Be sure to set aside a tenth of all that your fields produce each year.  Deuteronomy 14:22 NIV

Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine.  Proverbs 3:9-10 ESV

Tithing is not something you hear preached very often in church.  It seems that if a pastor talks about tithing people claim that the pastor just wants to line his own pockets.  Let me tell you something my friend, tithing doesn’t line the pastor’s pocket it lines yours.  No I am not saying that if you tithe it’s some kind of get rich quick scheme.  I am, however, saying that if you tithe. God will provide for you.  If you tithe you will always have all that you need.

Now as an example, I am going to tell you my personal experience.  I was newly divorced and living alone.  I got paid, paid my bills and had just enough money left to tithe.  I had ten percent of my income left after I paid my bills.  I could use that money for food and gas for my car to go to and from work or I could tithe.  I had been raised to tithe and I didn’t want to not tithe.  That Sunday morning as the offering plate was being passed around , I was torn.  But as the plate got to me I put the check I had written in the plate and trusted that God would take care of my needs.  Not only did I have a check in my mailbox the next day for a little more than my tithe had been, but I got a call about a part-time job to help supplement my income.  Since that time I have written my tithe check first and paid my bills after getting that tithe check written.  God has never let me down.  Now there have been times when I wasn’t sure where the money was going to come from.  There were times when household appliances were breaking down and I wondered how we were going to pay for repairs or replacements, but God has always come through.

I am amazed when people tell me they can’t afford to tithe.  My friend, you can’t afford not to.  Recently a friend came to me asking for prayer.  She said that several large and very expensive appliances had gone out in her house all at once.  I asked her if she had been tithing faithfully.  She assured me she had.  I told her I would pray. If she had been tithing faithfully, then I knew she had nothing to worry about.   I got a call the next day.  Repairmen had come by and each appliance had only a small inexpensive repair needed.  I would not have wanted to see what would have happened had my friend not been tithing regularly.

You see we worship the God that has complete control of the universe.  He can handle our money problems. We have to show wisdom in how we handle our money.  I am not saying that if you live way beyond your means but still tithe that God will support that.  I am saying that if you are wise in managing your money and you tithe faithfully that God will provide for all your needs and maybe then some.  You still have a responsibility to manage your money well.

Now maybe you are reading this and saying “there is just no way that I can afford to tithe, I have too many bills”.  Well allow me to issue a challenge to you.  With your next paycheck before you sit down to write out checks or electronically pay your bills set aside ten percent for your tithe.  This is the money that you give to your church.  If you do not attend church, then I strongly encourage you to find a good bible teaching church.  But if you can’t attend church for whatever reason then I strongly encourage you to find a good online or television ministry.  Be discerning with any ministry.  Be sure that what they are saying lines up with the Word of God.

The scripture from Proverbs says to honor the Lord with your wealth and the firstfruits of your produce.  Why give to God first.  Well quite simply, had I paid my tithe first it would have shown that I was trusting God for the rest.  You see in my situation I paid every bill I had and then sat there wondering how I was going to pay my tithe.  Had I written my tithe check first I may have been wondering how I was going to pay my light bill but as I told you earlier, the day after I paid my tithe I received a check for a little more than my tithe had been.  This is why I learned on that day to give to God first, don’t give to God the leftovers.

Last week we talked about trusting and obeying.  God clearly states in the Bible that he wants us to give back one tenth of what He gives us.  That’s right, if you are receiving a pay check thank God for that.  If you have a job, thank God for that.  If you are like me and draw a retirement income, thank God for that.  He gives to us and only asks one tenth of it returned to Him.  He wants the first tenth returned to Him.  God gives and God can also take away.  Tithing shows that we trust God to take care of us.  It shows that we trust that if we are faithful to pay our tithe then we know that God is faithful to provide for us. I am not a good money manager by any means.  I would just as soon give away what I have to someone in need as keep it, but I tithe because I know that God will help me manage what I have.  If I trust and obey, he takes care of the rest.

Have a good day!