How Do We Give Stuff to God?

One evening a couple months ago, as I was tucking Roman into bed, he asked, “How do we give stuff to God?” I could see the wheels in his little mind turning, Do we throw stuff up to heaven and hope that it actually connects instead of careening back to earth? Not exactly.

The verse that came to mind was one Jesus shared with his followers: “Whatever you do for the least among you, you have done to me.” In simple terms I explained to Roman that Jesus wants us to give to others, especially to the poor and destitute and that when we do, we are actually giving to Him. Although this concept seems weighty, he caught on right away and asked, “So how do we give to the poor?” That question was a little easier to answer, since we had just filled up a shoe box for Samaritan’s Purse, which gave me a perfect example. Roman listened intently and seemed to really grasp the idea that giving to God is tied into giving to others.

Our conversation really impacted me as I considered Jesus’ exhortation that we treat others with value, that we purposefully give special attention to those who have less than we do.  Often for me, giving to the poor comes out of my left-overs. I am happy to pass on to someone else, something that is of little use to me any more. I am not saying that those “hand-me-downs” aren’t helpful. Charities around the nation thrive on our “seconds.” But if what we do to the least of these, we do to Christ, am I just giving Christ left-overs?

This morning when Roman came into the kitchen he saw three plump mangos in the fruit basket that Joel and I had purchased as a treat for the family. All of our boys love mangos, but we don’t have them that often. Roman was delighted and couldn’t wait to cut one upon and eat it. I promised him we would cut one and share it with the whole family after supper tonight. And then he asked, “And can we take one of them and give them to the poor? Because then  it would be like giving it to God.”
His readiness to give something that is highly prized and rarely enjoyed, really struck a chord. It has given me something to ponder today, as I pray for a heart that longs to give to God by sharing, not my left-overs, but from what I prize and value.


One Response to "How Do We Give Stuff to God?"

  • Beautiful, Roman!! Beautiful.

    1 Joy said this (February 19, 2013 at 2:47 pm) Reply


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