I want to ask a question which I do not intend to be hurtful.

When a family is in dire straits, why do they continue to tithe? I can understand eeking out money to tithe when it is there. However, when a family is in a continual shortfall, why does this still feel so mandatory?

I do understand that organized relgion is different than a personal belief in God and/or Jesus.

I'm just wondering why folks don't see it as ok to discontinue tithing in that situation with the understanding that they will absolutely continue again at a better time. Also, can acts of service be subbed for tithing during a difficult time?

I often want to advise people to significantly reduce their tithe or discontinue it until hard times pass. I really think that a church and especially God and Jesus would understand doing that. It seems more like societal pressure than religious pressure to me.

Hope I'm not opening a can of worms.

I do understand why people do it. The idea is that God will provide. You don't just tithe when things are going well, instead it is a commitment to God and your church. It is a way of saying thank you for helping to provide.

That being said, I think gifts of service are equally as important, and I think that if you just can't eek it out of the budget, then you should give in other ways, both to your church and to the community. A gift of service does have a financial value, and to me is equal to a gift of money. I do understand that many believe that it should be both-- I get that, I just don't necessarily agree.

That being said, I think gifts of service are equally as important, and I think that if you just can't eek it out of the budget, then you should give in other ways, both to your church and to the community. A gift of service does have a financial value, and to me is equal to a gift of money. I do understand that many believe that it should be both-- I get that, I just don't necessarily agree.

This is my belief too I think. I don't discount the importance of tithing and being a contributing member of a church and community even though I do not participate in organized religion. I see it as an important part of continuing to be able to do good work within the church. I don't want anyone to think I don't understand the importance since I am not devout.

I am not a member of an organized religion, but my family is and they all tithe. We had a lot of really tight years as I was growing up and my parents were always very careful to pay full tithes. They just honestly did not see it as their money. On more than one occasion they got strange windfalls just after paying their tithes and saw them as manifestation of their faithfulness. Their church also has a welfare system and they felt more comfortable availing them selves of that if they helped support it.

For them, it would have felt like stealing to not pay. The ethical circumstance far outweighed the practical one for them.

For them, it would have felt like stealing to not pay. The ethical circumstance far outweighed the practical one for them.

Aha! That makes total sense to me. Thank you! :)

Jay and I just discussed this over the weekend. We are impossibly tight and he has not yet starting giving $ to the church. He wants to in the near future, though. I find it hard to grasp the concept that everyone has to give a certain percentage of their income ( is it 10%?), that God ever said that you had to give XXX amount. Jay has several stories of examples of people that have given when things were really tight and being blessed when needed. I have to believe that God would understand the need to put food in little bellies and not withhold blessings because the family did not give their grocery money to the church.

The 10% comes from the Old Testament. I think it is mentioned several times in Genesis that this is the amount Abraham gave back to God.

Personally, I think 10% is the ideal, but the important thing is to give until it hurts a little. If you are giving of your excess, it is not really a sacrifice. On the other hand, if you can't feed your kids, I am sure God would understand if you reduced your tithe amount. I think the important thing is to give something back to God in gratitude for the blessings we have received.

For them, it would have felt like stealing to not pay. The ethical circumstance far outweighed the practical one for them.

I'm most likely the same faith as your family. This is how I feel, all the money I have is not mine but the Lords that he gives to me. So in the scheme of things giving 10% back isn't so bad. Though I admit sometimes it still is hard when things are really tight or beyond but I wouldn't feel right not giving tithes. Also when we were going through major unemployment/underemployment our church helped us out when we didn't have enough for food etc. so it wasn't like we ever would have to choose between food or tithing.

When I decided to stay home w/ Tucker, we knew our income would be cut in half. Literally 50% of our earnings would be gone. On paper it was un-doable. But we knew that we knew that we knew that God was leading us to keep me at home. So we stepped out in faith and continued to tithe. Was it difficult? Absolutely. But we felt it was a matter of obedience. God even says to test him & see if He won't "open the windows of heaven" and pour out blessings.
We tithe out of obedience. We give back the firstfruits of what He has so generously given to us.
The only times we (my family) have truly fall on financial hard times is when we slack off on tithing and giving.

The idea of a tenth comes from Malachi. It is actually an OT commandment to Jewish people. I believe that God expects us to give but I don't hold to the idea that I *have* to give a tenth. My belief is that 10% is a place to start. I know that what we counsel people is that they need to look at their budget and see what is doable for them. For someone it might be 1%, for another it might be 15%, it depends on their individual situation. We encourage people to find a starting point and do it with the intention of increasing their thithe until they are giving 10%.

I believe that God expects to give sacrificially and there have been times when it was a sacrifice to give at all. We still chose an amount that we felt comfortable with and gave. Right now we give 10%. That is actually a chunk of our budget but we have not gone with out and actually do pretty well considering what dh makes. For us it is more about a mind set. Our money/finances are not our own, they are God's. Everything we have we have because he has given it to us in one way or another.

The only times we (my family) have truly fall on financial hard times is when we slack off on tithing and giving. This has been true for us too.

We've never been in that situation (where we really don't have enough money and want to continue to tithe), as we've always had enough (and most of the time more than enough) to meet our basic needs. I'm going to think about your question for a bit, though.

why can't i post to this thread????????!!!!

i keep trying to post, but it won't go through. THAT did. i have a copy of what won't go through...will try again.

i guess you saw "tithe" on my list? lol. :) why, yes, thanks for asking. ;)

dh and i believe that a tithe of 10% is an old testament concept, and that the new testament concept is that of giving. we feel absolutely no societal pressure to give any of our money. for us, the fact that we give, is due to each of our personal relationships with God.

i have lots of conviction about God wanting me to get my security from him, and not my money...or skills, or my job, or my friendships, or how my kids behave or what they grow up to be...or anything else. following the old testament example and giving 10% or our income, helps me to remember to put God first in my life and that everything i have and everything i am, comes from him. it helps me to remember that my real treasure needs to be in heaven. the $xx we give a week...it truly is super faith building. i have heard a million stories of people who were blessed financially from giving sacrificially. i think God *does* want to bless us. it may not be in business success and therefore the money we need, but i totally believe that this really hard financial time we're going through is for our gain. it's now that i want to do everything i can to remain faithful. to not give our tithe, to me, is me taking control of the situation and telling God that i will only give when i see that he gives me enough for me. don't get me wrong...i don't think he wants us to tithe and then throw some other $xx bill on the credit card. and we're not doing that. oh...and i don't think not giving our tithe is the only way i could try to take control and not rely on God. i see where i could do several other things that would not be relying on God or obeying his commands, and therefore, displeasing to God and hurtful to my relationship with him or my marriage.

i think it's also super important that i give of myself in other ways, like jesus did. i am great at giving of my time to others. this helps me to connect to God and grow more into being who i think God wants me to be, besides just obedience to a command. i think it brings God glory. for me, giving my time or my talents just does not force me to rely on God like giving my money does right now, and i am grateful for the opportunity for my character to grow and for my relationship with God to be deepened. oh...but i am ready for a new lesson...lol.

From Malachi 3
6 "I the LORD do not change. So you, O descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed. 7 Ever since the time of your forefathers you have turned away from my decrees and have not kept them. Return to me, and I will return to you," says the LORD Almighty.
"But you ask, 'How are we to return?'

8 "Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me.
"But you ask, 'How do we rob you?'
"In tithes and offerings. 9 You are under a curse—the whole nation of you—because you are robbing me. 10 Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "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. 11 I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit," says the LORD Almighty. 12 "Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land," says the LORD Almighty.

It's also a matter of trust...if you trust God to provide as He's promised to do.

i guess you saw "tithe" on my list? lol. :) why, yes, thanks for asking. ;)

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I did, and you made me think of it again, but I would have never asked you to consider stopping titheing. I knew that would be a no-go. I just never understood why people felt so strongly about it. That's why I asked. I had no intention of calling you out.

I'm really respectful of why people do the things they do in the name of religion--even if I don't understand them.

That being said, I think gifts of service are equally as important, and I think that if you just can't eek it out of the budget, then you should give in other ways, both to your church and to the community. A gift of service does have a financial value, and to me is equal to a gift of money. I do understand that many believe that it should be both-- I get that, I just don't necessarily agree.


I agree with this statement 100%. I am not religious, but I have always thought of myself as a giving person. About a year ago, I saw what other people are doing, mostly monitarily, and I started to beat myself up over it because I wasn't doing enough. But I have started to slowly see that it isn't just the giving of the money that counts. Simply being a kind person is sometimes all that someone needs to brighten their day and that can be giving. Also, giving food, passing things down, donations... all those things count. We are not going to be able to give much money for a while. We have a road of recovery ahead of us that is miles long, but I feel that money doesn't really matter.

I do believe that the tithe thing is mostly a percentage as well. 10% of $100 is $10, where 10% of $1000 is $100... you know. The more you thrive, the more you give. That is usually the general idea.

Val

I did, and you made me think of it again, but I would have never asked you to consider stopping titheing. I knew that would be a no-go. I just never understood why people felt so strongly about it. That's why I asked. I had no intention of calling you out.

I'm really respectful of why people do the things they do in the name of religion--even if I don't understand them.

i definitely don't/didn't feel called out or anything. just knew that my post was probably what made you think of your question. i wouldn't even think it would have been wrong for you to suggest stopping...lol. now, obviously, with the lack of income we have at the moment, i've certainly already considered stopping and deciding against it. but, yk, maybe someone else is only giving out of some sort of unhealthy sense of obligation or something. :) anyway...glad you asked. :)

anyway, oh yes...on paper, i know it's crazy crazy crazy to some. i just don't think that $xx a week is going to do anything for us compared to what i believe it does for us to give it.