Mar 25 - Malachi 3:10b

see if I will not open the

windows of heaven for you

and pour down for you

an overflowing blessing

Malachi 3:10b

 

Do you want to see the windows of heaven opened?! Do you want overflowing blessings poured down upon your life and marriage?

 

Absolutely! Well, let me tell you about how my wife and I discovered a fountain of blessings in our lives. Indeed, let me tell you another story about money and priorities ...

After I took my turn caring for our eldest son (yesterday’s story), it was Mary Louise's turn to stay home ... which this veterinarian joyfully discovered to be her true calling.

I, in turn, went back to work. (And it was, indeed, my turn to work. It was my turn to let her enjoy her calling.)

 

Except there was a problem.

My calling was no longer in graphic arts. I was being called to ordained ministry.

 

And here was a problem ... going to seminary meant that instead of getting paid to go to work, I would now be paying for tuition, books, room, and board for almost four of us. (Our number two, Jay, was on the way.)

"If that's the call," Mary Louise said, "then we have to obey. That's the faithful thing my bride said.

But what I want to talk about is the absurd thing she said next!

As I was quitting my paying job and writing my first tuition check, Mary Louise said, "If we are going to commit our lives to serving God, then we need to do it with everything we have."

"What do you mean?" I said.

 

"Following God means we must also follow our Lord's call to tithe."

 

"Are you insane!" I said.

Tithing, of course, is the Biblical principal of giving back 10% -- right off the top. And suddenly my mouth hung open. I sputtered,  "But I just quit my paying job, and now I'm paying for the privilege of serving God. What are we going to live on? Mary Louise, we have zero money!"

 

"Well then," smiled my faithful bride, "this is the perfect time to start! After all, ten percent of zero is still zero!"

 

The final book of the Old Testament is Malachi. This prophet was, indeed, God's final word for 500 years as Israel now had to wait in silent patience for the promised Messiah (Jesus). As they were waiting then, the Lord left people like you and me with these words ...

Bring the full tithe

into the storehouse,

so that there may be

food in my house,

and thus put me to the test,

says the Lord of hosts;

see if I will not open

the windows of heaven for you

and pour down for you

an overflowing blessing.

How God provided financially for us in seminary was miraculous. Mary Louise worked a few hours on weekends, but mostly it was just checks for $100 to $2000 that seemed to show up at just the right time. It was, of course, the faithfulness and generosity of others.

 

But it was more than that: We were faithful, and God opened a huge window.

Now, this first time our faithfulness resulted in an overwhelming financial blessing. I can assure you, though, that after a quarter century of tithing now, the blessings we've received haven't always been financial. We still struggle with our budget month-to-month like most of you. (Meaning, don't think that by tithing, we can manipulate God into providing this or that. No!)

What we have received through a pattern of generous giving is a confident trust. And this is way better than money. For richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, we have confidence that God is really real. He shows up! He provides. Not always in the ways or times that we expect, but in ways that have profoundly blessed our lives.

Every month, it's an obedient step. Every month, our giving builds our dependence on God and our trust in God. Every month, tithing forces us to define our priorities. And every month for 25 years, our faith has grown.

Everything financial that I earn, buy, or spend will eventually pass away, but 25 years of growing faith is the one thing that will last for eternity!

Question: If you don't tithe, why not? Is it because of … other priorities? Fear? Because you haven't caught the vision for it yet? Because of stubbornness? Lack of trust? Explain.

In Christ's Love,

a guy who won the lottery

when he married a woman

who says absurd things