Teaching Kids KindnessSample

 Day 6: Kindness around the World 

“What do you guys think? Should we help buy a playground?” My sister-in-law, Kim, asked the question as she sat down among her kids and mine at the kitchen table.

Instead of buying gifts for nieces and nephews this Christmas, Kim and I combined our funds and gave them a Compassion International catalog and a budget so they could go shopping for kids in need elsewhere. With our children ranging in age from nine to three, she and I weren’t entirely sure how this “buy a present for someone else” idea was going to be received.   

My nine-year-old daughter’s voice piped up in response to Kim’s question: “No. A playground is a want, not a need. I think we should spend our money on needs for kids.” 

Kim and I exchanged a glance and realized that our experiment was going to be a success. 

Our kids embraced the opportunity to make a difference in the lives of other children. And as the conversation about potential gifts ebbed and flowed, each child was drawn to a different item for reasons they explained with thoughtfulness and intentionality. 

While we are often tempted to measure our financial worth by comparing our homes to the nicest houses on the block, just having a roof over our heads and enough food in the fridge means we are blessed with resources. And Scripture reminds us that our blessings come with a corresponding responsibility for stewardship and generosity (Luke 12:48). 

Teaching our children to be sensitive to needs around the world helps us keep the true extent of our resources in perspective. It empowers us to be doers of good instead of feeling helpless in the face of so many needs. 

Conversation Starter: Make a list of the ways your family has been blessed with resources because you live in a first-world country. How might your life be different without some of the resources we tend to take for granted? In what ways might we share the benefits of some of these resources with others who live far from us? 

Getting started: Consider sponsoring a child or village, supporting infrastructure projects such as community wells, or donating money to fund sustainable practices (such as purchasing goats, cows, or ducks for a family). 

Verses:

Matthew 6:19-21

Proverbs 11:24-25 

Luke 12:48