Money Matters
A ton of bricks hit me this morning. It really, really did. Our church hosted author and radio host Dave Ramsey for our 3 morning services. Either well-planned by our church administration, or extremely coincidental, our August focus has been on giving. Giving of time, giving of talent, and yes, giving of tithe. Mr. Ramsey was in town yesterday for one of his live events, so he came on over into Bartlett for Sunday morning services at Faith Baptist Church.
Of course, being in the pulpit for only 30 minutes or so, he couldn't really get into the meat of his "cut up your credit cards and streamline your budget" philosophy. But it really wasn't "If you ain't tithing, you're a bad Christian and you're despicable to God" either. His point was this: According to scripture, it's not our money--it's God's. We're just managers of it. Imagine if you deposited $1000 into a savings account and went back later to get it, only to be told by the banker that they didn't have it because his "Sea-Doo needed a sister" (his analogy, not mine). Imagine the frustration, anger, etc. that you would feel because the person you had trusted to manage your money let you down. Such is the case with God.
But here's the tricky part: God doesn't need our money. Faith Baptist doesn't need my money. If we think that God sits and says, "I sure hope that ____ tithes today, because I could really use it," we're way off. We give to be more in His likeness. Period. If we who are called Christians (i.e., Christ-like) give back to God a portion of what is His, our blessings will be abundant.
But that's where money stuff comes in. Like he said this morning, the reason some Christians don't tithe isn't because they don't love God--it's because they're broke. When you are a slave to debt, you cannot give back to God. And the Bible is full of instructions on managing our money. But it's God's plan. And at some point, you must realize (as Dave did) that your plan isn't working and God's does. And furthermore, what could the people of God do for the kingdom of God if they were debt free and giving as we are called to do?
Yes, my toes were stepped on this morning. I've known several people who were Dave's disciples. Someone I worked with at Kroger. My friend Robert. A co-worker's of Leah's. And I've always said quite cynically, "Yeah, he wants you live in poverty for 50 years so that you'll be rich for 10 before you die." But he opened my eyes this morning. Or maybe a higher power did, I don't know. I'm not drowning in $20,000 in credit card debt. I'm not considering bankruptcy. Money isn't causing friction in my marriage. But neither am I happy with my current situation, and my management of God's money right now stinks. It might be hard, but some things are gonna change for the better.
Of course, being in the pulpit for only 30 minutes or so, he couldn't really get into the meat of his "cut up your credit cards and streamline your budget" philosophy. But it really wasn't "If you ain't tithing, you're a bad Christian and you're despicable to God" either. His point was this: According to scripture, it's not our money--it's God's. We're just managers of it. Imagine if you deposited $1000 into a savings account and went back later to get it, only to be told by the banker that they didn't have it because his "Sea-Doo needed a sister" (his analogy, not mine). Imagine the frustration, anger, etc. that you would feel because the person you had trusted to manage your money let you down. Such is the case with God.
But here's the tricky part: God doesn't need our money. Faith Baptist doesn't need my money. If we think that God sits and says, "I sure hope that ____ tithes today, because I could really use it," we're way off. We give to be more in His likeness. Period. If we who are called Christians (i.e., Christ-like) give back to God a portion of what is His, our blessings will be abundant.
But that's where money stuff comes in. Like he said this morning, the reason some Christians don't tithe isn't because they don't love God--it's because they're broke. When you are a slave to debt, you cannot give back to God. And the Bible is full of instructions on managing our money. But it's God's plan. And at some point, you must realize (as Dave did) that your plan isn't working and God's does. And furthermore, what could the people of God do for the kingdom of God if they were debt free and giving as we are called to do?
Yes, my toes were stepped on this morning. I've known several people who were Dave's disciples. Someone I worked with at Kroger. My friend Robert. A co-worker's of Leah's. And I've always said quite cynically, "Yeah, he wants you live in poverty for 50 years so that you'll be rich for 10 before you die." But he opened my eyes this morning. Or maybe a higher power did, I don't know. I'm not drowning in $20,000 in credit card debt. I'm not considering bankruptcy. Money isn't causing friction in my marriage. But neither am I happy with my current situation, and my management of God's money right now stinks. It might be hard, but some things are gonna change for the better.
. . .The borrower is servant to the lender. Prov 22:7
posted by Eric C at 8:10 PM
13 Comments:
Jen and I went to the Total Money Makeover event yesterday. His stuff works. It really does. You just have to do with less "stuff" for a while.
As far as tithing. It is amazing the blessings you get when you do it. Jen and I were bad about it but have been faithfully tithing for a while now. I mean, after all, it is God's money.
Dave Ramsey's The Man. He finally got on here in Atlanta after years of domination by some nerd named Clark Howard whose message is less "do it for God and freedom from debt" and more "penny penching is cool!"
I still dont get it. If you aint got it you cant give it...
Anonymous...
I think you will find if you tithe first and the rest later...the money will work itself out.
Try tithing before paying any of the other bills. It is faith, my friend. And God promises He will take care of your needs.
ok yea so tithe 10% before bills? bring home pay?
yes
I honestly don't know if Dave would advocate tithing 10% if in fact one was so over-extended that more money was going out than actually coming in. The point I got was this--if your money is already committed because of excessive debt, or bad spending habits, or whatever, then one should get a handle on that so that tithing isn't a strain on the budget. It shouldn't be "light bill or offering plate."
right! so you should get your bills under control and then tithe?
http://www.xanga.com/item.aspx?user=stevenrussell&tab=weblogs&uid=282726981
That is from a post in which I posted a sermon my pastor preached on tithing.
Not sure how Dave Ramsey feels about the subject, but in Malachi, God is pretty clear on tithing. He even says to "try me" and see how I bless you. The Bible is clear on how important tithing is.
Tithing should be the first thing you do...not the last thing you get around to after all the other bills.
WHATEVER!!!!
Why post anonymously?
BECAUSE!
Why put all your money into something that noone can prove beyond a shadow of a doubt. You cant throw religion in the face of the bill collector calling you and sending the court summons because their suing for failure to pay. Try living within your means and not beyond.
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