Giving

Gifts

What is Christian stewardship?

“Each of you, as a good manager of God’s gifts, shall use for the good of others, the special gifts you have received from God.” (IPeter 4:10) Stewardship is using, with integrity and faithfulness, the gifts which God has given. As Christians, we are to pray daily, attend worship regularly, give sacrificially, serve faithfully and witness lovingly.

What is the goal of giving?

To declare that Jesus is the Lord of our lives! It is by trusting Christ fully with our lives that we discover the joy and wonder of God’s love. And no matter what we say or what we do, we do not really trust until we trust Him with our money. In other words, we give so that we might truly open our hearts to the power and love of our Lord.

Often the Bible promises that right living leads to God’s increased presence in our lives. Prov. 11:25 pledges, “He that watereth shall be watered himself.” This does not mean that we give in order to receive. Rather, we affirm the truth of Jesus’ teaching, that “where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matt.5:21). We give, knowing that as we put the Master first in our lives, we become open to the transforming power and presence of the living God.

What is a tithe?

The Scriptures teach that we are to give God our “tithes and offerings.” The “tithe” is our basic obligation to God. It is 10% of our income returned to God from all that God has given us. The Bible emphasizes (Malachi 3:8-10) that this is our minimum responsibility to the God who gives us everything. The “offering” represents special gifts made to Church and community causes over and above the tithe. Depending upon the blessings we received, many will want to give beyond the tithe.

How do we find a starting place for tithing.

Tithing can seem an impossible goal at times. We are asked to become percentage givers. We commit to God a set percentage of our income and making that commitment a top priority in our spending. Decide what that percentage is for you. After starting on this spiritual ladder, we are then to grow as Christ leads us on with a goal of becoming at least tithers. A helpful guide is the Two Percent Principle: increasing our giving by two percent of our income each year.

Why pledge?

For two reasons. First, the act of making an individual financial commitment to Christ is a key element in developing spiritual maturity. Pledging means promising Christ to make him a priority in our lives and keeping the promise.