I’ve heard this phrase all my life, so in preparing this post I did some research. Here’s what I found:
“Charity Begins at Home” is a proverb that expresses the overriding demands of taking care of one’s family, before caring for others. The origin ‘charity begins at home’ isn’t from the Bible, but it is so near to being so that it is reasonable to describe it as Biblical. The notion that a man’s family should be his foremost concern is expressed in 1 Timothy 5:8, King James Bible: “But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.”
Well, I wholeheartedly agree we should take care of our families. But the reason I’m writing about “Charity Begins at Home” is that lessons learned early (at home) about charitable giving and service has a dramatic affect on children. From the time I was old enough to walk, I would tag along with my mother as we went door to door for the “Mother’s March of Dimes” or to collect for “Community Chest.” I remember collecting food and clothing at church to deliver to victims of tornadoes and floods. I remember delivering meals on Christmas day to families with children or widows alone on a holiday.
Parents establish models for their children. I was blessed to have a mother and father who cared for others without seeking recognition. The patterns set by my parents are now being passed to generation after generation. God spoke through Solomon to all of us in Proverbs 22:5-7: “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.“
What lessons are your kids learning from you?
Tagged: parenting
