Lessons on GIVING from the heart of a child~

Recently I have learned a few lessons from children about giving. Children are so innocent. Without a second thought they give you love and kindness. There is alot of things that we can learn from children. Here are just three things that I have learned recently from children about giving.
1)God deserves more from us than others do.
As I was speaking to a young mother at a recent church I visited, she told me about a conversation that she had with her daughter over the dinner table. The daughter asked, "Mommy, how come we give the waitress more than we give God". This is something for each of us to think about every time we go out to eat. We tip the waitress 15-25% of our bill without flinching, but when it comes time to give to the Lord in the offering plate at church, most people just put in thier 10% (and sometimes even less). God deserves our very best! He has done more for us than that waitress at the restaraunt, yet we are not willing to give to the One who has given His Best for us. Lets think about that!

2)Be willing to give the little bit you have for the Lord!
Recently, I received a letter in the mail. It was from a deacon at a church that I spoke at for Missions Conference. The note read, "Gina, the enclosed envelope is for you from a little girl at our church. She wanted you to have all of the money in her piggy bank". The little envelope had my name on it written in her handwritting. I opened the envelope to see $11. That was quite alot for a little girl! What a blessing that gesture of love and kindness was to me. I remember back to the short time that I was at her church. She sat with me in service, watched me as I gave testimony, played the flute, sang, and helped with Sunday School. In her eyes I was her hero. She has taught me alot about giving. Would I be willing to give up my entire bank account (the big girl's piggy bank) to help a missionary get to the field?
{As a side note, I recently read a story of a house wife who wanted a new oven because the one she had was old. Her and her husband saved and saved so that she could have it for her birthday. The day of her birthday came and her husband presented her with the envelope of money so that they could go out and pick her new oven. The woman broke down in tears. At first her husband thought it was from happiness, but then he realized it was something else. "What is it, honey", he asked. "I can't buy the oven", she said. "If it is okay with you I would like to keep my old oven and send the money to the missionary." That is what they did. As a couple they had been praying for a missionary. Little did they know that the missionary hardly had food for thier table. The money sent was greatly needed.}
Oh how important it is to be led of the Lord to use every little bit we have for His glory.

3)Be willing to give even without having anything.
I will never forget the time between Christmas and New Years a few years ago. I went out shopping in Amish Country in Lancaster, PA with my family. My little brother was about ten or eleven. For Christmas, we got some money from my grandmother. As we were shopping I found something I really liked. My brother picked up on that. He said to me, "When I get enough money I'll buy that for you." Well, that just tickled my heart. What I wanted was so expensive that I would never think of buying it for myself, even if I had the money. Here was this little boy who was willing to give all that he got for Christmas, plus save even more to get his sister this one thing because it was something she liked.
Oh to have the heart of a child in my giving for the Lord. I am asking Him to allow me to be that sensitive to His leading and as free in giving as a little child is.
2Corinthians 9:7 "Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver."