I am not an expert nor the final authority. I am simply someone who takes the time to reflect, pray and meditate. One of my favorite books is The Disciplines of The Spirit. It was recommended to me by a good man. And his recommendation, along with my mother gifting me with Iyanla Vanzant's Acts of Faith, has helped me to keep my heart "with all diligence."
My usual routine is to pray and meditate in the morning while the members of my house are still sleeping. It allows for quiet, stillness. Too, there is something about being up with the sun that puts me in the mind of Christ, Christ-consciousness. I have found that praying and meditating at the start of my day grounds me, "establishes my goings and sets my feet upon a rock." Taking time to reflect, to consider my own divinity and my own humanity, allows me to walk my day with a perspective that allows me to actively consider my "neighbor's" divinity and humanity. I guess one could say that it is my way of entering my own "Garden of Gethsemane."
Today in my garden a flower began to bloom...
I thought of beginnings and endings. I thought of letting go. And my thoughts begin to rest in the moment. In the moment, I reflected on the idea, concept, and action of tithing. For me, tithing is a spiritual discipline. It is a spiritual "rod," a tool used to discipline us - to grow us up in the knowledge of the Most High.
For me, spiritual discipline (temperance) is a mark of good practice. Fruit of the Spirit comes by good practice. So now, if I am a person who struggles to love myself and others well, then I must ask myself, "Am I engaged in good practice?"
For me, the spiritual purpose of tithing is not simply to render money into a collection plate. It is to help us to lean our personality, our natural tendency toward ego-centric thinking and ego-centric action toward the cause of God. Love.
5 Whereas the object and purpose of our instruction and charge is love, which springs from a pure heart and a good (clear) conscience and sincere (unfeigned) faith.
6 But certain individuals have missed the mark on this very matter [and] have wandered away into vain arguments and discussions and purposeless talk.
7 They are ambitious to be doctors of the Law (teachers of the Mosaic ritual), but they have no understanding either of the words and terms they use or of the subjects about which they make [such] dogmatic assertions.
8 Now we recognize and know that the Law is good if anyone uses it lawfully [for the purpose for which it was designed].
~1st Timothy 1: 5-8, Amplified Bible
Exercising My Faith...
I believe the object and purpose of tithing is to strengthen us, as with any good muscle training, in giving freely from the well-spring of our heart. Yet I have observed that most of us stop our "training" at material giving. Material giving is our "warm-up."
I believe the instruction and charge of material giving is to prepare us for the demands of "resistance training." It is designed to gradually increase our "heart rate," our spiritual stamina. Once we have consistently given material goods to others (ex: providing for our family's material needs; food, clothing and shelter), have we moved beyond the warm-up phase of our training? Have we moved beyond the "flesh" of material giving on to greater Glory?
I believe the fundamental goal of tithing is to create "lean" heart muscle, to exercise our faith and burn the "fat" (extra weight that stunts compassion-work) from our spirit. We are "exercising our faith," ever increasing our ability to overcome our urge to resist helping our "neighbor." Has what was begun in the flesh now been completed in the spirit?
I believe the object and purpose of material giving and the instruction and charge of tithing is to grow us into zealously desiring to meet the needs of the heart, the seat of our emotions and spirit. What are needs of the heart?
For me, it is to have my unique experience of being human acknowledged. Like Peter denied Christ, we often pretend that we do not see our neighbor. We pretend to not know, we choose to "forget" our spouse, our children, our parent, our friend, and even a stranger's need to have someone listen, support and care about the "issues of life" that are of dire importance to them:
- As spouses, we pretend to not know how important it is to our wife or husband to engage in deep, intimate conversation or to kiss them sweetly when they leave and come home from work. We pretend to not know, we choose to "forget" that a marriage is built upon trust - placing our needs in the hands of another.
- As parents, we pretend to not know how important it is to our children to attend and show undivided interest in the events surrounding their chosen extracurricular activity (dance, martial arts, sports, music, visual arts etc.). We pretend to not know, we choose to "forget" that the health of our children's self esteem is rooted in our ability to prioritize, be attentive even if it means taking a day off from work or missing an "important" meeting.
- As daughters and sons, we pretend to not know how important it is to our parents to be appreciated for their sacrifices with a warm hug as we enter their home for a sit-down conversation. We pretend to not know, we choose to "forget" the value of our presence in our parents' life and so we fail to consistently visit.
- As friends, we pretend to not know how important it is to listen intently, to tune in to the stresses of the relationships that are momentarily weighing on them. We pretend to not know, we choose to "forget" that the "first work" of friendship is the ability to find a common-bond within unique, respective experiences.
- As strangers, we pretend to not notice our "neighbor" who has fallen on the sidewalk of life and how important it is to acknowledge their need(s) - to see them, extend a helping hand and lift them. We pretend to not know, we choose to "forget" that the greatest purpose of love and charge of love is to be a "living sacrifice," to give of ourselves.
The spirit of God, the heart and power of God is in us. Have we been diligent in guarding love and keeping love, meeting the needs of God's heart in our neighbor? What human vessel, human temple, human storehouse have you tithed into today?
Like the meek and need-stricken widow, I believe we reach a level of "Master-y" in Christ (live his example of the "first-work" of faith and sincere fellowship) or spiritual maturation when we know, we choose to "remember" to freely give our all. Love. Love is a choice!
41 And
He sat down opposite the treasury and saw how the crowd was casting
money into the treasury. Many rich [people] were throwing in large sums.
42 And a widow who was poverty-stricken came and put in two copper mites [the smallest of coins], which together make [q]half of a cent.
43 And He called His disciples [to Him] and said to them, Truly and surely I tell you, this widow, [she who is] poverty-stricken, has put in more than all those contributing to the treasury.
44 For
they all threw in out of their abundance; but she, out of her deep
poverty, has put in everything that she had—[even] all she had on which
to live. ~Mark 12: 41-44
I believe that when we give from the seat of our heart, the place of our own poverty (need), we are giving from a place sight, clairvoyant compassion - allowing oneself to be "pricked" by the understanding that we are all human and unified under the common-bond of a need for love.
- Who is my spouse?
- Who is my child?
- Who is my parent?
- Who is my friend?
- Who is my stranger?
Who is my neighbor?
Have I tithed into the emotional and spiritual needs of my neighbor? Have I been wholistically exercising my faith - submitting myself to the conditioning of my mind and heart? Am I a cheerful giver or a begrudging thief? What is the condition of my heart?
Return to me, and I will return to you, says the Lord of hosts. But you say, How shall we return?
8 Will a man rob or defraud God? Yet you rob and defraud Me. But you say, In what way do we rob or defraud You? [You have withheld your] tithes and offerings.
9 You are cursed with the curse, for you are robbing Me, even this whole nation.
10 Bring
all the tithes (the whole tenth of your income) into the storehouse,
that there may be food in My house, and prove Me now by it, says the
Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour
you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.
11 And
I will rebuke the devourer [insects and plagues] for your sakes and he
shall not destroy the fruits of your ground, neither shall your vine
drop its fruit before the time in the field, says the Lord of hosts.
12 And all nations shall call you happy and blessed, for you shall be a land of delight, says the Lord of hosts.
13 Your words have been strong and hard against Me, says the Lord. Yet you say, What have we spoken against You?
14 You have said, It is useless to serve God, and what profit is it if we keep His ordinances and walk gloomily and as if in mourning apparel before the Lord of hosts?
15 And now we consider the proud and arrogant to be happy and favored; evildoers are exalted and prosper; yes, and when they test God, they escape [unpunished].
16 Then
those who feared the Lord talked often one to another; and the Lord
listened and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before Him
of those who reverenced and worshipfully feared the Lord and who thought on His name.
17 And they shall be Mine, says the Lord of hosts, in that day when I publicly recognize and
openly declare them to be My jewels (My special possession, My peculiar
treasure). And I will spare them, as a man spares his own son who
serves him.
18 Then
shall you return and discern between the righteous and the wicked,
between him who serves God and him who does not serve Him.
~Malachi 8: 7b-18, Amplified Bible
Life to the full...
In the economy of Love, am I a rich woman/man or am I a poverty-stricken woman/man? Have I returned? Have I freely given?
We are all ministers, caretakers of love - called out, purposed and charged to keep and guard each other. Have we sincerely concerned ourselves with the vicissitudes of our neighbor's life?
As a minister and caretaker, have I sown abundance and wealth into my neighbor's heart or have I sown lack and poorness? In the employment of Love, have I tithed the whole tithe of my income? Do I only give from my surplus or am I "exercised" in giving from my heart, the seat of my most earnest need?
I the Lord search the mind, I try the heart, even to give to every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his doings. ~Jeremiah 17: 10, Amplified Bible
I believe God judges the heart - rightly divides the cheerful giver from the begrudging thief by searching each heart. In the economy of God, I believe Christ also audits the heart of our neighbor to determine our endurance.
The race is not brought unto completion by the quick works and might of the flesh, but rather the race is graduated unto completion by the ones who endure in God.
Love.
