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by Andy Gustafson, Assoc. Conference Minister for Stewardship & Financial Development
December 2005/January 2006
These days I am almost afraid to turn on the television news or to look at the front page of the newspaper for fear of what new disasters have befallen humankind. And this is not to mention the private, personal disasters from illness, accident and violence that befall us and those we love.
The magnitude of it all is humbling. It becomes clear to me, that we are unequal to the task of saving the world. We just aren’t smart enough or good enough. So what do we do? Do we throw up our hands in despair and give up? No. We simply witness to our faith in God and Jesus Christ through how we respond to life, day in and day out.
A first step for us in our witness is to tithe. We recognize this is only a start. Jesus looks for total commitment, not a 10% commitment. Jesus praised the poor widow who gave all she had over the rich who tithed. The early Christians, acknowledging everything belongs to God, held all in common. However tithing would be a huge step forward in faith and faithfulness for most of us, and it provides a benchmark and standard to measure ourselves against.
Speaking through the prophet Malachi, God says to us “Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so there may be food in my house, and thus put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts; see if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you an overflowing blessing” (Malachi 3:10 NRSV).
Imagine if tithing were widely practiced in our congregations. Imagine if instead of struggling to give 10% of the church budget to mission, only 10% of receipts were needed to fund the church operating budget and 90% was spent on mission! What overflowing blessings there would be for God’s creation! To tithe may seem like an impossibility for many, but for God, all things are possible (Matt. 19:26).
In my next article we will look at practical help churches can offer to assist people in moving towards the tithe and beyond.