Thursday, July 29

You have made known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand. Psalm 16:11

As you begin your time with God today, ask the Holy Spirit to shift the focus of your mind and heart from the pressures and activities of this world to the promises and hope of the heavenly world for which you were created.

Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. Luke 6:38

Why is it sometimes hard to give? We want to give; we know that God is pleased when we are generous and that he calls us to continually grow in our generosity – yet still, we sometimes find it hard to give. Why?

While I think there are probably many possible reasons – one of the big ones is fear. We are fearful that if we give some of our money away we won’t have enough left over to meet our own needs and desires. We fear that the economy might go down the tubes; or that our job situation might change; that we won’t have enough for retirement; or that our children might not have enough for the college of their choice.

Fear is real. And while some degree of fear can be appropriate and actually helps us manage our lives and our finances with wisdom, I also believe fear can play a huge role in the way we think and feel about money – and that fear is one of the forces that discourages and even kills generosity.

When we are fearful that we won’t have enough – we struggle to give.
When we are fearful that the economy might collapse – we struggle to give.
When we are fearful that our job might be eliminated – we will struggle to give.

There are two antidotes to fear when it comes to money; one is sound financial management, and the other is faith.

Most Biblically oriented financial experts teach the 80-10-10 principle. That is, we are to live on 80% (or less) of our income; give at least 10% of our income to God (the Old Testament standard was giving the “tithe” – the New Testament teaching is giving “generously”); and then invest or save 10%. Generally speaking, if we built our personal finances around this model – we would be much more likely to feel peace rather than fear when it comes to money. The problem is, we live in a culture that teaches us to live on 110% of our income – and therefore we live on the edge of financial stress and fear.

So then, where does faith come in? Faith is trusting that God wants to bless us – not to harm us. Faith is trusting that if we give God the first 10% or our wealth – that the remaining 90% is enough to live on and to save for future. Faith is trusting that when we are generous, God pours out blessing – on others as well as in our own lives. Faith is trusting that God is always more generous than we are – and that our generosity is simply a response to his generosity.

Take a few moments to think about your own relationship with money. When you think of your own financial situation – do you feel peace or do you feel fear and anxiety? If you feel some level of fear – perhaps God is urging you to begin to take steps – no matter how small – to move toward the 80-10-10 principle!

Brian Coffey