In God We Trust

As I pulled into my parking spot at the airport my "ADD COOLANT" light came on. No big deal, I will deal with it when I get back at the end of the week. Four days later as I got back to my car, the light was still on, no big deal just coolant.

I live about 50 miles away from the airport and told myself that I will just keep an eye on the temperature gage and if any issues arise I will just add coolant.25 minutes into the trip home my Gage spiked and car became very hot, so I pulled off, found a QT it was the only thing open at midnight.

Unfortunately, the coolant didn't work, I knew the car would have to go to the shop. Early the next morning I dropped the car off at the dealership, picked up my loaner and off I went. It was about 3 hours later when I got the call..." Man are you lucky!!!, Your warranty expires in 3 days".

It turns out my car needed a new thermostat and electrical water pump, which was 100 percent covered by the warranty. I asked my service concierge how much would this has cost 4 days from now? The answer was $3125! WOW!

Lucky, Right??? Wrong! This sort of thing is very common when you tithe and honor the lord in your giving. Many people have the misconception that when you tithe all of your financial issues/struggles go away, that is not biblical nor accurate. The difference is that when you tithe the money or resources will always be there when you need it. When you do not tithe the money and resources will not be there when you need it.

God knows how to take care of those who honor him by obeying his word and who live according to his Godly principles. The Bible says in  2 Chronicles 16:9... "The eyes of the lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to show himself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are perfect toward him". Giving is an act of faith, can you give in the midst of finacial difficulty? Do you believe God is big enough to take care of you and meet your needs?

I'll never forget the time several years ago when we had two kids in daycare and one on the way it was Christmas time and we had just sponsored 3 little children who were not going to have a Christmas and we went a little overboard buying them clothes, bikes, the whole 9 yards just did not have enough to cover gifts for our extended family that year, we were tithers and we prayed and asked God to help us. A few days later we received a check in the mail for $1200 from some class action lawsuit that I didnt even know that I was apart of. My wife and I needed $1150 to cover the gifts. LOL. Coincedence? Luck? No-Just God being God!

Giving and acts of Faith will always catch the eye of God as long as it is done with the right motive!


For me this whole things goes to my biblical worldview and faith. What is the reason that God created us and what is the mandate/plan that he has for our lives?

GODLY LIVING AND GODLY GIVING!

Simply put, God blesses us for three reasons:

1. He is a joyful giver and a great father who loves his children.
2. To meet our needs.
3. To be a blessing to other people. Bless others in his name eventually they turn to him.

It amazes me the number of Christians out there who do not tithe! The moment we invite Jesus into our lives we grant him access into every area of our lives. The reason that Christan non tithers struggle financially (and they all do!) is because they are living in rebellion to God in the area of finances. 

My wife and I have these friends that are Christians but they live from one financial crisis to another. They have a curse on their finances because they refuse to tithe. They know they should tithe but they refuse, living in willful disobedience to God. Just when they think they have made it through one crisis another pops up again and again and again. eventually they will hit rock bottom.

God will allow (he doesn't cause it but will allow it) financial struggle into your life as many times and as severe as necessary to get your attention so you are forced to turn to him for help.

He has to bring us to the end of our own strength so we can find the beginning of his. That cannot happen friends when your living in rebellion to his word.

All God wants is your heart! Once he has your heart he has you. Its starts with your checkbook. The Bible says in Matthew 6:21    "Where your treasure is so is your heart!". The treasure our Lord is referring to here is two fold:

Time and Money!

 All one has to do is look to see where you spend your time and money to see what you love in life! What does your calendar and bank account say about you? Do you love truly love the lord by spending time with him? Do you truly love the lord by giving and blessing others?

We say we love the lord but spend more time watch Netflix then reading the Bible. We say we love the lord yet we have people in own families who struggle financially yet we never give a dime. 

This is why God blesses us, so we can bless others. There comes a point in your walk with the lord that you actually come to the point where you become a cheerful giver and you see how much better it is to give than to receive. 

We cant take it with us, right? Your money/home/car/watch collection/stocks/bonds/timeshare stays here when you die and enter into eternity. Don't get me wrong, those things aren't bad unless you value them over your relationship with God and Godly giving.

What helps me is my definition of wealth:

"having enough to meet all of my needs and the needs of others over and above my tithe".

As a Christan, the mandate on our lives is to love Jesus and bless others. We don't give because we expect to get anything back (that is a very dangerous theology called the Prosperity Gospel-God is not mandated to do anything for us, he and he alone chooses to whom he will bless. We do not command and order God to return our giving 30,60 and 100 fold). 

When you give to people-do not give with strings attached so you can control-that's not Godly giving. Give because you are blessed and want to bless others in the name of Jesus. 

If you a Christan non tither and have fallen on financial times, things will never get better financially until you do the following...

1. Go to the Lord and repent for not honoring him in the area of your giving.
2. Thank him for what you have every single day. (job/home/family/car/salvation). Doing this will allow you to develop an attitude of gratitude which is essential to your maturation in the area of giving and Christianity in general.
3. Write out a tithe check as soon as you finish thanking him in step #2.
4. Follow step #2 everyday.
5. Follow step #3 every time you get paid.
6. Understand the difference between pre/post tithe. Financial issues will come up- pretithe, the resources were not there to meet the need. Post tithe-the resources will be there to meet the need. I have lived it for 20 years-trust me.

I never worry about finances, I have had so many times in my life where I needed God to come big and he did every single time! Giving is an act of faith and our faith moves the hand of God!

My wife is one of the most generous people I have ever known. Literally every single week we are buying someone shoes, clothes, whatever needs that God allows to find my wife. I kid around that my wife is a giant magnet that attracts every need within a 5 mile radius to our doorstep. LOL. I love it, she inspires me with her generosity and I know that God is well pleased when we bless others. After all, we have what we have in life only because of God's generosity and grace in our lives. Who are we to not bless others in need?

 There were times in my life before I tithed that I struggled financially and that is a tough way to live. The stress and worry over finances can take years off of your life, destroy marriages and tear people apart. That's what the Devil wants, he will do anything he can to separate you from God. One of his major tactics is in the area of giving, if he can create a financial storm in your life maybe he can keep you from writing that check. Remember, giving is an act of worship and faith for the Christian. 

You don't have to live that way. You can decide right now to change. You can choose today to honor the lord with your giving, he stands at the door and waits patiently for you to invite him in, what are you waiting for???