…Don’t Feel Guilty About What You Can’t Give

Before you jump up and down and tell yourself that you don’t have to give more than a dollar to the offering plate, let me first complete the title to this blog.

When you have given your appropriate tithes and offering, don’t feel guilty about what you can’t give.

I believe that each person in the body should be giving their time, talents and treasures to the body of Christ in the proper proportion to what they make. When it comes to giving our treasures, only a small percentage of the body actually gives like we are supposed to give. I don’t believe in bashing those who don’t give their appropriate tithes and offering. I will only say that I believe this is a maturity issue.

However, on the flip side of this coin, I do believe that there are those of us who do give our appropriate tithes and offering and are bullied or made to feel guilty when we can’t give more. God blesses those who are obedient to His word. God also has told us to be good stewards over those things which He has given to us. We have to remember that when we have done what God has asked us to do; we can’t look at what someone else is doing to compete with them. God does not bless that kind of competition. There are definitely times that God does call us to give above and beyond what we do in our tithes and offering, but He does it in perspective to what He knows we can give. Sometimes we are just holding on to a dollar too tight when God is telling us to let it go. Other times that dollar over and beyond our tithes and offering is meant to be used to care for those things which we have been made stewards over.

Whenever our Pastor holds a special offering, he always prefaces it with “only give if you have it to give and only after you have paid your tithes and offering.”

God wants us to be generous givers. However He wants us to be responsible generous givers.

Luke 12:48 – Much is required to whom much is given, and much more is required from those to whom much more is given.

This is a very true verse. We just have to be careful not to illegitimately use this verse to take from someone what they don’t have to give.

Your money is not your money. It’s God’s.

Psalm 112:5 – All goes well for those who are generous, who lend freely and conduct their business fairly.

I think that last word says fairly. That implies of us that ask of something from others have to ask taking into account that that person may not be meant to foot the entire bill that you need to be paid.

Give and give appropriately, but don’t be made to feel guilty when you have given your appropriate tithes and offerings and can’t afford to give anymore.

God Bless You.