Giving TO Get

Giving to God is the SINGLE most important step in becoming debt free!

GIVING FIRST REINFORCES THAT GOD IS FIRST
[Then of course, there is the payback...it is NOT just about ‘Treasures in Heaven’]

Giving to ‘Get’ sounds selfish and ‘un-Christian’. Giving as a way of honoring God, does have rewards. The Attitude that one is giving to God to honor Him, AND to expect an increase in material wealth, so that one may give more, is valid.

John D. Rockefeller, Sr. (the wealthiest man in world, the first billionaire, and who, in inflation adjusted dollars would be worth almost twice as much as Bill Gates) said, “I never would have been able to tithe the first million dollars I ever made if I had not tithed my first salary, which was $1.50 per week.” (John, SR. used ‘tithing’ and ‘giving’ as synonyms.)

His son, John D. Rockefeller, Jr., said, “Think of giving not as a duty but as a privilege.”
I would add it is a privilege because it means one has an income as source for giving!

Is there some place in the Bible that promises material wealth?
Amazingly, yes the Bible does PROMISE an INCREASE in material wealth.
We have looked at Proverbs 3:9, “Honor the Lord with your possessions, and with the first fruits of all your increase;” The VERY NEXT VERSE TELLS US WHY: Proverbs 3:10, “So your barns will be filled with plenty, And your vats will overflow with new wine.” That is talking about possessions...material wealth! That is a promise from God. Visit Luke 6:38, “Give, and it will be given to you: good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.” This is the last item in a list of things to do to live a Godly life, described by Jesus, starting in verse 27 (see also Proverbs 19:17, and 28:27). God promises to give back in ‘good measure’.

AND THE BIGGEE!
Take a look at Malachi 3:10, 11; “"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 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;" Take a really close look at the wording in the first sentence, specifically where it says “try Me”. The word ‘try’ is translated from the Hebrew as try, test, tempt, examine, and prove. Malachi 3:10 is the ONLY place I have found, and I have asked Bible scholars for help on this, that God says, “Test ME Now”, "See if I am true to My Word". I asked one of my brothers, a Doctor of Theology, if this was the only place in the Bible where God challenges us to test Him, his answer was, “Once is enough!”
When I first started this odyssey to become debt free, an Unchained Slave, I STARTED with a commitment to give. I purposed to give to God BEFORE committing to being debt free. When I made the commitment, I challenged God. I did, I said, “God I am testing you!” You promise to “open the windows of Heaven” for me, prove it!
Most people would call my circumstances ‘dire’ (see previous blog 'Why Do I Care'). I was living in my other brother’s converted garage, which he had politely asked me to vacate. I was unemployed. My only source of income was a ‘small’ disability stipend. I was close to $30,000 in debt. I figured that was a pretty big test for God. I was wrong.
Three years later, I am truly ‘retired’. I have ZERO debt. My monthly stipend is more than four times as large, and more than adequate for my ‘needs’. I am renting a nice two bedroom house with a garage in an area where the cost of living is twice what it was where I started. I have more money in a savings account than I can ever remember having. I have an investment portfolio, not just a savings account. I have full health, dental, and life insurance coverage.
You want to talk about the ‘windows of Heaven’ opening? I HAVE been blessed as Luke 6:38 promises, in “good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over”.

That is not just a testimony it is a challenge. I committed myself to ‘giving’. I resolved to give faithfully out of all my income. I have done that. There have been times when my faith wavered. There have been times when I looked at that ‘first’ check made out to God, and thought, “this is as a week’s groceries (or more)”. There have been times when living on the edge of homeless indigence I have literally had the change in my pocket, and days to go until the stipend arrived. But I have Given, period. God has honored, and blessed that in ways I never thought in my wildest imaginings.

Giving alone will not get one out of debt, there are other responsibilities, but it IS the place to start