What is Tithing?

Friend October 2024 “What is Tithing”

Media Library “Come Create with Me | Games | Tithing”

Come Follow Me Kid has a tithing game, visual aids, a printable to make a tithing box, and lesson ideas.

Latter Day Kids lesson ideas

Abraham Paid Tithing

Genesis CHAPTER 14

Lot is captured in the battles of the kings—He is rescued by Abram—Melchizedek administers bread and wine and blesses Abram—Abram pays tithes—He declines to accept the spoils of conquest.

What do we learn about Melchizedek from Joseph Smith Translation, Genesis 14:25–40? (in the Bible appendix; see also Alma 13:13–19). How can we “[establish] righteousness” as Melchizedek did? (verse 36). What else about Melchizedek’s ministry inspires us? Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families: Old Testament 2022 “Genesis 12–17; Abraham 1–2”

Friend April 1994 “Melchizedek” Story of Melchizedek

Pay Tithing with a Grateful Heart

Tithing Lesson #1 “Pay Tithing with a Grateful Heart – Game and Activity”

What is Tithing Used For?

Paying tithing helps build God’s kingdom (3 Nephi 24:8–12).

Color the pictures, then cut out the circle and the spinner. Attach the spinner to the center of the circle, and rotate it to see some ways your tithing helps the Lord’s work.Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Book of Mormon 2020 “3 Nephi 20–26: “Ye Are the Children of the Covenant”

Tithing Lesson #6 “What is Tithing Used for” Lesson

Ensign October 2018 “Where Tithing Money Goes”

For the Strength of Youth December 2023 “Where Do Tithing and Fast Offerings Go?”

Friend August 2011 “How is Tithing Used” Look at the drawings of some of the things tithing pays for. Circle the drawing in each column that is different from the others.

Tithing Helps the Church do God’s Work.

Doctrine and Covenants 119–20

Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Doctrine and Covenants 2021 “Doctrine and Covenants 115-120”

Many of the children you teach are probably too young to earn money and pay tithing, but it’s good for them to understand how tithing contributes to the great work the Church does throughout the world.

• Explain how we pay tithing and what it is used for (see “Chapter 44: Tithing,” Doctrine and Covenants Stories, 165–66, or the corresponding video on ChurchofJesusChrist.org). Draw 10 coins on the board, and ask the children to help you count them. Determine how many to give the Lord for tithing.

• Sing together a song about tithing, such as “I Want to Give the Lord My Tenth” (Children’s Songbook, 150), and tell the children why you choose to pay tithing. If possible, share a personal story.

Ponder how you will help the children understand how tithing—even the small amounts they might pay—contributes to the building up of the Lord’s kingdom (see True to the Faith, 180–82).

• Invite the children to imagine that a friend sees a Church building and asks, “How does your Church pay for that building?” How would we explain tithing to this friend? Suggest that the children refer to Doctrine and Covenants 119:4; 120:1 as they consider this question.
• Help the children think of things the Church is able to do because of tithing. How do these things bless our lives? Share your feelings about the law of tithing and how it has blessed you.

Friend October 2021 “Tithing Puzzler” Here are some of the ways the Church uses tithing and donations:

• building temples
• building churches
• feeding the hungry
• printing scriptures
• missionary work
• education

Fill in the empty squares so that all six pictures are in each row (across), each column (up and down), and each purple rectangle.

How Much Do I Pay for Tithing?

Parable of the Skittles  Cute idea about giving children a bag of skittles and all they have to do is give 10 back, then they compare the amounts and see the abundance they still have compared to what they gave.

Friend December 2022 “Tithing Time” Tithing is 10 percent of the money we receive. Match each amount of money with the tithing you would pay.

Tithing Lesson #4 “Tithing is One Tenth of Our Increase” Lesson

Blessings of Paying Tithing

Friend September 2017 “Blessings of Tithing” Three blessings of paying tithing.

Liahona February 2022 “Teaching about God’s Promises” Tithing Brings Gratitude

In Genesis 14:20, we read that Abraham paid tithing. Elder David A. Bednar has taught that spiritual blessings “are poured out through the windows of heaven and into our lives as we honor the law of tithing” (“The Windows of Heaven,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2013, 18).

1. As a family, discuss the blessings you’ve seen from obeying the law of tithing.
2. Have one person write the blessings down.
3. Together, go through the list again and discuss some of the ways these blessings make your life better.

Elder Bednar also taught that “a subtle but significant blessing we receive [as we honor the law of tithing] is the spiritual gift of gratitude that enables our appreciation for what we have. … A grateful person is rich in contentment” (“The Windows of Heaven,” 18). How has your family seen gratitude as a blessing of paying tithing?

Heavenly Father will bless me when I pay tithing.

Malachi 3:10–12

Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Old Testament 2022 “Malachi” Even if the young children you teach don’t earn money yet, they can still learn about the blessings of paying tithing.

• Help the children count 10 small objects, such as the coins on this week’s activity page. Invite them to separate one of the objects from the rest, and explain that this is like the tithing we give to the Lord. We give Him one-tenth of what we receive. Share your testimony of how the Lord blesses us as we pay tithing. Sing with the children a song about tithing, such as “I Want to Give the Lord My Tenth” (Children’s Songbook, 150).

Friend December 2022 “Tithing Pie” A bishop explains tithing by drawing a pretend peach pie and then asking if any of the children would want some. He then says he will give the whole pie to them, but he just wants one piece back.

Friend October 2020 “Funstuff: Tithing Time”Count the coins. For every 10 that you count, color one.

• Draw a window on the board, and read Malachi 3:10 to the children. Invite them to point to the window when you read the phrase “windows of heaven.” Explain that this means that Heavenly Father gives us great blessings when we pay tithing. As the children color this week’s activity page, talk about some of the reasons why we pay tithing.

• “I Choose the Right by Living Gospel Principles” (June 2012 Liahona and Friend)
  An activity that encourages families to discuss the blessings of tithing. Includes a short story and illustration of a tithing slip.

• Share a story from the Friend magazine or from your own life about paying tithing. Invite the children to listen for blessings that can come from paying tithing.

Friend April 2018 “An Amazing Lesson”When Elder Cordon was a child he learned that the Lord blesses us when we pay our tithing. His parents had to choose between paying for food or paying tithing. They paid their tithing and later his father received work and a prepayment for that work.

Friend April 2016 “Pesos for Heavenly Father” Ana’s grandmother has faith to pay tithing even though there is no food, and she is blessed.

Family members might enjoy drawing pictures to represent these blessings and hanging the pictures on a window.

“Lesson 44: Malachi Teaches about Tithes and Offerings,” Primary 6: Old Testament

Heavenly Father will bless me when I pay tithing.

Malachi 3:8–12

Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Old Testament 2022 ” Paying tithing is more about having faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ than it is about finances. What do the children you teach understand about tithing? How will you help them have the faith to pay tithing?

• Write on the board questions about tithing like the following: What is tithing? How do I pay tithing? What is tithing for? What are the blessings of paying tithing? Invite the children to search Malachi 3:8–12 and “Tithes, Tithing” in Guide to the Scriptures (scriptures.ChurchofJesusChrist.org) and write down answers they find. Invite them to share their answers with each other. What kind of people do we become by paying tithing?

• Show the video “Jesus Teaches about the Widow’s Mite” (ChurchofJesusChrist.org), or read together Mark 12:41–44. What does this story teach us about how the Lord feels about our offerings?

• Draw a window on the board, and invite the children to write inside the window blessings that someone might receive for paying tithing (for ideas, see Malachi 3:10–12). Invite the children to share a personal example of how they or their families have been blessed by faithfully paying tithing. Or you could share an example from your own life of how paying tithing has increased your faith in Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.

Latter Day Kids “The Law of Tithing” Lesson ideas

The Widow’s Mite

Mark 12: 41-44

New Testament Stories “The Widow’s Mite”

Tithing Lesson #2 “The Widow’s Mite” Scripture Story

New Testament Coloring Book “The Widow’s Mite”

Come, Follow Me—For Individuals and Families: New Testament 2023

Coming.Mark 12:38–44; Luke 21:1–4.

What do these verses teach about how the Savior views our offerings? Show your family how to pay tithing and fast offerings to the Lord. How do these offerings help build God’s kingdom? What are some other ways we can offer “all that [we have]” to the Lord? (Mark 12:44).

Lesson 24: The Widow’s Mite,” Primary 7: New Testament  Lesson, stories, and activity ideas. Tithing theme.

I Can Pay My Tithing

Tithing Settlement

Friend April 2023 “Tithing or Ice Cream?” Katy used her tithing money to buy ice cream several times. She didn’t know how much she owed and didn’t have the money to replace it. At tithing settlement she had to report that she wasn’t a full tithe payer. Her bishop explained that she could repent and try to do better. Katy prayed and asked for forgiveness and to try again.

Law of Consecration

Doctrine and Covenants 42:30–42

Primary 5: Doctrine and Covenants and Church History “Lesson 18: The Lord Reveals the Law of Consecration” 

Explain that in the early days of the Church, the Saints were commanded to share with each other everything they had been blessed with. This commandment was called the law of consecration. Write the word consecration on the chalkboard. Explain that to consecrate means to dedicate or give for a sacred purpose.

When the Saints began gathering in Ohio in early 1831, the Prophet Joseph Smith was concerned because many of them were very poor and did not have the things they needed, such as food, clothing, and shelter. The Prophet began looking for a way to help these poor members of the Church.

When the Prophet first arrived in Kirtland, Ohio, he found that some members of the Church were living together on a farm owned by Isaac Morley. They had read in the Bible that the members of the Church in Jesus’ time shared everything they had (see Acts 2:44–45; 4:32), and they were trying to live the same way. This plan did not always work very well, however. For example, one man thought that if all things were shared, it was all right for him to sell a watch that actually belonged to another man. This made the owner of the watch very angry. The Prophet saw that although it was good that these people were trying to share with each other, their plan was not approved by the Lord. Joseph prayed to find out what the Lord wanted the members of the Church to do.

A few days after calling Edward Partridge to be the bishop of the Church, the Lord revealed to Joseph Smith the law of consecration (see D&C 42:30–39, 42). This law commanded the Saints to share with each other in an organized way. The Lord gave the following instructions:

1. The Saints were to consecrate, or give, all of their property and possessions to the Church. The bishop would be responsible for these consecrations.
2. The bishop would decide with the head of each family what property and possessions the family needed to work and live. The bishop would give these needed items to the family.
3. Families would work hard to provide for themselves using the things they were given. After they filled their own needs and wants, anything extra they had earned or created was to be given to the bishop to help the poor and strengthen the Church.

Play the game “I Don’t Need It—Would You Like It?” to help the children understand the concept of sharing their excess with others. Give each child a piece of paper and a pencil, and have the children list food, clothing, shelter, money, and books and games on their papers. The object of the game is for each child to obtain all the items on the list by either picking the items from the container or receiving them from another child.

Pass the container of papers to a child and have him or her choose a paper, read it, and put it back into the container. Have the child circle the named item on his or her paper. Then pass the container to the next child. When all the children have had a turn, begin again with the first child and have him or her pick another paper.

If on a subsequent turn a child picks an item that is already circled on his or her list, he or she turns to the child on the left and says, “I don’t need it—would you like it?” Then the child sitting to the left can circle that item on his or her list. If that child already has the item circled, he or she asks the question of the next child to the left. Continue until someone is able to circle the item.

Play the game until each child has circled every item on the list.

This law helped the Church grow and helped the members take care of each other while they lived in Ohio and Missouri. People donated their time and talents as well as their money and possessions so that missionary work could be done, a temple could be built, and newly arriving Saints would have a place to live and food to eat. Even though most of the people were poor, when they shared what they did have, everyone had enough.

Early members of the Church lived the law of consecration for only a short while. Someday the Church will practice the law of consecration again, but today we as members are asked to live only part of the law. We are not asked to give all we have to the Church, but we are asked to pay tithing and fast offerings. (You may need to explain that when we fast, we are asked to contribute to the Church at least the amount of money we would have spent on two meals that day. This is a fast offering.) Tithing and fast offerings are used to take care of the poor, build temples and meetinghouses, and provide other things such as lesson manuals. We are also asked to share our time and talents by doing things such as giving talks or teaching Primary classes. As we share, we are helping to build the kingdom of God on the earth.

Come, Follow Me—For Primary: Doctrine and Covenants 2021 “Doctrine and Covenants 51–57”

• Hide the words “faithful,” “just,” and “wise” around the room. Invite the children to find the words in the room and then find them in Doctrine and Covenants 51:19. Read the verse together, and talk about what it means to be a steward. “A person who takes care of the affairs or property of another. That which a steward cares for is called a stewardship. All things on earth belong to the Lord; we are His stewards. We are accountable to the Lord.” (“Steward, Stewardship” in the Guide to the Scriptures).

Other Donations

Humanitarian Aid

Friend August 2019 “Elder Rasband Visits Cape Verde” Elder Rasband visited a school were many of the children don’t have parents to take care of them. The Church gives money to help the children’s school that Elder Rasband visited. (Activity: Four children donated money to the Church’s Humanitarian Aid Fund. Follow the shapes along the path to see what each child’s money was used for. (Also includes instructions on how to donate money to humanitarian aid.)

Additional Resources

Resources for Children: Tithing

• “Bulletin Board: Faith in God Challenge” (February 2011 Friend)
  Activity about making a budget and paying tithing.
• Coloring Page: “I Can Pay Tithing” (August 2016 Liahona and Friend)
• Coloring Picture: “I choose the right by living gospel principles.” (June 2012 Liahona and Friend)
• Family Home Evening Idea: Tithing
  Read “The Windows of Heaven” (September 2005 Liahona and Friend). Discuss what you would do if you were put in the place of Marcella’s family. How has the Lord kept His promises when you have obeyed? Read “Where Does Tithing Go?” (September 2005 Liahona and Friend) to find out more about what happens to tithing after you pay it.
• “How Tithing Is Used” (August 2011 Liahona and Friend)
  A simple activity about the uses of tithing.
• “I Choose the Right by Living Gospel Principles” (June 2012 Liahona and Friend)
  An activity that encourages families to discuss the blessings of tithing. Includes a short story and illustration of a tithing slip.
• “The Law of Tithing” (February 2009 Friend)
  A scripture activity about paying tithing.
• “Tithing Around the World” (April 2018 Friend)
  Figure out how much tithing you would pay for these amounts of currency from around the world. 
• “Tithing Blessings” (June 2017 Friend)
  Pictures to color of things that tithing money helps with.
• “Tithing, the Best Choice” (February 2010 Liahona and Friend)

  A story for young children about a boy who paid tithing when he sold his prize calf. Includes a maze, hidden picture, and instructions to make a tithing jar.

Media

• Bible Videos: “Jesus Teaches about the Widow’s Mites”
• For the Strength of Youth: Tithes and Offerings
• Image: Young man paying tithing
• Image: Young man pays tithing to his bishop
• Music: “I Want to Give the Lord My Tenth” (Children’s Songbook, 150)
• Music: “I’m Glad to Pay a Tithing” (Children’s Songbook, 150)
• Sheet Music: “I Want to Give the Lord My Tenth” (October 2007 Liahona and Friend)
• Video: Doctrine and Covenants Stories, “Chapter 44: Tithing (July 1838)”
• Video: For Little Friends, “Tithing”
• Video: Matt & Mandy, “Paying Tithing” (September 2010)
  Matt learns about tithing from his grandfather.
• Video: New Testament Stories, “Chapter 45: The Widow’s Mite”