Well, first let me say I hope I don’t sound like I know so much about tithing, because I decided today that learning how to walk with our Lord Jesus as our Guide, Teacher and Shepherd is like learning how to manipulate a Mac pc after using a Windows operating system. It’s full of surprises, and much, much better!

The main thing I’ve learned about God is OBEDIENCE; He said do it, so we have to do it, without expecting anything in return. My dad taught me that way. He’d say do it because he said so, and don’t ask questions. Read how God spoke to Job when he had nerve enough to question God. We can’t make God do something for us. We can’t claim something He hasn’t promised.

We need to sow seeds of generosity with a heart full of love, and a pure motive, without expecting anything in return.

“12 Then said he also to him that bade him, When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbours; lest they also bid thee again, and a recompence be made thee.

13 But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind:

14 And thou shalt be blessed; for they cannot recompense thee: for thou shalt be recompensed at the resurrection of the just.” Luke 14:12-14

God blesses those who love Him AND obey.

“Understand, therefore, that the LORD your God is indeed God. He is the faithful God who keeps his covenant for a thousand generations and lavishes his unfailing love on those who love him and obey his commands.” Deuteronomy 7:9

If you think by tithing you will receive abundance of all things, beware. Jesus said “And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.” Luke 12:15

In last week’s article I shared Scriptures on tithing and promised my story. I’ve shared it before, so briefly I’ll just say as a single mom it was hard to squeeze one dollar out of every ten that I earned, but once I resolved to do it consistently it got easier, and truthfully, my whole life has changed.

The blessings from tithing go beyond finances. The reward is in obedience. God promises to reward us for obeying His commands, even if we are not yet obeying all His commands. Just because you tithe and fall short on say for instance, lying, God will still reward you because He said “prove me” (in Malachi 3:10 below) so that means try Him. He will bless you, no doubt about it.

Now don’t get me wrong, God hates liars (as is written in Revelation 21:8) but isn’t it great that He is quick to forgive if we repent and quit doing it!

The Scriptures on tithing worked into my soul, and I pushed forward and began tithing my ten percent with determination. My commitment was to put God first by believing in Him and His Word, trusting that everything else would line up, and it did. My raises came, and God has blessed me in many ways for my obedience.

God is good and my profession of faith is that He rewards those who obey Him with a pure heart. I did not have my sights set on riches when I made my decision. It was based on pure obedience, knowing God knew all my needs. In Matthew 6:24-34 Jesus explains God knows all our needs, so we just need to seek first the Kingdom of God, and He will meet them.

I’ve learned to give thanks for the first fruits!

It is written in Malachi 3:10-11 -“10 Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

11 And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground; neither shall your vine cast her fruit before the time in the field, saith the Lord of hosts.

Part of my blessing is relief from worry, a changed heart, and newfound joy and appreciation for what I do have. I’ve said it before, my home is not huge, but it’s home. He brings me clothes and surprises that are special and He “rebukes the devourer!”

Even when the Lord called my youngest son home recently, God showed me how He had everything planned ahead of time, and I suffered no financial loss from his burial. God took care of all of that, and replaced my truck, too.

Tithing also showed me I could tithe unto myself! By that I mean I learned if I can put one dollar out of every ten into God’s storehouse, I can put one in my savings account, too! Before I was pinching pennies, and now I’ve learned to be prudent.

There is nothing too hard for God. Try tithing your 10 percent and “quit robbing” God. It’s all His anyway! We just get to circulate it for a little while, and then we’re gone like a mist, like a vapor, and it will pass through someone else’s hands, so you don’t have anything to lose, but a lot to gain that you’ll never know about unless you “prove” Him. I’m telling ya, God keeps His Word!

“8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.” Colossians 2:8 KJV