There are few things that I have always known, without question and without much instruction. I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that the church is true. I know it through and through, from the whites of my toe nails to the bottoms of my split ends, I know it's true. I've never doubted. People/members? Yes, I've doubted a few from time to time. The Church? No, not ever. It's hard to explain it, but the very core of me knows it's true.
I feel the same way about tithing. Though somewhat of a monetary principle, it's spiritual when you get down to the nuts and bolts of it all. And I absolutely know that though it is a sacrifice initially, we are blessed ten fold when we follow the commandment to pay our tithes and offerings. I know that the Lord gives us all we have.
Nothing we earn in this life is ours. The apples on my tree, the gas in my tank and the clothes on my children's back were
GIVEN to us by our loving Father in Heaven. All that we have is his and it is with gratitude that we repay him by returning just one tenth of that which he has given us.
With that being said, it's not always easy to pay our tithes and offerings. Though we recognize the importance of doing so, paying our tithing is certainly challenging and often scary. It doesn't matter how much or how little money we have, giving ten percent means sacrifice. It means sacrificing what we want, and often what we need.
So WHY do we pay tithes and offerings?(possible answers)
1. It's a commandment
2. To build up the kingdom
3. To help those less fortunate
4. To show compassion
6. To keep ourselves from becoming selfish
7.
To continually exercise and increase our faith8. Because we need the blessings
9. It's a habit (a good one, but a habit nonetheless)
10. So we can sleep at night
11.
To show gratitude
"We have been given commandments to help us prepare in every way to live in the presence of our Heavenly Father. He has given us a way to thank Him for our blessings.
Willingly paying tithes and offerings is one way we thank Him. As we pay these offerings, we show that we love Him and will obey His counsel." (Manual)
12.
To set an example for our children"When we pay tithing we show our faithfulness to the Lord.
We also teach our children the value of this law. They will want to follow our example and pay tithing on any money they receive." (Manual)
"Teach our children to pay tithing even on their allowance or other income, and then take them with us to tithing settlement so they know of our example and our love for the Lord." (Carl B. Pratt)
13. To show humility
Seeings as the 'why' was always the most important question for me to have answered growing up, I thought we'd cover that first. So now that we've covered that a little, lets move forward with the 'who, what, when, where and how' of it all...Who: You, your spouse, and your children. We are all commanded to tithe. Even the small children can learn to do it, and it's our job to teach them.
What:
Tithes and offerings.
Tithes. "In modern times the Prophet Joseph Smith prayed, “O Lord, show unto thy servants how much thou requirest of the properties of thy people for a tithing” (D&C 119, section introduction). The Lord answered: “This shall be the beginning of the tithing of my people. And after that, those who have thus been tithed shall pay one-tenth of all their interest annually; and this shall be a standing law unto them forever” (D&C 119:3–4). The First Presidency has explained that “one-tenth of all their interest annually” refers to our income (see First Presidency letter, Mar. 19, 1970).
Though there are still questions that need personal revelation to clarify (do you pay tithing on your increase before, or after taxes? etc.), we know we are commanded to tithe 10% of our annual increase.
Who can name the other kinds off offerings we can/should give?
Fast Offerings."Church members fast each month by going without food and drink for two consecutive meals. They contribute at least the amount of money they would have spent for the meals. They may give as generously as they are able. This offering is called the fast offering. Bishops use these fast offerings to provide food, shelter, clothing, and medical care for the needy." (Manual)
Interestingly enough, service is mentioned in the manual under "other offerings". I really enjoyed thinking about service as an offering because it is truly an offering of ourselves. Even when we don't have means to donate fiscally, we can always offer ourselves.
Service. Members also offer their time, skills, and goods to help others. This service allows the Church to help needy members and nonmembers around the world at community, national, and international levels, especially when disasters occur. (Manual)
Other Donations. Church members may donate to other efforts of the Church, such as missionary work, the Perpetual Education Fund, temple construction, and humanitarian aid.
When:
In our house (as in many houses), there's a debate of whether to pay our tithing every pay check, month to month, or at the end of the year. I won't lie, when I read this quote, I felt justified.
"It has been my personal experience that the surest way to pay tithing faithfully is to pay it as soon as I receive any income. In fact, I’ve found it to be the only way." (Carl B. Pratt)
Not only is that the easiest way for me personally, but I find that when I pay my tithing as soon as I earn money, I consciously think about the principle of tithing. When I've paid at the end of the year, that's almost as much as I've thought about it all year long. So for me, paying as I go makes tithing more personal, more meaningful and more apparent in my daily life. It doesn't feel like I'm simply paying a debt at the end of a year. Instead, I feel as though I am recognizing my blessings often and showing gratitude for them as frequently and promptly as possible.
Where: We all know by now, I'm assuming, where to bring our tithes and offerings...to a member of the bishopric at church, or (for fast offerings) to a priesthood holder (usually deacons) who come by on fast Sunday. We probably also know this as well, but let's quickly cover WHERE the money go once it leaves our hands?
Some of you might be familiar with one of my favorite, classic LDS movies where a child is ask:
"What do they do with the tithing money?" And the boy responds: "I think the bishop buys his clothes with it."
(The Mouths of Babes)
Sounds pretty accurate right? Okay, not at all. Where does the Lord's money really go?
1. Build, maintain, and operate temples, meeting houses and other buildings
2.Provide operating funds for stakes, wards, and other units of the Church. (These units use the funds to carry out the ecclesiastical programs of the Church, which include teaching the gospel and conducting social activities.)
3. Help the missionary program
4. Educate young people in Church schools, seminaries, and institutes.
5.Print and distribute lesson materials.
6. Help in family history and temple work.
How:
This question provokes an interesting thought, does it matter HOW we pay our tithes and offerings? We know there are personal, prayerful aspects of tithing, but is there a 'how' that doesn't necessarily change person to person? I think so. Think of it this way, does it matter HOW happy you are when that money exchanges hands? Does it matter HOW grateful you are? Absolutely. Tithing isn't about the money at all.
It is important to give willingly. “When one pays his tithing without enjoyment he is robbed of a part of the blessing. He must learn to give cheerfully, willingly and joyfully, and his gift will be blessed” (Stephen L Richards, The Law of Tithing [pamphlet, 1983], 8).
The Apostle Paul taught that how we give is as important as what we give. He said, “Let him give; not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7). (Manual)
When we pay our tithing, and do so "cheerfully, willingly and joyfully" we are blessed. In what ways are we blessed?1. The Lord promises to bless us as we faithfully pay our tithes and offerings. He said, “Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith … if I will not
open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it” (
Malachi 3:10).
I have heard many friends speak of financial blessings they have received as a blessing from paying their tithing (if time, share some, including...
Back when Bro R. and I were first married he had been laid off (Story of my life lol) and things were already tight. We had our house bill coming up. We knew that we could cover the bill if we didn’t pay our tithing. We could wait to pay our tithing when things were more stable or Bro. R. could do a side job and use that to pay our tithing, however we both knew that it wasn’t showing faith in God by not paying our tithing for that month and so we made the decision and paid. A few days before our house bill was to come out I received a call from our old apartments (this was about 2 years later lol) that they had forgotten to pay us our deposit. We ended up getting a check just in time to put into our bank and to cover our house bill. This was a testament to me that God was watching over us, time and time again God has proven to me that he is listening, even to a person as small as me, it isn’t about status, money or beauty. He sees us as we truly are, a child of God and he blesses those that are obedient). But, are the blessings always financial? No.
You will always be blessed, but not always with riches.2. “Verily it is a day of sacrifice, and a day for the tithing of my people; for he that is tithed
shall not be burned at his coming” (
D&C 64:23).
3. President Gordon B. Hinckley said that if people “will accept the gospel and live it, pay their tithes and offerings, even though those be meager, the Lord will keep His ancient promise in their behalf, and
they will have rice in their bowls and clothing on their backs and shelter over their heads. I do not see any other solution. They need a power greater than any earthly power to lift them and help them” (“Inspirational Thoughts,”
Ensign, Aug. 1997, 7).
4. The Lord will also help us
grow “in a knowledge of God, and in a testimony, and in the power to live the gospel and to inspire our families to do the same” (
Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Heber J. Grant [2002], 124).
What are some blessings you, your family members, or your friends have received through the payment of tithing and other offerings? What have you learned from those experiences?
Carl B. Pratt of the 70 told a story this last conference about his grandparents in Mexico. Is anyone familiar enough with the story to recap it for us (see link below)? Some of the interesting things he learned from their example were:
1." ...the payment of tithing in this case was
not related to the amount of cash income. The Whettens decided to use their first cash income for tithing because they had lived well from their animals and their productive fruit and vegetable garden. They obviously felt indebted to the Lord for their blessings."
2. " Integrity in paying our debts to the Lord will
help us be honest with our fellowmen."
3. "My grandparents paid tithing
regardless of the poor condition of their family finances. They knew the Lord’s commandment; they likened the scriptures unto themselves (see
1 Nephi 19:23–24) and obeyed the law. This is what the Lord expects of all His people. He expects us to pay tithing not from our abundance nor from the “leftovers” of the family budget but, as He commanded anciently, from the “firstlings” of our income, be it scarce or abounding. The Lord has commanded, “Thou shalt not delay to offer the first … fruits” (
Exodus 22:29).
4. "...tithing is
not a matter of money, really; it is a matter of faith—faith in the Lord. He promises blessings if we obey His commandments. "
5. I testify that He fulfills His promises, and if we faithfully pay our tithing, we will not lack for the necessities of life, but He does not promise wealth. Money and bank accounts are not His richest blessings.
He blesses us with wisdom to manage our limited material resources, wisdom that enables us to live better with 90 percent of our income than with 100 percent. Thus, faithful tithe payers understand provident living and tend to be more self-reliant.6. President James E. Faust suggested that the payment of tithing is “
an excellent insurance against divorce” (“Enriching Your Marriage,”
Liahona, Apr. 2007, 5;
Ensign, Apr. 2007, 7).
Let me close with Carl B. Pratt's closing message:
The payment of tithing helps us develop a submissive and humble heart and a grateful heart that tends to “confess … his hand in all things” (
D&C 59:21). Tithe-paying fosters in us a generous and forgiving heart and a charitable heart full of the pure love of Christ. We become eager to serve and bless others with an obedient heart, submissive to the Lord’s will. Regular tithe payers find their faith in the Lord
Jesus Christ strengthened, and they develop a firm, abiding testimony of His gospel and of His Church. None of these blessings are monetary or material in any way, but surely they are the Lord’s richest blessings.
Carl B. Pratt, "The Lord's Richest Blessings", April 2011Gospel Principles Manual, Chapter 32, Tithes and OfferingsQuotes:
“God has given us two hands -- one to receive with and the other to give with. We are not cisterns made for hoarding; we are channels made for giving.” Billy Graham
"A religion that gives nothing, costs nothing, and suffers nothing, is worth nothing."
- Martin Luther
