Understanding

[clydin]

When I started to attended church I felt uncomfortable tithing. Mostly because of this prayer,

"As we give in today's offering we are believing the Lord for:
Jobs and better jobs, raises and bonuses, benefits, sales and commissions, favorable settlements, estates and inheritances, interests and income, rebates and returns, checks in the mail, gifts and surprises, finding money, bills paid off, bills decreased, blessings and increase, generosity,increased capacity, new skills, witty inventions and ideas, wise investments, fulfilling my Freedom For Our Future pledge.
Thank you Lord for meeting all my financial needs.
Your Word says, "You are able to make all grace abound toward me, that I always have all sufficiency in all things, and have abundance for every good work." – 2 Corinthians 9:8
I now give into the Kingdom of God to promote the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ - Hallelujah!"

I felt as though if the church named enough topics, and if any happened to me it would trick me to give more. Honestly I am still confused about the significance of this prayer to tithing. I hope I can get clarity through this forum.

P.S. I now tithe, but not for things in the prayer ( I feel those will come regardless). I tithe to help the church since they are used finances to have my family there and I hope it goes to those that need it, whether it is donated to them or help save a fellow soul.

 

[football5680]

You just have to do it for the right reason and your reason is good. We should do good for the sake of good regardless of whether we will be compensated in this life. Heaven is the ultimate reward and entrance into heaven should be all that we hope and expect to receive.

 

[dhh712]

When I started to attended church I felt uncomfortable tithing. Mostly because of this prayer,

"As we give in today's offering we are believing the Lord for:
Jobs and better jobs, raises and bonuses, benefits, sales and commissions, favorable settlements, estates and inheritances, interests and income, rebates and returns, checks in the mail, gifts and surprises, finding money, bills paid off, bills decreased, blessings and increase, generosity,increased capacity, new skills, witty inventions and ideas, wise investments, fulfilling my Freedom For Our Future pledge.
Thank you Lord for meeting all my financial needs.
Your Word says, "You are able to make all grace abound toward me, that I always have all sufficiency in all things, and have abundance for every good work." – 2 Corinthians 9:8
I now give into the Kingdom of God to promote the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ - Hallelujah!"

I felt as though if the church named enough topics, and if any happened to me it would trick me to give more. Honestly I am still confused about the significance of this prayer to tithing. I hope I can get clarity through this forum.

P.S. I now tithe, but not for things in the prayer ( I feel those will come regardless). I tithe to help the church since they are used finances to have my family there and I hope it goes to those that need it, whether it is donated to them or help save a fellow soul.

What prayer is that? If it would discard the first paragraph, move the last to the first and close with the second, it would be far, far better.

That first paragraph gives me the indication that you are attending a humanity-centered church. The first paragraph is mostly about having prosperity through worldly things. God does not work for us. We work for God. Our worship of Him is not about us. It is about Him. The only reason to tithe is to further the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

You do not tithe in order to bribe God to give you blessings. The fact that they say "We are believing the Lord for:" and then it lists a bunch of worldly blessings, it seems to me that they are feeding you the stale, polluted Gospel of prosperity message which can never fulfill anyone spiritually rather than the rich blood of Jesus Christ. The only reason any one believes in God is because God has given them the gift of faith and has freed them from their worldly bondage to Satan. Once given, they are to glorify God and enjoy Him forever, not get all they can from this world.

I would run far, far away from this church. It sounds to me like a synagogue of Satan.

[By the way, if you read through Isaiah and Jeremiah at the least, you will see that God is extremely furious at these humanity-centered churches which have discarded Scripture for the imaginations of their heart: "For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water." (Jer 2:13)].

 

[1watchman]

One should give to the Lord, and only hope the church leaders will use the offerings in a godly way. They will have to answer to God, so you can be comforted in knowing why you gave.

You might want to consider if you are with a godly and scriptural assembly there. Look up always!

 

[FredHoyle]

If you are not happy tithing then don't do it, find another way to give to God, money is not all you have to give.
Did Jesus tithe or did he give of himself?

 

[Willie T]

Are you serious? You actually have a choreographed, typed-out prayer? Staggering! Please tell me you are kidding.

 

[xBeex]

I am quite shocked to see such a prayer. Not that we shouldn't ask of God, but that it is all focused on money. Whomever, is a slave and lover of money is an enemy of God. God has given us all we need, we just need to be wise with it!!

I do agree with the concept of tithing, but I would give that to a different Church where the teaching is sound. Tithing shouldn't be done in order to receive rewards - it should be done out of generosity, willingness to help the Church and a recognition that everything we have is not our own but God's.

 

[parsley]

I've been trying to find that prayer online, bc it drives me nuts and I wanted to find out where it came from.

A couple of churches that I have respected for years have been prefacing their offering time with the saying, and I can't bring myself to participate in it. It is selfish and demanding. What happened to, "We give Thee but Thine own."

It is certainly not an act of humbling ourselves, or sacrifice, or generosity to God and humankind. It is offensive to visitors who want to know what the Christian life is like. I don't object to a person praying that in private, but not branding the church with a greed-based ritual.

Or as you say, appearing like "if any happened to me it would trick me to give more." What happened to the work of the church?

Disturbing.

 

[parsley]

Search results for the first line: 8,960,000 results.

Really sad that this has become a part of our liturgy.

 

[parsley]

When you feel uneasy about something, make sure you don't force yourself into justifying it, because it will grow. Doctrine will grow upon doctrine. I have watched churches get into strange cultish behavior when people didn't listen to their gut instincts, and spend time finding out why something bothered them.

Tithing creates a community of generosity, it makes sure needs are getting met, it covers church expenses and allows for new projects. It allows the church to help people in crises. If everyone tithes, it creates a more ideal society.

Obedience to God is not something to skirt around, but many people rationalize how we are not under the law. They lose the heart of what the tithe was for.

Everything was God's first, and we live on His land.
Our mission in Christianity is to go out and help the needy, share the freedom and love that God offers, being a vehicle for God's power to work through us. When our focus is off ourselves, life falls together and our goals are not about more Stuff.

It is hard to start tithing when you hadn't already, and maybe that's why this chant is needed. Churches probably struggle with the support of growth when the new people do not understand what it means to contribute. People understand dues for club memberships, but don't want to see the church as a club.

We use the building, listen to the pastor, send our kids to classes and events, eat meals there... all of this requires physical space, utilities, and significant oversight. We tithe with more spiritual ideals, but in truth we know that the money goes to the needs of the organization, the outreach projects, staff payroll, lawn mowing, parking lot de-icing and paving, and more.

But more importantly, our heart needs to be where faith should lead us. We let go of our lives in order to find new life. God puts us on an adventure that does not follow the goals of this world, or ensure a white picket fence closing us in.