Red Letter Challenge Kids: The 11-Day Discipleship Experience for KidsSample

Day 9: Challenged to Give Like Jesus

It is more blessed to give than to receive. Acts 20:35

Think about something that you love to buy. Maybe for you it’s sports cards. What about candy? Legos? Collectables? Art supplies?  What special thing is so easy for you to hand over your hard-earned allowance or birthday money for?

Whatever you spend money on quickly, that might be a clue into a V.I.T. (Very Important Thing) to you. Think about giving away your favorite thing, not too easy huh?  Most of us are born naturally wanting to get or keep rather than give. 

Nobody thinks they are greedy. Greed is the sneakiest sin because hardly anyone ever thinks of themselves this way. So we are all greedy because giving is not quite as easy as spending on ourselves. 

Do you know any child who wants all their toys given to someone else, and they get none? I don’t. So what happens when we read a verse that says exactly the opposite of that? Maybe in a story, but that’s not the reality.

It is more blessed to give than to receive. Acts 20:35

This is what Jesus said. He said it because it’s what He did. Jesus Christ is the one treasure that died to get you. All the V.I.T.s you will get will cost you (or mom and dad) something. 

Jesus had EVERYTHING in the world except one thing…YOU. If Jesus hadn’t come to earth, been born in a manger, and died on the cross, we would have been lost forever. You are more valuable to Jesus than the whole world because He already had that. He lost it all so that He could receive us as His greatest gifts. Jesus said that YOU were the treasure. 

Knowing that we are a treasure to Jesus helps us realize that we already have everything. Nothing else that we could buy can replace that love. When we see others in need, it is not as hard for us to give as it used to be. 

All the V.I.T.s in our lives become just nice things. And they pale in comparison to the best thing: Jesus!

Challenge

You may not be ready to give up all your gifts on Christmas morning, and you don’t need to. But what can you give away to someone else to make their life a little easier, happier, and better? Even if it costs you something?