When I think about the men and women whose character I admire the most, a common trait flowing from each one of them is generosity. Generosity does not come naturally to me. I personally find service easier than generosity. It’s possible to serve generously. Service involves giving my time, energy, and resources. I don’t disagree with that notion. But generosity implies the surrender of my time, energy, and resources. Sometimes, it’s just plain hard for me to be unselfish.

Walking home from Awana this week, Megan pulled out a card she’d received. Slightly larger than a postage stamp, the homemade card had a small sticker on the front and on the inside was signed, “Happy Thanksgiving” from her club leader. “Mom, remember my leader last year who gave me cards and gifts?” She laughed before completing her thought, “This card is kind of undersized.”

I too laughed at Megan’s use of the word undersized. It got me thinking though, is my generosity undersized? What example am I setting as a leader to my children? In what ways can we be more generous as a family?

To be clear, I’m not knocking Megan’s leader. The card was handmade and handwritten by an adult volunteer who wouldn’t be giving two hours of her time each week unless she genuinely cared about the kids. Megan is not ungrateful for the card, nor does she expect gifts.