titheing?????

Andrea - posted on 02/22/2011

Hey I agree with the biblical principal of tithing the firstfruits of all that you are given by God, including money time, talents, and anything else he gives you. My husband and I can not pay our bills for essentials if we do that off of the gross pay however , so what we do is tithe off of our income tax return that we receive and any other money including cash from babysitting or whatever that we receive. From everything that we bring home, we tithe at least ten percent and give more above and beyond that as a love offering whenever we can. God always supplies our needs.

Amanda - posted on 02/22/2011

Thank you all so much for your replies, I have thought this over and concluded that I was fretting over something that for my family would not even be possible. My husband is in the national guard and gets a seperate check for that once a month, so I guess the good that came from this situation was me realizing that we need to tithe from that also, it just never dawned on me :)

Anne - posted on 02/13/2011

Hi Amanda, I once heard Larry Burket (last name may not be spelled right) say that God does not need our money or time He needs our Willing Heart. He Loves a Cheerful Giver.

That being said I have a true story for you concerning Tithing. When I was a girl growing up my dad worked a job that he got paid once a month. I clearly remember putting his socks away when I folded laundry and seeing money in his sock drawer. Later my older sister related this story to me. She had been asking my dad how did he and our mom manage to make ends meet and still give to the church. She told him she and her husband were having trouble making ends meet and sis not tithe. Dad told her that from the time he had his first job he would cash his check and put 10% of what he cashed in his sock drawer. He told God that if at the end of the month the family had not truly needed something they could not live with out until the next pay day what ever money that was left in the sock drawer would go in the church offering. Not One Time did our mom and dad ever need to take out so much as a penny out of the drawer until it was given to the church they went to as their tithe.

My parents went to a church was very strong on the 10% amount for a tithe. I know the old Testament talks about tithing 10%, I however would Never Tell Any One how much they needed to tithe. That is between you (your spouse if you are married.) and God. I know for our family we have never been able to Out Give God! I do not mean to make it sound that I am trying to one up God with my tithing compared to His Blessings. What I mean is that if my heart is the right place when I give to God regardless of rather it is money or time God has always Blessed our family more that we could have ever imagined or deserved.

Alisha - posted on 02/07/2011

I'm not sure you have to get so nit picky with the exact amount. Give what you can and your time contribution to events and such are also a great contribution.

Stephanie - posted on 02/07/2011

Our giving should be sacrificial. The New Testament does not specify a percentage in our giving. In the Old Testament 10% was just a starting point. I have heard it explained that when you figure in sacrifices and such their giving was actually 25%. Try that with your gross income:) For our family we try to keep it sacrificial. If life is too comfortable, if you are able to keep up with your "Jones" it's time to give more. If you are giving 10% on your net and are feeling a pinch when you go to the grocery then you are probably where you are supposed to be. When you stop feeling that pinch you may want to up your giving. Don't worry so much about percentages; the important thing is why you give. We give out of love and thankfulness, not out of duty.

Tricia - posted on 02/06/2011

Thithing will bring a blessing because God said so in the Old Testament and He does not revoke His promises. In the New Testament though, there is no mention of tithing (as in give 10%) in the church. Early Christians were often exhorted to give as led by the Spirit and to do so regularly (especially by the Apostle Paul) but were not held to the OT standard of 10%. Of course, they could always give more ;-) From the way I see all those verses, giving is not optional for a Christian, but the amount one gives should be determined by the Spirit's leading, whether that leading is to tithe, to give less, or to give more. God loves a cheerful giver! (And I would also say that since your husband, as the head of the household, feels at peace about your giving, you can too.)

Carla - posted on 02/06/2011

Sweetie, you say your tithing has been a progression. This has been a progression of your faith. As you believed, you gave, and God covered you. We tithe off our checks. As Linda said, after taxes, insurance, etc., they take a HUGE chunk. IF we get a refund at the end of the year, we tithe off that. My husband has a handy-man business to augment our pensions, and he tithes 50% off that. We survive on our checks, so 50% is STILL a bonus.

God DOES see our service to Him other than money and counts that to our account. Pray, and ask God to show you what He wants you to do. Faith is stepping out on nothing, and it holds you up.

God bless, honey

Katherine - posted on 02/05/2011

Pray.

Hope - posted on 02/05/2011

Great question! I agree with Linda, give what you feel lead to give. Don't allow people to push their convictions on you based on their legalistic views. With that said, my husband and I have felt lead to tithe on our full paycheck before taxes. (Again, this is personal conviction for us. This may be just a prefrence for other families.) We are all a part of the family of God, and we are each called according to our individual gifts.

Linda - posted on 02/05/2011

I think each person needs to pray about it and do what God is leading him to do. In high tax brackets, when the govt. takes almost 50% of what you earn, it might be difficult to tithe on gross and try to live off 40%. Whatever you do, you need to remember God loves a cheerful giver. Also, He owns 100% of what we have; we are just giving a portion back to him. I have found that God does bless you when you tithe, as you now have also found. You just can't outgive God! He always supplies our needs.