I made a mistake.
I made a very recent (this week-ish) mistake in tithing, and this honest mistake led me to write a follow-up post about it.
Another thing that led me to write this post about tithing were the questions I received from last week's post, and, hey, that's a great thing!
What was that mistake I made? I want to talk about it later in my post, so if you're patient enough, please read through this entire thing first hehe. I promise I'll make it worth your time.
You see, tithing is not like ordinary saving where you take a portion of your income and take it somewhere else. It is something that you need to mull over and pray over. I am, in no means, an expert on tithing but I want to help you (and my sole reason is to bring you to God). To do that, let me share with you the questions I received about tithing.
1. Can I tithe to charity organizations and not the church?
Please, please, please, if you have deeper Biblical knowledge about this, correct me if I'm wrong! What I know is that in the Bible, tithes are meant to be the means of livelihood of the church-workers before anything else. What I understood is that even though tithes are also given to charity, they are, before anything else, meant to feed the church-workers and their families. This means the priority is not charity though it is included.
However, I understand that many are still not rooted to a church. Frankly, I am not yet rooted to a particular church (but let me clarify that this is because of circumstance and NOT by choice). My tithes don't have a regular recipient but I do give to a certain charitable institution sometimes. Now, let me clarify that this institution is run by a Christian church, which means my tithes do benefit the church-workers, too.
In a nutshell: I think that yes, you may give to charity, but to fulfill the Biblical purpose of tithing, it should be one run by a Christian church.
What if God is prompting you to give to an individual? Let's talk about that later.
2. Can tithes be less than 10% of my income?
I am not the best person to answer this because I can be legalistic. However, I want to try. If we base it on the Old Testament, I guess the answer is no. This is because in many verses about tithes, God specifies 10% and not just any portion of the income.
Leviticus 27:32But God is a gracious God and, while He is also just, I feel He would favor Grace over legalism. If you're not used to tithing, I guess you can begin with a smaller portion of your income. Keep in mind that the keyword is "begin." You should eventually be used to tithing until you can give the Biblical 10% - and even more! Don't make stealing from God a habit!
And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the Lord.
Also, if you commit to give a certain amount to God, remember that this is a regular commitment and not a one-time thing. Again, don't make it a habit to steal from God because the only one who will reap the disadvantages is - wait for it - you!
In a nutshell: 10% is the Biblical standard, but I guess (I'm not sure!) you can begin with a smaller amount. However, you should aim to give what the Lord requires and give whatever you commit to give regularly.
3. What if there's nothing left from my salary to tithe?
I have two answers to this question. First, "nothing" is just a mindset and second, you are not even supposed to tithe what is "left" from your income in the first place!
First, I believe that we can never be too poor to give. There are a couple of examples from the Bible. One is the poor widow from Zarepath who gave all of her remaining flour to Elijah, a servant of the Lord (1 Kings 17) and the other was another poor widow who offered the only money she had to church (Mark 12:41-43).
Mark 12:43Both were depicted as very poor, and if you're reading this, I doubt you're as poor. However, they gave all they had and you know what? In the end, they were blessed because God loves cheerful givers and God always returns and even surpasses what we freely give. If anything, this should motivate you to give!
And he called unto him his disciples, and saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That this poor widow hath cast more in, than all they which have cast into the treasury:
Second, giving what is left of your salary as tithes? It doesn't work that way, sorry! We should treat tithes as something we really, really need to give, much like bills that we pay on time. In fact, tithes should be on the top of our budget list. To be honest, I feel more abundant when I tithe before anything else!
In a nutshell: You're never too poor to give and you should tithe before you spend on anything else!
4. When should I tithe?
The Bible says that tithes should not be the "remainder" of our income or the "reject" of our crops. Instead, it should be paid first and with the best we have. It means not tithing with the money we don't want; it means tithing from the best of what we earn.
In a nutshell: Tithe before anything else!
5. Can I tithe just whenever I'm in the mood to do so?
No. A commitment is a commitment. If you subscribe to an iPhone plan, do you pay it just whenever you feel like doing so? No, because that results to a cut-off plan.
Similarly, when we choose to tithe, we choose to commit to tithe regularly. Similarly, if you stop doing so, while the blessings won't stop (because God is awesome like that), you are cutting yourself off from the abundance that you should have received.
In a nutshell: When you commit to tithe, you are making a vow to the Lord to tithe regularly.
(I told you I can be legalistic.)
6. I already know where to give and how much to give. What now? Should I tithe immediately?
That's great, and while tithing should be done first, I suggest you pause for a moment. You've decided where to give and how much to give? What about God's decision? Isn't His the most important one? What does God want you to do?
This is the mistake I've very recently make. It was already the second week of March, yet the allotted amount for my tithe is still with me. I couldn't wait to give it and, well, part with it. I tried to wait for God's prompting to tell me where to tithe, but my impatience got the better of me. Thus, I gave it to my regular organization.
Only a few days later, I received an email from my team-leader saying that one of our respected colleagues was badly in need of money. I won't go into details here, but let's just say that a lot of painful circumstances happened to her. She didn't want to ask for money from anyone, but the situation forced her to swallow her pride. It was a very heart-wrenching email to read because at her age, she should be enjoying life and not suffering.
I wanted to give but remembered I no longer had extra money. That was when the voice of God rang out loud and clear (only in my head, though):
Child, this is why I wanted you to delay giving your tithe. This is why I planted reluctance in your heart. This is why I tried to hold you back from giving to ____. I wanted you to help this other daughter of mine.To say I regretted not listening to God's prompt would be an understatement. It's not a huge amount but I'm sure it would have made some difference.
This is my mistake and I want you to learn a lesson from it. Tithing is a divine action, an exercise of faith, and you should not do it as if you're making a deposit in the bank. Instead, you should make it intentional by praying carefully and waiting for God's prompting. He knows best and He knows where His money should go.
7. How should I pray before I tithe?
One should not memorize prayers and make them generic. Prayers should always come from one's heart. However, if tithing is new to you and you don't have any idea of what to do (just like me at the beginning!), let me share a "formula" I usually follow:
A. Praise God and thank Him for His blessings. (Always begin praying by giving glory to the Lord!)Again, this is what I usually do, so feel free to pray to your heart's content!
B. Confess sins and ask for forgiveness. (Come in prayer with a clean heart.)
C. Present committed offering and tithes, and mention that they are given with an open, happy, and grateful heart.
D. Ask God to accept offering.
E. Present prayer requests and ask God to grant them. (Healing of sickness? Promotion? Blessing of a relationship?)
F. Praise God again! One should never get enough of doing so!
I guess that's it. To the people who asked these questions, I hope I was able to answer you. I'm praying that God personally answers you, too (ask Him personally - He's very approachable).
If you have more questions, don't hesitate to ask because I'll try my bestest to answer them!
Malachi 3:10
Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
PS: Don't forget to join my giveaway here.
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