walk, look for ways you can give to God through helping others. Pray about these when you return home.
Text Truth: We can all give to God.
Family Devotional
She “put in everything—all she had to live on.” Her gift was not small. Second Corinthians 8:12 says,
For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what he does not have.
We can all give to God. We sometimes give time, money, possessions, or actions to God. Whatever we give can be given as an act of worship from a willing heart to a loving God who is ready to accept our gift.
Activities You Can Do at Home
Where Does My Gift Go?
Show your child things around her classroom and the church that the offering helps purchase. Your child might enjoy selecting a Bible storybook to give to her classroom or a toy to give to the nursery.
Make and Use a Donation Box
You’ll Need: an old oatmeal container with a slit cut in the plastic lid, tissue paper, construction paper, other decorative supplies, crayons or washable markers
Let your child decorate the oatmeal container. Write the Lesson Focus on the container (“We call all give to God”). Place it in a location for the whole family to use for several weeks. Then, donate the money to your church or another Christian organization.
Read About Giving
Read books about giving to God. As you choose a book to read, remember that we can give more than our money to God.
Act Out the Bible Story
Give your child two play coins. You could make “coins” from shiny greeting cards or foil. Tell the story from your Bible as your child acts the part of the woman giving all her money to God. Encourage your child to set aside some real coins for Sunday school. Let your child know that giving is one way we worship God. Then say the memory verse together.
Walk, Look and Pray
Take a walk with your child in your neighborhood or throughout your church. As you walk, look for ways you can give to God through helping others. Pray about these when you return home.
-
Story illustrations are the copyright of Sweet Publishing and licensed by FreeBibleimages (http://freebibleimages.org) for free download under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution Share-alike 3.0 unported licence.
-
Comments
Post a Comment