Daily Devotionals
Do We Have Enough?
Posted in Stewardship/Giving
Scripture: “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” – Matthew 6:33
Our oldest son, Andrew, had his seventh birthday yesterday. Like mothers often ponder, I too wonder how he’s old enough to be in first grade reading everything. But he is. And as I often do the night before his birthday, I wondered if I’d done enough. Will it be a special day? We got him the new Lego set of his dreams and some rain boots, but suddenly I wondered if he’d be disappointed in his gifts. His birthday was a school holiday, which meant he wouldn’t even see friends on his laptop screen as he’s still only attending school in-person a couple days a week. Would he be sad that there was no birthday party this year as our family navigates the pandemic with caution?
On the morning of his birthday, he’d requested biscuits for breakfast, and so I had those ready with a few birthday streamers and party hats. My husband, Drew, had to be in court in Horry County on Andrew’s birthday, so we quickly opened presents and had breakfast before Drew was out the door. Andrew loved his gifts, and my silly worries about not having enough for him washed away. He played with his new Legos all morning and by 10 a.m., he’d declared this simple day “the best birthday ever.” Whew.
At dinner that evening we opened birthday cards from aunts, who lovingly sent him $15. As we try to remember to sow little seeds of responsibility, we reminded Andrew that he should save his money for something he really wants. Also we reminded him that he should give a portion of it to our church, which we can trust will help those who need it. We had the opportunity to talk to him about how much our family has been given and that God just asks us to give a portion of it back. Andrew understood, and that’s sort of when I wondered if I understood.
Drew and I, for several years, have tried to pledge and give faithfully to our church as God has asked us to do. It’s a joy to do so because we have been given so much. Three beautiful children, a comfortable home, good jobs, our health and a church family that carried us through a scary time in our life. But I wondered, in all of my worrying if my children have enough, just as I’d done with Andrew’s gifts, if I’m still missing the point. God has given our family more than enough. Worrying if we need more is simply a luxury and something I want to avoid. He always provides what we need.
As I continue to think about it, as hard as this year has been on families everywhere, maybe this is our time. I doubt myself often, but maybe actually God made me for such a time as this. I often ask him for guidance because it is a daunting task to think about what you want the sum total of your child’s character to be. And I think he’s answering me in simple moments like these, by helping me see that our family has all we need and in my ability to help Andrew learn that he needs to give a portion of his birthday gift back to God. Perhaps opportunities like these — to show our children the importance of giving back and having faith in him who provides all in a tough time — are gifts from God to parents.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, help us see the abundant blessings we’ve been given and learn to pass your guidance about stewardship on to others. As always, help us to seek you first in all that we do, say, and acquire. Amen.
Submitted by Katie Alice Walker