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When the evening meal was complete, I couldn’t help but notice that every plate was cleaned “as slick as a whistle” because this was no ordinary evening. Each of our four children had a nickel burning a hole in his or her pocket. Once the meal was over, any items used for the meal were put away, and out we went. To be polite, all four of them were “slowly” walking ahead of my husband and me, but truth be told, they were inwardly running! After all, they were on a mission.

They needed no prompting. Once we got into the Snack Shop on the campus where my husband was a college professor at the time, they knew right where to go—straight to the candy counter! You see, this was the evening each week when we gave them their allowance, which meant a nickel for each year of age for that child. We began giving them an allowance of three nickels when they were age three, and that allowance had three important areas to cover.

Three little nickels

The first nickel belonged to the Lord; the second was for a treat of their choice; and the third was to be put aside to save for something they may need or want later. (In case you are already sympathizing with those “poor children,” forget it! We are talking about the 1950s and, by the time the fourth one came along, the early 1960s. Back then, a nickel still bought something that was a trophy in the eyes of those four little children!)

The candy they chose had to last until the next Tuesday when they would once again get their week’s allowance, and we would return to the Snack Shop. What fun we had as parents, watching them look over everything in the showcase, think about each item, and then tell the young lady tending the candy counter their choices. Each one paid his or her own bill and then stood patiently while the next ones completed their choices and made their payments. Sometimes that was an extended process because there was a lot of candy! After all, this did have to last a week.

The bag of the youngest child was soon empty—fathoming the length of a week just hadn’t yet found its way into her young mind. As the children got older, it was fascinating to see that on the following Monday, there might still be some candy left. In fact, as they got even older, they sometimes chose to save the nickel instead of buying any candy.

Teaching values in your children is carried out in many ways as they are taught to be responsible adults. We found that we could teach several things through the allowance system.

What we taught our children through the allowance system

The first portion always belongs to the Lord—even later in life when the numbers added up before the decimal point instead of after it. We obviously made sure that their necessities were cared for, so this was an opportunity to guide them through making worthwhile choices. Therefore, the second portion was for their personal use. The last portion taught them that they must take care of their things because replacing something meant that they had to have planned ahead to have money in the piggy bank for something they wanted or needed. They soon realized that every spontaneous wish could not be fulfilled. (But often we would tell them that if they saved a given amount, we would add to it to help them purchase the item!)

What the Bible teaches about money

Isaiah 38:19 states, “The father to the children shall make known thy truth.” That truth must include teaching our children that when it comes to money, we are the masters, and our money is the servant—not the reverse (which seems to reign in many lives today, just as it always has).

I Timothy 6:6 teaches us this: “But godliness with contentment is great gain.”

Luke 12:15 adds, “And he said unto them, ‘Take heed and beware of covetousness: for a man’s life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.’”

Wise parents can do much teaching by giving an allowance to their children and helping to prepare their children for life.

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