Tithing on a Budget

Have you ever had a moment in life where your cup was just overflowed with blessings? That’s God’s promise to us. The word says, “Bring you all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house, and test me now in this, says 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.” Malachi 3:10.  In order to fulfill what God has already promised us, there are some things that we are required to do so that we can receive it. Tithing  is one of those action oriented components of being a believer in the body of Christ. 10% is what God asks us to give. It’s not about the dollar amount but it’s about your willingness to honor God, build the church, and believe God’s promises to us.  But this post is not about why we should tithe, it’s about incorporating tithing in to your budget. While we should not think about tithing as a bill per se, but it should definitely be included in our budget.

No matter how you give your tithes (weekly, bi-weekly, monthly), tithing should be the first thing on your budget..the first thing that you give back from what you have been given.  Why?

Putting your tithes first on the budget prevents:

• Not having enough money to give your tithe if you put it on the back end of your budget
• Developing a spirit ofmaterialism and wanting worldy gain.

and it promotes:

• Putting God first in all that we do.
• Instilling a spirit of cheerful giving.
• A spirit of worship. Tithing is truly an element of worshipping God.

Some people say “I can’t afford to tithe.” I say, “You can’t afford NOT to tithe.” This does not negate or dismiss the state of poverty that some are in (regardless of income status) and my statement is not the answer for everyone. I’m not sure if I do have an answer for those who are battling with keeping the lights on and giving their tithes, and I’m certainly not the tithing police!  The only thing that I can say is give cheerfully what you can, and I do believe that God will honor that. Also, believe that God will be the supplier of all that you need. He promises that in Philippians 4:19.

If tithing is a financial issue for you, perhaps this is a chance for you to evaluate your budget, so that you can see where your money is going. Dave Ramsey says: “If you cannot live off 90% of your income, then you cannot live off 10%.” But remember, tithing is not meant to guilt trip us into giving, it is there to teach us to worship him in spirit and in truth, to live with giving spirits, and put Him first!

“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.”