Day 36: Tithe

Scripture to Memorize:
She opens her arms to the poor
and extends her hands to the needy.
When it snows, she has no fear for her household;
for all of them are clothed in scarlet.
Proverbs 31:21-21
Passage to Read:
"Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me.
"But you aks, 'How do we rob you?'
" In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse--the whole nation of you--because you are robbing me. 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 you will not have room enough for it."
Malachi 3:8-10
Prayer:
Dear Lord, I confess that I have robbed you in the past. There have been times when I could have tithed but instead I failed to bring the full tithe into the storehouse. I spent money on myself. At other times I did not even think of tithing. I had gone so far from you that I did not even attempt to do the things you wanted me to do. Still today I will sometimes think that I need to provide for my household before I consider giving anything to you. I forget that you have promised that if I am faithful in bringing the whole tithe into the storehouse you will pour out blessing. I follow the world's truths that says grab everything for yourself and keep it for yourself, to look out for number one first. I forget that your truth is that, as I give to you, you will provide for me. I have heard many people share that this is true. I commit today to bring my tithe to you. I urge you to remind me of this commitment everything I think about my needs before I consider my tithe. By doing this I am showing my faith and trust in you as my Lord and Savior. Thank you God for your generousity. Amen.
Personal:
This week Donna is focusing on Financial Planning. Now for me this has become much easier now that I have completed Financial Peace University and continue to follow the guidelines given there. I do prepare a monthly budget. I may not always adhere one hundred percent my spending plan, but I have the spending plan as my guide line. Donna quotes John Wesley who said "Earn all you can;p save all you can; give all you can." Donna further states that "Christians shouldn't be financially broke. We should be financially wise." She also suggests that we do four things:
"1. Tithe 10 percent.
2. Save/invest 10 percent.
3. Escape/avoid bad debt.
4. Spend less than you earn."
I am able to do these four things thanks to FPU.
I like that Donna asks us next "Do you want 90 percent plus God or 100 percent minus God". I agree with here that this is a no-brainer. She also reminds us that the Israelites gave God their firstfruits not knowing if there would be any second fruits. "Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver" 2 Cor. 9:6-7.
Affirmation: I tithe because I know that 90 percent plus God equals more than 100 percent without him.
Practical:
This things that Donna has in this portion today I already do. I have calculated 10 percent of my earnings. I have determined who I want to give to and how much. I have made arrangements that as many of these as possible are automatically taken from my checking account. The only thing that isn't is the portion that goes to my church. I do not keep these records in my journal because I have separate files that I created when I went through FPU and continue to use now. I also purchased this year a book called a "Family Financial Planner" in there is segements each month to record my daily spending plus a separate section each month for the routine monthly bills. This is very handy for keeping up with what I am spending on each month. The other big thing that came about because of FPU was setting aside an emergency fund. I still have not had a fully funded three month emergency fund for long but everytime a financial emergency has come up in the last two years there is month there to pay the bill. This past month had two one for our riding mower and one for the air conditioning. In both cases the money was there. Now over the next few months I will work at replacing those amounts back into the emergency fund. Then the next time something comes up the money will be there.