I have been in ministry since I was very young. I would sit in church during the yearly tithing sermon and be told that the Lord commands me to give 10 percent. I convinced myself that the hours I volunteered for the church had to count for more than 10 percent. If time was money, then my time was my offering. This illusion carried with me even into my paid career in the church. I unashamedly carried on thinking that God didn't need 10% of my meager ministry paycheck.
2nd Corinthians 9:7 - “Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.”
Steve Poe, the lead pastor at my church here in Indiana, has a gift for delivering a tithing sermon. In his most recent teaching, an example he used really stuck with me. The congregation was asked to take out their wallet and pass it to the person sitting next to them. Steve then instructed everyone to give like they had always wanted to give. His point was that it's much easier to be generous with someone else's money. Pastor Steve reminded us that all of our financial resources are not our own, but gifts from God. The Creator of all things doesn't need our money, He wants us to put our trust in Him. Sadly, Steve did then ask everyone to pass the wallets back to their owners (and we didn't actually take an offering). He then challenged the congregation to tithe as much as they could for the next 90 days. At the end of those three months, if you didn't feel that God had followed through on His promise of blessing, the church would refund your tithes - no questions asked.
In Luke 6:38 (NIV) Jesus says, “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” This sermon so deeply impacted me. I quickly realized that just because I work in the church does not mean I get a free pass on tithing. My offering isn't payment to God, it is not a tax or bill I owe. It is my way of saying, “Thank you God for your many blessings, I continue to trust that you will care for my needs.”
Are you holding on to your finances too tightly? It's time to let go and let God bless you beyond your imagination.
Lord, I am asking you to help me become a cheerful giver. With all the expenses and bills clamoring for my paycheck each month, I fall short of trusting you to meet my needs. I commit to you today and take you at your word that if I give to your church, you will bless me. Help me with my insecurities and worries; I know that you care for even the birds, so I know you will care for me. Thank you, Lord. Amen.
