I have officially passed my 6 month mark of consistently tithing! Woohoo! The Lord dared me to test Him in the verse below, so I did. It works!
“Test me in this…and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not drop their fruit before it is ripe. Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land.” –Malachi 3:10-12

Many of us I (not you, of course) tried to pull the opposition approach of:
1. Does my tithe have to be money? Can’t I just tithe my time or something else? Okay, honestly many of us aren’t still farmers and raising livestock for a living. We are instructed to give the “yield of your seed“. Back then, it was their grain, wine, oil, and livestock. Now, we earn paychecks! Basically, the way that you are surviving and living is the yield = money. Give your tithe with a pure heart and don’t differentiate between good or bad.
2. But, Tithing is only referenced in the Old Testament; I’m covered by the blood. “All Scriputre is breathed out by God and profitable.” Either you are a believer, or you aren’t.
3. Where did the “10% thing” come from? Every 10th animal… shall be holy to the Lord. Kings would take a 10th of people’s things to give to his staff. Abram gave God a 10th of everything when he was blessed. Jacob promised God a full 10thof all that is given to him.
4. Do I really have to do the whole 10%? Is that before or after taxes? Can I stop giving offering since I’m starting to tithe? *Nerd alert* The good thing about a percentage is that it affects us all the same. If you make $10 and have to give up $1, is that any easier that making $1,000 and giving up $100? Offerings, sacrifices, tithes, contributions, vow offerings, and freewill offerings are DIFFERENT things. Tithes are already the Lord’s, offerings are what you have chosen to give in addition.
5. The church misuses money. It’s not up to you to decide if it is misued, they are held accountable. The church leaders must also tithe the tithes that are given. Find a new place to tithe where you are learning and being fed the word of God.
6. When God gives me more money, then I’ll start tithing. You can’t wait for that. God says that when you tithe more, He will give you more, not the other way around. **Super Nerd Alert** This is called a Material Conditional. Check out this post on Tithing and the Material Conditional.
Enough of me trying to prove it’s the right thing, this is MY celebration!! I chose to obey the word of God and I’m happy that I did! Final thought from my bff “I’d rather obey God and be sitting with Him in heaven, than to disobey God and find out later that I should have.”