Yesterday marked the end of EconoME, Grace's July sermon series that dealt with money issues. Unfortunately, yesterday's service was the only one of the four in the series that I could be there for. But it doesn't mean that money and the issues surrounding it haven't been on my mind a lot lately.Grace is offering Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University this fall. I am confident that it is going to change the lives of all those that participate. Danielle and I have decided to be part of the course and we are pretty excited about it, too. Dave Ramsey's philosophy is simple: start out with an emergency fund of $1,000. Then start attacking your debt. Take care of the smallest balances first by putting high payments on those while only making minimum payments on your other debts. Once the smaller balances disappear, wrap that payment you were making on that debt up with the minimum payment of the next smallest and keep going from there until you are debt free. Ramsey calls it the debt snowball.
I have to be honest: imagining life debt free is pretty much next to impossible for me right now. I have been chained to the ground with the bondage of debt since my freshman year of college when, during freshman orientation week, I was lured in by the nice people at the credit card booth who offered me a free t-shirt and a nifty water bottle. When I maxed out that credit card, the nice people at my bank offered me another card that would have double the credit line on it. It was 0% APR for a year, so I thought - heck, why not. And the cycle just continued on and on and on. Eleven years and many many thousands of dollars later, I am paying dearly for the mistakes I made during that period of my life. Sadly, my wife is paying for my mistakes as well.
Guilt and embarrassment stemming from my decade of idiotic financial decisions grip my soul every waking moment. But over the last month as I've gone on video assignments to support the EconoME series and heard testimony after testimony of how peoples' lives have been changed since they went through Financial Peace, I actually have begun to feel a little bit of hope that perhaps there is a way out. I can't help but wonder what Danielle and I --and so many others-- would be able to do for God if the chains of financial burden were shattered. I'm so tired of being in debt. I'm so tired of giving every penny that we earn to credit card companies who think it's justifiable to raise their APRs to 30% like the people from Sears decided to do. THIRTY PERCENT? Do they WANT people to get crushed by their financial ruination?
It is my belief that a huge part of the answer leading up to financial success is honoring God with your finances. But if every penny that you earn goes to paying off debt, it can seem rather impossible to do that. But what if you decided to give God something? I was watching a video recently of a testimony where a guy suggested that if you can't give 10%, give something. Anything. In fact, he and his wife made it a point to give 5% during their season of financial stress. They even named the act of giving 5% to God as a "Fithe". As their financial situation improved, they began to give 6%. Then 7%. And so on.
The truth is: right now I am robbing God. And that burden, in the midst of everything else that we're dealing with, is sometimes too much to handle. I want to be able to give back to God what is rightfully His. But there are times where I just can't.
The truth is: right now I am robbing God. And that burden, in the midst of everything else that we're dealing with, is sometimes too much to handle. I want to be able to give back to God what is rightfully His. But there are times where I just can't.
My question is this: do you think that God would honor a fithe? Does He honor the act of giving something when we can't give Him all?
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4 comments:
I think that's awesome that you guys are going to do FPU. I think it really will change your life and give you hope. Jason and I haven't been through the course but we've read his books and we listen to his radio show almost every day.
As for the fithe, God's word says to tithe, not less. I don't think he's going to punish you; we're covered by Grace. But, God honors obedience and sacrifice. The tithe in the bible is pre-law, law, and post-law. It's in the new testament and the old testament. It's even written so deeply on the hearts of men that even non-Christian philanthropists tend to give 10%. I would challenge you to give 10% and watch how God provides. He really does honor this obedience. I think it's so much more important that paying off debt. I heard someone say yesterday, "where your checkbook is, there your heart will be." Our pastor said he's been asking God to make it possible for him to give more than he spends.
Read Malachi 3:10 (I'm sure you've read it before.) God even challenges us to test him in this.
There was a period of 1-2 years when we were not tithing. I was struggling with it because I thought it was part of old testament law and not something we should have to do anymore. I felt like I had grace to not tithe while I was wrestling with it and also while we were searching for a new church. We were still blessed; we've always had enough to get by. But things are definitely leaps and bounds better now that we're being obedient in this area.
ahhhhh....the booth with the free t-shirt. :) Josh LOVES a free t-shirt. LOL. He had to put some of his TUITION on one of those credit cards in his junior year, and it took 7 years for us to pay it off. We are free of that card, but tied to a few more plus college loans. It would feel great to get out from under all of that!!!
Dave Ramsey would say that you take out your tithe after your income as the first fruits... and he talks about 10%. That comes before you even make your budget - as if you pretend that money isn't even there to be used. 10% (and more if you can, but most of us can't) is God's ... no question.
But I do believe that giving what you can is always honored. God isn't going to get so technical. It just depends on how legalistic you want to get with it.
There have been so many times when Brian and I have said.. .man, you know, if we just stopped tithing for a few months we could knock out half of that debt... but we've never gone there. We just don't consider it and so far have been blessed enough to keep tithing every month since the day we got married.
But who knows what will happen. Sometimes things get so bad... I don't know not being in that situation yet (thank You Lord).
In other words, I don't have an answer. My first response is, make your budget with 10% in mind first and foremost, and try hard to make it work. If you can't, then give as much as you think you are able.
When Aaron was out of work for months I struggled with tithing the full 10% or paying the grocery bills. But God convicted me big time through my conscience. With all the ups and downs of Aaron's career path this year, we were never without anything we needed (and I stress needed). In fact his timing and provision was perfect. Aaron lost a job and God provided full time work for me instantaneously to get us through and provide income. God is faithful. He just wants us to put our full trust in him. -Kelly
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