My tithing experience
I just finished reading a great post by James about how tithing can increase your income. And it got me thinking about my own personal story of when I started tithing and the things that followed.
Starting to tithe
I don’t exactly remember when I started to tithe - probably about 7-8 years ago. But I do remember getting a new job that was nearly double my previous income and thinking, “Wow, so this is the result of tithing.” It was a helpful lesson to me since I was, like most, skeptical about the whole thing. I had heard about all the scandals with TV preachers and kind of grew up with a cynical attitude towards giving to the church. Somewhere along the line I decided to “take a chance” and try it out.
We have had a couple times over the years where God has wanted us to stretch our giving. The times were faith-tests that have proved extremely valuable to us. I remember a time when we realized, due to an error on my part, that we hadn’t been tithing the correct amount. Once I finally figured it out how much it was supposed to be, I quickly realized that if we did that our expenses would be greater than our income. That’s never a good thing 
I remember praying with my wife and telling God that if He really can do what His word says, then it will all work out. We went ahead and started tithing the correct amount, not knowing where the rest of the money was going to come from to pay the bills. I am not exaggerating at all when I say that the NEXT DAY, my boss called me into her office to tell me about a completely unexpected raise that she was giving me. The raises normally only came once a year and this was way off the schedule. Guess how much it was for. Yep, it was almost the exact amount of the difference. I must say that experience was a strong encouragement for my faith.
Does anyone have any good testimonies from their experiences tithing?
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Comments on My tithing experience »
I have a similar story Bob. We hadn’t tithed regularly until earlier this year. When we started tithing, that same month I started receiving an income from my blog. Guess how much it was for? Almost exactly that I had tithed that month, plus a little extra!
We just need to remember that God doesn’t need our money (its already his), its more about us being faithful stewards of what he has given us, so that in return he can bless us (not always monetary).
Great post. I have really found that when we are faithful with our tithing, God really blesses us and continues to make things happen for us financially and spiritually.
Plus, tithing helps me stay grounded when it comes to money. I am fairly driven when it comes to success and building a future for my family. Tithing helps me remember each month that everything we have is from God. God owns all my money and I am just a steward of it.
Thanks for the great post.
Kevin
Excellent post. I grew up in a family that tithed regularly and my parents taught me that it was a priority. However, when I left the nest I stopped tithing. I guess I thought I could live vicariously through my parents blessings. Wrong! Many years passed I was began to tithe occasionally. I could see the difference. It wasn’t until a few years ago that I started tithing faithfully. My husband and I make it a priority and God meets all of our needs “according to His riches in glory!”
@Everyone
it is interesting to me that so many people seem to go through a phase where they test the waters with tithing to see if it really does work. We all seem to learn our lesson that God meant what He said and that it really is true…
I think tithing works much like getting out of debt. God blesses those that show that they can handle His blessings His way.
Great post Bob!
When my wife and I started tithing two years ago, we were barely making ends meet. Over the course of the next year and a half, every time it looked like our expenses were too high to meet, I would get a surprise bonus that met or exceeded the shortfall.
It also helped both of us adjust our priorities and get over our obsession with ’stuff’.
God is true to his word.
I have to agree that tithing is a must. My husband and I always tithe our money but this past year I have been convicted to “tithe” my time and my energy as well. God wants our firstfruits, this means that even if you do not have enough to go around he wants you to give it to him FIRST, and then as promised he will provide for our needs. We live in a “hustle and bustle world” where it seems that we never have enough time to finish everthing we want to do. What do you think would happen if we started tithing our time? What if we gave him the firstfruits of our day. Instead of getting that extra hour of sleep in the morning,what if we got up early and spent time in sudy and prayer with God? I think tithing could be applied to many areas in life.
I want to speak out against tithing. Tithing is not a Biblical command. We are called to give everything to God. Sure he’ll allow us to keep what we need, but too often the idea of a tithe limits believers and their giving. 2 Corinthians 9:7 says that “God love a cheerful giver”, and that “each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity;”. There is no amount that is a necessity for giving.
Personally, I like the wisdom that John Wesley shared on the topic of money. We should… 1. Make all we can 2. Save all we can (being frugal) and 3. Give all we can.
@Success Professor
First let me say that have always loved that John Wesley quote as well… I appreciate your perspective on this, I know there is quite a debate in the Christian community about tithing.
I personally do believe it is a biblical command, there are tons of verses in the old testament about tithing, so there isn’t much debate about that. But some people say it doesn’t pertain to the new covenant, since it is only referred to a couple times in the new testament.
I kind of try not to get hung up over the whole thing, it isn’t a deal-breaker. You can still go to Heaven without doing it, but from my personal experience, I have been a lot more blessed as a result of doing it…
Here’s an interesting article on the subject: “Can a Christian Rob God?”
http://www.livebyword.org/article.php?article_id=54
I can’t tell you the amount of times that the Lord has blessed us through tithing. Gifts, opportunities, humility, so many different ways.
No, tithing isn’t expressley discussed in the NT ( although we could look at Jesus’ discussion about the poor woman’s mite ), there are a number of things that aren’t and it doesn’t invalidate them.
Personally, I hold that the O.T. is the study of God’s character. He wouldn’t have talked so much about it and then just changed His mind.