The Christian Giver

During my brief stay in the US, I did a lot of church-hopping; an unitended side-effect of not owning a car, and being dependent on others to drive me places. But I was rather richly blessed as I got to witness how many different types of churches ministered to the people of Atlanta, GA. One morning in early 2015, at a church that I was visiting, the Pastor kicked off a season of Giving titled, 'Be Rich'. The goal was to raise over US$1.5 million which would then go to several partner-organizations across the globe. It got me thinking about Christian Giving once again. It is a topic that we often discuss in my circle of friends, and I find it rather fascinating. The Old Testament is very clear on the subject of tithing - the first 10% of everything - land, livestock, income, etc. It is repeatedly mentioned in the Old Testament, with some serious warnings of the consequences of not tithing. But what about in our present day and age? Is tithing still relevant today? And if yes, then what is our duty to our God, to the Church, and to our fellow peers? And what about non-religious giving - what is our current charitable duty?

According to an article in the World Economic Forum, the US is consistently at the top of the list of countries that give the most generously. I have personally witnessed the generous nature of my US friends on several occasions, for a variety of causes. Giving USA places all religious giving in the US at 32% of all charitable giving for the year 2015. But this is an overview of donations across all religions - not specific to donations made by Christians, or donations made to churches. And, of course, this number is specific to the US, so it isn't a realistic picture of global giving priorities. So that brings me back to my original thought: What is our charitable duty? We as Christians are called to be charitable; to see the need in others and help wherever we can and however we can. In my life (till date) on this planet, I've known some who have given freely, sometimes going above and beyond what would be normally expected of them. I've also known few (although this number is MUCH smaller) in my list of acquaintances who have felt that they had very little or no charitable duty.

The New Testament isn't as concerned about the required 10% tithe as we find in the Old Testament, but there is plenty of instances of the early church members supporting each other and the church through their giving. Personally I find the Old Testament 'tithe' amount to be a very helpful guide with which to measure our present day giving for two main reasons:

Firstly, 10% of my income isn't a large commitment and giving it away every paycheck has always grounded me. For most of my time in the US, I was a rather 'poor' Grad student - living off of leftovers, cheese toasties, $1 ramen noodles, and cereal. And my minimum-wage job as a student worker at the campus bookstore barely covered all my expenses to have much leftover for giving. The thought of 'Giving' at that time was sacrificial to say the least! And I must admit that there were a few weeks, when I didn't give as faithfully as I should have. But I soon began to notice a pattern - the weeks that I forced myself to still give, no matter the financial cost to me, were the weeks that my dollar stretched the most. My giving wasn't especially spectacular those weeks (10% of a small amount, is after all an even smaller amount!), and I don't think that my monetary contribution of a few dollars made any huge impacts. But the effect it had on me was unmistakable - I learned to trust God and to think beyond my immediate personal needs and wants. After graduation, when I got a better job it was an easy pattern to continue, and I found myself extra happy that I was blessed to give more.  Also, for me it hasn't only been about giving money. Last year during my transition back to India, I was without a job for several months. There was little to no way for me to give financially at that time, as I was living off of savings, and 'Bank of Mom & Dad'. The first month or so I didn't think about it much and let my giving slide. However, even during this financial 'dry spell' I still had plenty of one thing to give - my time. So instead of tithing my finances, I tithed my time. In this situation also I found that it was me who was the most blessed by giving of myself.

Secondly, I do feel we have a charitable obligation to our peers - where my 10% (or whatever your giving percentage is) might seem small to me, if everyone consciously made that percentage a part of their giving, collectively we can do so much more. Here in India, we could do wonders in terms of aid, instead of constantly relying on overseas funding options to fund our non-profits, and charitable organizations. So why can't it be our churches hosting a 'Season of Giving' to benefit and improve our own Country? Why are we not funding our own non-profits that are working at improving education, women empowerment, better housing etc.? In my opinion, one of the reasons behind this is that though God has continued to bless us, and this country, we somehow feel we are still lacking and we need more from him before we can be a blessing to others. But I disagree - granted, we are not in the same GDP bracket as countries like the US, but we do live in a land of 'enough'; and God has blessed us enough to be a blessing to others. And from the blessing that I have experienced in my own life because of my giving, I know that God's heart is very happy when we give.

So whether or not the Old Testament 10% tithe is still relevant, I think the idea of 'giving' will always be relevant. But I feel that associating a percentage with our giving, is a great tool to help us be more faithful and effective in our giving. And when everyone gives consciously, and consistently - no matter how big/small the individual contributions are; God always honors and richly blesses the whole amount.

"The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver."

2 Corinthians 9:6-7 (ESV)