People find all sorts of reasons to stay away from church, or faith, or worship or anything that smacks of 'religion.' Cloistered inside of a heartache of fear, many would say that 'religion' is bunk because, "I mean, look at all those religious leaders out there - Fred Phelps! He doesn't have a tolerant bone in his body. Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker - C'mon! How many millions of dollars did they bilk out of the faithful? It's just a bunch of hocus pocus. I'm not giving one red cent to anything that has the word 'ministry in it."
Unless you are like my daughter who would like to give her inheritance to attend Hogwarts to be included in the Ministry of Magic.
That being said, Christians in leadership all over the world have, at times, done a poor job of figuring out what it means to make disciples. We've concocted all sorts of ways to condone financing a new building extension, or paying for a new organ, or organizing a new program to 'bring new people in,' that we've neglected the purpose of the tithe in the first place.
The word 'tithe' is not used in the Bible, but the implied meaning is that one gives one tenth of the first fruits of their labor to the Lord. A sacrifice, if you will, designed not to 'appease the gods' but to put in perspective how the gift of life, and its blessings, fit into it. Contrary to popular religious opinion, God does not need our money; he is not going to the poorhouse if I don't place fifty dollars in the plate on Sunday morning and certainly, God is not going to store the bank notes in a heavenly vault to be distributed later on.
But giving has a much different purpose when done out of gratitude. Those that give of their money find that they no longer indebted to serve it. The high point of their week is not collecting their paycheck but distributing it where it is best used.
The problem is, when our money is often given to a church, or a non-profit organization, almost always there is a proviso, or some sort of string attached. We always like to have control, don't we? I've heard this before: "I'd like to donate some of my assets to the church, it's a large some of money, but I want it to go to ________." And the blank is filled in. Or, what can happen is that those that have the money find ways to use their weight to pressure those institutions into making the decisions that they believe are the most 'financially prudent.' There is a reason they made that money, isn't there? Shouldn't we be relying on their wisdom?
Yes, perhaps, but it would be great to see big tithers putting strings on their money that says, "Whatever you do with the gifts that God has given me, I accept, but I would like at least ten percent to go into outreach, or even given away to those who are in need."
I'm sounding cynical, I'm far too aware of it, because I fail at this 'freely giving' all the time. I see what I have earned and believe that it is somehow mine but then I give it to the church and my fear - yes my fear - is that the head of the church will be like Jim and Tammy Faye and soon enough, the pastor of the church will be driving a brand new Mercedes and living in a ten million dollar house. Just the last week, Joel Osteen was seen trying to give a reason for the fact that he is being paid multimillions to be a 'shepherd.' Yes, he is good at what he does, but is this the very essence of why people stay away from religion in the first place? Is it not just another business?
Wow, I'm cynical. I'm sorry about this, but the world needs a heroic figure, not an anti-hero (and I'm not saying that Jim, Tammy Faye and Joel are anti-heroes), but we need a servant figure, one who strives, Christ-like, to be the leading edge in transformational, sacrificial life. I keep hoping that one will arrive, one that I can follow, one that I can emulate - but then I am convicted again and again that each one of us is called to be that sacrificial person. Instead of being enslaved to pointing fingers at religious leaders that perhaps have not been entirely honorable, I should be freed to be who God has made me to be - a Theophilus. A God-lover. One who loves God and loves others with all the gifts that God has given us. No strings attached.
Looking forward to any feedback. I might be completely off and I will eat crow and swallow it too.
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