Posted by Money is a taboo subject in our culture. For some reason, we don’t want to talk about money or income. Well today I’m going to talk about it. Money (or lack thereof) is a source of secret stress for many of us. I’ve lost track of how many hours of sleep I’ve lost because I was worried about money and how I was going to pay my bills. Despite all of my stressing, in the end, God has provided for me, usually through some very unlikely sources.
Today I was reading the book of Malachi and saw something new. If you’ve been in church for any period of time you’ve likely heard a preacher use these verses challenging you to give money to the Lord. Malachi 3:10 says:
“Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.”
I like this verse because I’m a skeptical person and I like to prove people wrong. In this case, I tried to prove God wrong, but I failed. I held up my end of the bargain by faithfully tithing on my income, and God has miraculously provided for me even when I didn’t have a job.
This morning I noticed the verse before this which says “You are cursed with a cure, for you are robbing me, the whole nation of you”. The challenge to tithe in verse 10 was for the entire nation of Israel, not just for individuals. Then I began thinking that if God has fulfilled this promise in my personal life, how much more could he do with a nation that was willing to give to God? There are countries around the world who are on the brink of bankruptcy in spite of their best efforts to generate revenue. Could tithing be the answer? What if a nation were to put God to the test in this way? I wonder what awesome miracles God would perform on their behalf.
You might be thinking to yourself ‘That’s great and all, but I can’t change national policies’. While it’s true that one individual is unlikely to change the direction of a country, it’s also true that nations are made up of people. If each of us began faithfully tithing and we told someone about what God did. Then what if they tried tithing and God blessed them. What if we did this over and over again until a community was changed. Then that community could change a city, which could impact a state which could impact a nation.
So, my question to you is: will you join me in putting God first when it comes to money?
Work in Progress 