I’m sure that most of us who go to church understand tithes. We know that we are supposed to first give God 10% of everything we make. This helps build and equip church buildings to help us grow in our faith and bring others to the Lord.
However, offerings aren’t talked about as much. Offerings is anything above that required 10% that is given out of a generous heart. Offerings can be sewn any way that the Lord may direct your heart. Just the same as tithes go, offerings help build the kingdom- just not always directly through a church building.
God says in his word that you reap what you sow. 2 Corinthians 9:6 says, “The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully.” God also says in Malachi 3:10, “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the Lord Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.“
God is our father, a good father. He owns the cattle on 1000 hills. He owns everything on earth, and under the earth, and outside of the earth. It’s all his, and it’s all his to give. Our inheritance is all that he has, and he wants to give it all to us! The one thing he says we are allowed to test him in is our finances. And won’t he do it!! The more you give to him, the more room he has to bless you. Because where your treasure is, there your heart is also (Matthew 6:21). So if you treasure your money, or if it’s the case that you lack in trust that God will provide for you so you end up holding on with tight fists to your finances, he has less room to give to you because you haven’t made room for him. When you generously give what God has given you back to him, you have let go and made room for God to pour out over you.
You see, he asks a tithe of his people because he wants to teach us. First he wants to teach us stewardship. Second, he’s teaching us to trust in the work of his hand and not our own. Third, he’s teaching us to correctly value things in the right order. Additionally, he’s teaching us his character. But he wants to do the same through our offering as well.
I’m a first hand witness of God’s provision and blessing through giving. After I received an accumulated paycheck of multiple weeks of work, I wanted to and knew I needed to give back to God’s house. God told me to give a tithe +offering to his house of $100. Now, I typically give my offering to my missions trip, but God told me to wait and allow him to work. The next day I checked my account for the missions trip and I had another $1000 donated to my funds!!! That’s 10x the amount I gave to him, yet all he asked of me was 10%! WHAT.
Won’t he do it y’all!!
As I talk to God about funds for my missions trip, he always tells me “I’m your father and I will provide, but I’m going to ask your brothers and sisters to share with you what I’ve already given to them.” I want you to know that when you are donating to my trip, you are sowing directly into his kingdom. He has set out work before me to do, but knows I can’t do it without you. He wants his children to share and work together. You have just as much importance in this trip when you donate as I do when I go out to physically do work. This is about the church being the church. The body of Christ doing each of their own parts to further God’s kingdom and open heaven on the earth. I can’t be the hands or feet without your help!
