Who gave the most?
Children's sermon
Object:
a penny and a twenty-dollar bill
Note: This children's sermon fills a slot that is not currently filled by The Village Shepherd.
Good morning! We have a project here at the church that we are raising money for. (If there is no current project, you can begin by saying "If" there was a project.) Now, let's suppose that two people gave money for the project. One gave this penny (show the penny) and the other gave this twenty-dollar bill. (Show the bill.) Now I want to ask you this. Who gave the most? (Let them answer.) That's right. The one who gave the twenty-dollar bill gave a greater amount of money, but it may not be the bigger gift. Let me tell you some more about these two gifts.
Let's say that the twenty-dollar bill came from a person who has millions of dollars and the penny came from someone who had no money at all except this one little penny. Now, who do you think gave the most? (Let them answer.) Yes, I think the one who gave all that he or she had certainly gave the most. When we give to God, it is not the amount that counts, but how much of a sacrifice we make to give. For somebody who has millions of dollars, twenty dollars doesn't mean much. But, for somebody who is very poor, even a penny might be a real sacrifice.
So, children, when you are trying to decide what you will give to God, keep in mind that God is not concerned with the amount you give, but in what you are willing to sacrifice in order to give. Do you understand what I mean by that? (Let them answer. If it is unclear to them, elaborate.)
Let's ask God to help us be sacrificial givers.
Dear God: Help us to be the kind of people who give to You even more than we feel we can afford to give because we know that You will always make sure that we have what we need if we put You first. Amen.
Good morning! We have a project here at the church that we are raising money for. (If there is no current project, you can begin by saying "If" there was a project.) Now, let's suppose that two people gave money for the project. One gave this penny (show the penny) and the other gave this twenty-dollar bill. (Show the bill.) Now I want to ask you this. Who gave the most? (Let them answer.) That's right. The one who gave the twenty-dollar bill gave a greater amount of money, but it may not be the bigger gift. Let me tell you some more about these two gifts.
Let's say that the twenty-dollar bill came from a person who has millions of dollars and the penny came from someone who had no money at all except this one little penny. Now, who do you think gave the most? (Let them answer.) Yes, I think the one who gave all that he or she had certainly gave the most. When we give to God, it is not the amount that counts, but how much of a sacrifice we make to give. For somebody who has millions of dollars, twenty dollars doesn't mean much. But, for somebody who is very poor, even a penny might be a real sacrifice.
So, children, when you are trying to decide what you will give to God, keep in mind that God is not concerned with the amount you give, but in what you are willing to sacrifice in order to give. Do you understand what I mean by that? (Let them answer. If it is unclear to them, elaborate.)
Let's ask God to help us be sacrificial givers.
Dear God: Help us to be the kind of people who give to You even more than we feel we can afford to give because we know that You will always make sure that we have what we need if we put You first. Amen.
