There was a time we threw $5-10 into the plate and watched it travel down the pew wondering why we just gave up our hard-earned cash. We gave somewhat begrudgingly and without much joy.
Fast forward a few years and we joined Stonebridge (back when it was called the Cedar Hills Evangelical Free Church). We were maturing in our faith, and we heard here and there the word “tithe.” We found out what it meant and then figured out what our “tithe” would be. We both laughed. It was hilarious to think we could ever give that amount. Even so, we increased our giving to somewhere around 2-3%, which we thought was a stretch with three young kids and a lower middle-class income.
We also committed to increasing this amount over time. We wondered when would we reach the point where we just couldn’t give any more. It took a few years, but that breaking point never happened and we reached 10%! Our once begrudging attitude changed to being grateful that God was blessing us. With that feeling of gratefulness came great joy. It aligned with what we heard in church … giving was an act of worship.
Fast forward again and we’ve made a few more steps. We now tithe off the gross instead of the net because of the biblical concept of “first fruits” and now give a bit over 20%. We now think how hilarious it is that God enables us to give in this way. We are still not to the breaking point. God is worshiped, we are overjoyed and our church has grown in maturity and in size, as well as various Christian organizations we support. We have never suffered financially. I’ll challenge you to give a bit more and see if God will take you to a breaking point.
There was a time we threw $5-10 into the plate and watched it travel down the pew wondering why we just gave up our hard-earned cash. We gave somewhat begrudgingly and without much joy.
For the past six weeks on Sunday mornings, we've been diving into "The Gospel at Work," exploring how the truths we celebrate together on Sunday apply to the daily grind of our workweek. We've tackled topics like "True Success", "Balance" and "Witnessing in the Workplace". Each week we have been reminded that the gospel of Jesus changes everything which means that we are called to be obedient to our calling as Christians in our words and actions - even when it means stepping out in boldness and taking risks.
I have to admit that I am frequently tempted towards discouragement when ministering the gospel to others given my desire to see change happen (a good thing) on my timeline (a not so good thing) and also with my specific strategies at play (a good and bad thing). There are counseling situations that are so complex and require the “long haul” perspective, that is, setting aside a desired or forced timeline to finish the counseling season to trust increasingly in the Spirit to work at some undefined time in the future. So how do we navigate these types of situations with faithfulness?
