Umbrella Of Protection

Housing market is down, gas prices are still up and many experts say we could be heading toward a pretty sever recession over the next 12-16 months. Heck, even Wal-Mart reported not having any gains in the last quarter.

With all this news about the one thing we Americans love, our money, many people begin to get tense and worried. As a Christian, let me ask you a question. Do you trust God with your life? What about your finances?

Here is another question? As a Christian do you practice the Biblical command of tithing? If you answered "Yes" to the first two questions, then you probably answered "yes" to the tithing question. Every time we teach on tithing at CSF I say the same thing. If we really trust God with our life then why not trust Him with our finances? If we trust Him with our finances by tithing....then and only then can we rest in the promise that our Heavenly Father will "meet all our needs according to His riches" (Philippians 4:19) and that "in all things and at all times, God will grant us all we need." (1 Corinthians 9:8-9) Those promises and all the other financial promises come with the prerequisite that we first give and trust.

Every time I teach on tithing I share the Biblical truth that if, as Christians we are not honoring and obeying God with our finances, then He has no Biblical requirements to meet our financial needs when tough times hit. He may do it....but there is no promise given that says He will. Basically, when we decide not to tithe, we are playing the game of life with MY money and we do not see ourselves as stewards of God's money. When we are acting as stewards, it is like playing with "house" money. And the house never runs out!

Every time I teach on finances, I share my personal story that as a single person and of course now, (I)we have always honored and obeyed God by tithing off our income. Therefore, I have never worried about the market, recession and other financially stressful things. I know that because I give to God as He asks....He will always meet my needs. Standard of living may go down....but I live a stress free life because I know that I have placed my life and finances in God's hands.

Last question: Do you honor God with your finances as a steward? Or do you see your self as an owner of what you have? For more on this topic go to our website and listen to the message from this summer called "Bet The Farm."