Back in 1945 I can remember my mother giving me 10 cents to go around the corner to Otto's neighborhood grocery store on Highland Place in Ridgefield Park, NJ to buy a loaf of Wonder Bread. Remember those days? Mailing a letter for 3 cents...or watching a movie at the Rialto Theatre for 25 cents? My, how things have changed. And, of course, we had not even heard of credit cards.
Money has always been an important issue in our lives and whether you don't have enough or you are enormously wealthy, money can be a problem. So why do we have money problems? Why do we fret and fume at the erratic state of the stock market and worry how we're going to pay our monthly bills? Money can control our lives.
When Dick and I were first married we used a small file folder, about 5 by 10 inches with envelopes that we simply labeled Mortgage, Food, Utilities, Clothing, Insurance, Church, Vacation, Repairs, Christmas Club, etc. Twice a month Dick would cash his check and place the budgeted amount in each envelope. We paid cash or wrote a check for everything. No credit cards. If the money wasn't there we did not buy.
Yes, money can be a destabilizing challenge in our lives. But about 45 years ago I began to realize that I don't own anything in my life. All tangible things, all money that I earn, all that I possess is a gift. Yes, it dawned on me that God owns everything. Wow, did that change my perspective. Then I thought, if God owns everything, and He has given us enough money to live comfortably and raise four children, then I must show Him my appreciation by giving Him our tithes and offerings.
Back in 1972, when Dick and I were members of Wyckoff Reformed Church in New Jersey, we participated in a Lay Witness Mission. As a result of that weekend we surrendered our hearts to Jesus and our lives were dramatically changed. We had always been 'good little churchgoers' and gave $5 or $10 a week, congratulating ourselves on our generosity. But in 1972, we read the Book of Malachi in the Old Testament and began to re-think our giving. "Bring the full tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house; and thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you an overflowing blessing." Malachi 3:10.
That sounds pretty good, we said to each other. So we took the meaning of 'tithe' seriously and began to donate 10% of Dick's salary every month. In fact, Dick announced the beginning of December, 1972, "Let's start tithing." I thought Dick was crazy! December? Christmas? Four kids under ten years of age? What about gifts?
But we pursued and since I was making a little money singing, we agreed to pour that money in and we made the tithe work. It was a struggle, but we persevered. Then we heard about the parents of a friend who had tithed 70% to the Lord. Imagine! We began to realize a 10% tithe is just the beginning. Years went by and gradually we began to increase our giving way beyond 10%. Did we experience "overflowing blessings"? Absolutely! True, we kept within a budget, but since we started tithing we have never been short of funds.
In the mid 1990s we had the opportunity to pledge a certain amount to a special mission project. At first we thought, how can we do more? We've more than doubled our tithe. Then we reminded ourselves of Malachi. So we said, "Let's see what happens. Will God bless us again?" Just one week after we had made the additional pledge to donate more money, the State of NJ sent Dick a letter stating....since you served in the US Army during the Korean War the State of NJ Pensions Bureau is increasing your monthly pension. The amount was almost identical to the amount we had pledged! Proof? God has poured down on us overflowing blessings time and again.
So in this time of economic growth and prosperity, we rejoice that God is in control. All that we have belongs to our omnipotent God and by trusting Him and giving back to Him what is actually His, we are blessed!
