The Blessing of Faithful Giving One family's miracles

“If you are going to be a thief, you had better choose a different victim.” It always rankles my wife when I make this comment when commenting about stewardship. She twists her face up in a scowl and gives me that disapproving “hairy eye-ball” look. Of course we can find all sorts of flaws with my assertion, but it is a “tongue-in-cheek” reality check regarding our response to God’s rhetorical inquiry found in Mal. 3:8, “Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In your tithes and contributions.”

Don’t get me wrong, I am not a stranger to experiencing temptation to veer out of the straight and narrow road, but stewardship has never been my weakness. From my youth, I have always had a clear reality that one-tenth of all my increase belongs to the Lord. In this area, I have not strayed. I cannot afford unfaithful stewardship! The portion that remains in my family budget after tithe and offering has been returned has the blessing of the Almighty, and as a result, He provides unexpected ways for it to go further than if I had kept 100 percent and been guilty of stealing from God!

 I recall one church where a parishioner placed a pumpkin in the offering plate and a box of lovingly preserved garden produce outside my church treasurer’s office. The discussion went from my board, up the ladder, all the way to the GC treasury. “How do we handle and disburse tithed produce?” The answer came back: take it to the area pastors’ meeting and divide it amongst them. The giver had very little monetary means but an abundance of home-grown food, and a profound conviction to return tithe to the storehouse. Could that be a foreshadowing of things to come?

I also remember the time I accidentally “pre-tithed.” I generally use online giving at www.AdventistGiving.org. I put in the amount, hurriedly, and accidentally inserted an extra “0.” Those zeros make all the difference. Before the mistake was realized, I had clicked “make payment” and it was irreversible. I had enough money in the bank account to cover that mistake, but not enough to also pay our monthly bills. SoI knew the next day would bring all sorts of stress and grief when my mistake would cost me late fees and delayed payments.  Even the grocery list would have to wait.

The next morning, however, I received a check from my dad. He had been impressed to help our family replace our car, and the Lord had put an amount on his heart to send us. It was the exact amount I had “accidentally tithed” the day before!

At one point, my wife and I were working with the bank to obtain a mortgage. The margins were desperately close—we were within a couple of dozen dollars of the amount the bank required for confirmation.  Additionally, there was a qualifying hurdle we were struggling to accomplish and the bank was unwavering. Meet the qualifications, or no deal. The sellers would not consider an extension to the purchase offer and we were facing a firm deadline with seemingly impossible details to pull together.

The night before the deadline I knew the entire transaction was likely to fall apart the next day. We felt trapped. I was praying for the Lord to help untangle the scene and He pointed out that we had fallen behind in our tithing. I argued with God. If I use that money, then we won’t meet the criteria for the bank. The Lord spoke back, “Will a man rob God?” I surrendered! I did the math, and late that night, went to online giving and settled my account with the Lord, knowing it would mean our family would not have the house we were planning on.

Early the next morning our mortgage broker called and said, “I could not sleep last night. I was awake most of the night and I have decided to waive these extra requirements for your approval.” What!?! I could not believe my ears!

So, whether my wife likes it or not, I still contend…if you are going to be a thief… best to choose another victim!