Before you quit reading this post because it contains two boring subjects (tithing and tax returns), I promise that you will want to read the simple tip that I have for you in this post!!!
In the past few years, Theo and I have been immensely blessed. We have beautiful children, a beautiful home and a marriage that is going on seven years. Theo has a reliable job that he loves and we have vehicles that can get us to and from places. I don’t for one second doubt that we are blessed and so rich in many different ways. However, when you look at our actual finances on paper, you probably wouldn’t consider us “rich”. We always make ends meet and are never lacking for much, but there are a lot of times in our lives when we don’t have any extra. Sometimes I wish that I could donate to a go fund me or a friends campaign to raise money. Sometimes I wish I could afford to pay for dinner for a young couple at a restaurant or send my pastor and his wife out on a date. Sometimes I hear about a dear friend who is struggling to pay the bills and I feel like I can’t afford to help her out. Since my love language is gifts, this is hard for me. And while it’s not a direct reflection on our responsibility with money, sometimes its really hard to not be able to give to someone who really needs it just because gas was a little more expensive this month, or we had a birthday in the family so the “extra” spending money is already all gone. Devastation and needs of others doesn’t just happen when we so happen to have extra money sitting around. It happens every single day and sometimes Im torn between generously giving or responsibly saving so that our family can make ends meet.
Enter our system on tithing on our tax return.
If you are not familiar with tithing, I will give you a small crash course. A tithe is a biblical concept where you give 10% of your income/earnings/wealth to support your local church or charity. There is much debate in Christian circles as to whether or not it is mandated, but all Christians can agree that we are called to be generous, whether that means 10% or not. Many people also point out that while in the Old Testament laws, the people were commanded to give 10% of their harvest to the priests, 10% is not the focus here. Giving of the first fruits is the focus. The basic heart concept of a tithe is that everything we have comes from God, and we should be grateful and generous in turning right around and giving to those who are around us. However, even though this is a Christian concept, it can also be done by those who are not believers.
If you would like to read more about tithing, I found this blog post to be very thorough and informative.
Generally, we try to give 10% of our annual income to our missionaries and our church. But what about little extra pieces of income that we receive? Should we also give a portion of those? And what about our tax return? Do we need to give a portion of that, too?
When I hear about my friend who has had a miscarriage, I know I already have that money set aside so I can buy her a gift. When our friend hits rock bottom and isn’t sure his marriage is going to last, we send some money for an expensive date night out and can cover the fees of that first counseling session. When a local church member is facing cancer treatments and has set up a go fund me, I can give generously to that. When a tornado devastates a town one state over, I can send money to the disaster relief efforts.