First of all, I saw this somewhere on Facebook - so I did not originate this idea - but I think it is fantastic!

Here is a video of me explaining, Numnum the Offering Monster:

Many have asked me since I first posted this on Facebook, "Is it OK to make giving fun? Shouldn't we be more serious about it?

My answer is: YES! It is OK to make giving fun! God loves a cheerful giver (2 Cor. 9:7) Giving should be joyful and done with celebration! (1 Chron. 29:9)

WHY did I do this?

I started looking for a fun way to collect offering, because while our children's church gives to an inner city ministry our church does - offering both breakfast and ministry in one of the poorest areas of Denver - no matter how much we taught, challenged and encouraged - once kids get to church, if they didn't bring any gift, there is nothing we can do or say at that point to help them give. They can't write a check, they don't carry money like adults, and they can't give online with a smart phone! Kids can have every desire and intent to give "next week" but they are just kids. By next week, they have forgotten again. Our offerings were averaging from nothing to two or three dollars.

So I had to ask myself, "How can I make giving so fun, they think about it during the week?"

I'll admit, when I first posted this on Facebook, the "offering monster" didn't sit well with me - I thought, "a monster? really?" but the more I thought and prayed about it, and read feedback from others who have tried it, the more I felt God saying, "Try it!"

How did it go?

After the first week, our offering went from a few coins to over $18 and the following Sunday, (today as I post this) over $30!

So, it seems to work! The kids remembered to bring money - the fun of Numnum helped them remember! Some even ran back to Mom or Dad for offering once they got to church and saw Numnum!

Numnum can't eat paper money, so we creted Bill - his little brother - who only eats bills. (get it?) 

The kids LOVE when I make monster eating sounds have fun collecting it with them. I plan to make a video with sound fx soon - and will post here when I do!

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