My Dad was a Christian businessman who tithed 15% of his income to the church.
That’s right. A whopping 15%. Before taxes. With a wife and five kids.
He did so even when he had to re-mortgage his business property and his business was on the skids.
At the age of fifty he and my brother sold up everything in Pennsylvania and put all their eggs into one basket–they moved to South Carolina and opened a men’s clothing store.
Over the next ten years they began to be fairly prosperous. At that point my Dad gave even more of his money to the Lord’s work.
I’m convinced that tithing brings prosperity.
How does it work? Six things begin to happen:
First, when you tithe your attitude to you wealth changes.
By giving sacrificially you achieve detachment. The money and the stuff money buys doesn’t matter to you so much anymore.
Giving sacrificially sets things in their right priority.
So what happens when you achieve detachment? You don’t care about money and the stuff money buys as much so you live more simply. You don’t give two hoots for the big trophy house. You don’t really want a lake house or beach house. You are happy to lease a car or drive an older car. You don’t need all the toys and all the crap.
Consequently, as you live more simply you have more money.
Second, when you give sacrificially you start to live on the edge a bit. Your attitude to life changes. You’re not resting on your cash and securities, your investments and savings as much (because you don’t have any) and so your approach to life is more one of living by faith.
You are learning to do wave walking–trusting in God and not in your riches. When you have this attitude to life you are more able to take risks and the person who takes risks usually profits from them in the end. You are willing to take risks because you don’t mind losing it all because you’re not putting your trust in that stuff anyway? Get it?
Now, this is pretty cool because you are not only taking risks in your business and in your management of money, but you are also taking risks in your relationship with God and with others, and this is an exciting way to live. It is also a prosperous way to live because risk takers usually accomplish more than those who play it safe.
Thirdly, when you break your love of money and you live more simply you will probably start working harder. You’re starting to remember what it was like to be hungry. When you’re hungry you see new opportunities. You make new connections. You’re alert and alive and working at your peak and these things all lead to prosperity. Continue Reading
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