Imagine having a favorite restaraunt that you patronize every Sunday. You enjoy the food, the ambiance, the great service, the variety of choices on the menu, and the wait staff who serve you. Envision how the owner of the restaraunt would feel if you just left the restaraunt without paying for your bill week after week. Is your first reaction, “Who would do this?!” That sounds crazy, doesn’t it? Well, this scenario is not happening in restaraunts, but according to Barna’s research I shared in my last post, it is happening in places of worship across America. 

     According to Barna, thirty to fifty percent of active church attenders are patronizing their favorite house of worship, enjoying the fellowship, hearing the Word of God preached well, experiencing a loving atmosphere, appreciating the variety of ministries available to their families and the staff who serve them week after week.  You guessed it.  When the worship experience is over, they walk right out the door without giving anything financially. That’s disconcerting if these attenders are really believers. Barna’s research also reveals that this lack of giving is not exclusive to any one denomination. In fact, the lack of giving feels like an epidemic that has swept many churches across many denominations. How do these attenders justify not giving?               

     There are a multitude of hypotheses. Some attenders may not have a Christian upbringing. They weren’t taught God’s command to give a tenth to their local church. Some may feel their debt keeps them from giving. Others may rationalize they are giving their time and talents in ministry, so giving isn’t required, or optional. Some think their giving to outside organizations satisfies God’s requirement to give. Some may understand they should give ten percent to the local church, but fear or lack of faith in God to provide for the rest of their expenses keep them from giving. Regardless of their rationale, it doesn’t change the fact we have a gross deficiency of giving in the local church. Another fact remains. God feels robbed when we don’t give our tithes according to Malachi 3:8. The Lord accuses the Israelite nation of “turning away from his decrees and having not kept them.” Either we have a bunch of unbelievers who aren’t giving (in which case they’re excused because they don’t know any better), or we have a large swath of believers filling the pews who are either ignorant or ignoring God’s decree while not understanding the blessings of giving.                

     The Lord challenges the Israelites to bring their tithe into the storehouse (the local church). In Mal 3:10 He says, “Test me in this, and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.” His decree comes with a reward! But the flipside is also true. The Lord says in Mal 3:9 to the Israelites, “You are under a curse—the whole nation of you—because you are robbing me.” In verse 11 you see what the curse looks like, unless they follow through and honor God with their tithe. It says, “I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit.” The Lord implies He will not bless their livelihood if they keep withholding the ten percent belonging to the Lord. When I read this passage, I wonder, “What do these attenders not get about the blessings of giving that await them if they would just do it?!” God is just waiting to  “pour out so much blessing that you won’t have room to contain them!”               

     This boggles my mind. Yes, I know this is a reflection of their spiritual condition. But the larger question is, “How do we help them respond to God’s command?” I have heard pastors preach wonderful sermons on the requirement of giving. They work hard to motivate and inspire giving without guilting people, but they still don’t see the change. In the meantime, half the congregation is attending without giving while enjoying the benefits of being connected to a local body of believers. I wish these attenders would connect there is an expectation to give because God has asked them to tithe.                

     Why did I spend so much time on the subject of honoring God with our tithes? There are two reasons. First, if the desire of our heart is to be a generous giver just like God, then our generosity has to start with God.  Give generously to God first, others second. What that means is give God a “thank you” note of 10% of your income wherever you’re actively attending before considering generosity toward others. He deserves that even if He had never asked for it! Everything I write to hopefully inspire a lifestyle of generous giving should never be construed to be in lieu of the tithe. Any living giving I describe should be above and beyond our minimum 10% “thank you” note to God. Thus, as I share my living giving vision, it needs to be understood that the blessings of God will be all over our giving as long as we are not robbing God His tithe.  I know without a doubt my life has been filled with many blessings because I have not short-changed God.                

     Second, I don’t want anyone left behind in becoming a generous giver. So if you don’t tithe, I am getting ready to be your top cheerleader! I will be writing a series of posts for the sole goal of helping you succeed in tithing and bring you on board. One fun way to begin is to start sharing our stories. I bet tithing believers reading this post share my desire to help you experience the blessings God is waiting to pour out on you if you would risk with Him!  

     By way of this post, I am calling upon tithers to help these attenders with your story. When did you begin to tithe, and how did you see God bless you when you obeyed Him?  Perhaps you used to be one of the attenders who struggled to give a tithe. What was your rationale at the time you weren’t giving? What helped you turn the corner to start tithing?  Did your spouse drag you into it, only to discover God’s blessings later? Did you feel a conviction to tithe? Have you ever regretted tithing? 

     I am inviting all tithing believers to pray about sharing your story of how tithing has blessed you. If you feel God is leading you to do so, you may leave a comment through the blog site or email me. Your story can be one sentence, or as long as you want it. Five minutes of your time to type up your story can change the life of attenders who are struggling to honor God with their tithe. It is my prayer that enough of you will share your story so I can publish a separate post of your testimonies. I will be glad to give you anonymity if you request it.  Our stories have power because God is right in the middle of them.  Let’s be an encourager.  May God bless you as you share your story to inspire those who need to take this very important step to be generous to God first, others second.  

Blessings,                                                                                                                                                                                                                            Lee Ann

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