This Activity filled the
requirement for Developing Talents - Learn how to budget and save money. Discuss
why it is important to faithfully pay our tithing and how Heavenly Father
blesses us when we do (see 3 Nephi 24:10–11). Pay your tithing and begin saving
for a mission.
Here is what we discussed:
What is Tithing?
Tithing is giving 10% of what you earned to the Lord. You can give it to a member of the Bishopric on Sunday. At the end of the year you attend Tithing settlement to declare if you are a full tithe payer or not. To figure out 10%, simply move the decimal 1 to the left.
What is Tithing Used for?
- Constructing temples, chapels,
and other buildings.
- Providing operating funds for the
Church.
- Funding the missionary program
(This does not include individual missionary expenses.)
- Preparing materials used in
Church classes and organizations.
- Temple work, family history, and
many other important Church functions.
- Education
Why is Tithing Important?
The obedient
payment of tithing fortifies our faith, and that faith sustains us through the
trials, tribulations, and sorrows in our life’s journey.
The law of tithing
prepares us to live the higher law of consecration—to dedicate and give all our
time, talents, and resources to the work of the Lord. Until the day when we are
required to live this higher law, we are commanded to live the law of the
tithe, which is to freely
give one-tenth of our income annually.
How are we blessed from paying
Tithing?
To those who faithfully and
honestly live the law of tithing, the Lord promises an abundance of blessings.
Some of these blessings are temporal, just as tithes are temporal. But like the
outward physical ordinances of baptism and the sacrament, the commandment
to pay tithing requires temporal sacrifice, which ultimately yields great
spiritual blessings.
How can you budget and save?
When you earn money, first pay your tithing. You can either save the rest either at home or at a bank/credit union if you have an account. You can keep a percentage for spending and the remaining can be saved also.
Following our discussion we made tithing envelopes they can keep at home. When the girls earn money they can put the tithing in this envelope first thing and take it to church. This way they don't have to figure it out Sunday morning and their tithing is paid as soon as they get it. PDF of the tithing envelope is at the bottom as well. Just cut along the edges, fold in half and put glue on the white flaps to make a mini envelope.
The envelopes are fast to cut and make so once they finished them we played a 'Life:Tithing Edition' game. The girls really enjoyed this game. I printed off a blank game board and wrote "Sunday" in every 7 spaces to represent weeks. The rest of the spaces in the week had things the girls could do to earn money, spend money, or they were blank. I used the games piece from Life and the spinner. Each girl had a scratch piece of paper/their budget to keep track of everything and each girl started with $10 each. On their turn, each girl would spin, move that many spaces. If they landed on a space that they earned money they would add it to their balance. If they landed on a space that they spent money, then they would subtract that amount from their balance. If the space was blank, they did nothing. When they passed OR landed on a Sunday they would pay tithing on anything they EARNED since the last Sunday and would subtract their Tithing from their balance. The finish was a Mission. The girls really enjoyed the game and they had a lot of practice figuring out 10% of what they earned. A pdf of our board game is at the bottom or a link to a blank one to make your own version.
