To Tithe or Not To Tithe...

While perusing the blogosphere, I was reading the comments in one blog and the topic was frugality. This commenter asked the question where does tithing fit into it all. Her other queries were do you tithe net or gross. I hopped over to the commenter's blog and answered those questions. But as I did, I thought it would be a great topic for my blog.

What is the tithe?
Tithe by definition is a tenth of your income. In Christianity, biblically based, a tithe is the first tenth portion of your income.

"And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord's. It is holy to the Lord." Lev. 27:30

"You shall truly tithe all the increase of your grain that the field produces year by year." Deut. 14:22

"Will a man rob God? Yet you have robbed Me! But you say, 'In what way have we robbed you?' In tithes and offerings. You are cursed with a curse because you have robbed Me, even this whole nation. Bring all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be food in My house, and try Me now in this,' says the Lord of hosts, 'If I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such a blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, so that he will not destroy the fruit of your ground, nor shall the vine fail to bear fruit for you in the field,' says the Lord of hosts; 'And all nations will call you blessed, for you will be a delightful land,'says the Lord of hosts." Mal. 3:10-12

Mr. Querido and I believe that tithing means giving the ten percent off of the top. We tithe on our gross, not our net income. We write out the tithe check before we pay any other bills. This helps us to remember that God gets precedence in all areas, especially our finances. It is a tangible reminder that God is our Provider and we look to Him for our sustenance, not my husband's employer.

We also believe that God blesses us when we tithe. We find great sales, fabulous discounts, reduced rates and other price cuts in every area. He loves to bless His obedient children. We place ourselves in a position to receive those blessings when we are doing what He has told us to. He is not an arbitrary parent who makes up silly rules just to see if we will obey. No, His commandments are with our best interest at heart. There is always a reward for obedience. A good reward.

Our reward? I get to stay at home with my three children. I don't have to run a daycare out of my home (no offense to those women who can handle more kids than their own!), I don't have to sell anything to keep us afloat, I don't have a small side business at all. I am a full-time homemaker. My husband only has to work one job, with minimal overtime required. He just got a 67-cent raise last month. Our mortgage payment went down by $14.82 a month. We have been blessed with clothing handed down to our sons, who seem to be growing out of everything. We have money in savings and our checkbook balance hasn't gone negative. We are content with the blessings He has bestowed on us.

To tithe or not to tithe? "Can I afford to tithe?", you may ask.
But I ask you, "Can you afford not to?"