Sales and the Greatest Bargain

There is so much that is over-hyped to get our attention. “This is what you really need in order to have a happy life!” “Buy this to be beautiful!” “Everyone who is anyone owns this!” Our lives are filled with noise from numerous sources vying for our response. The last couple of months are notorious for the sounds of commerce. It gets so noisy, often it is easy to miss the greatest bargain of our lives.

Our congregations offer what we really need to have a fulfilling life. It is without price. (And, of course, we have free parking.) Our Lord’s love and abundant provision for our needs are absolutely free! We certainly experience that love and provision outside the walls of the church, too. But, we need our parish involvement, Sunday worship, and community of fellow Christians to keep us centered on the struggle in the essentially secular world.

Because it takes money to operate the parish, and we talk about budgets, the costs of raising up ministries, salaries, and other expenses, it could be misunderstood that there is a cost for belonging to the church. Some people may even put a couple of dollars in the collection basket on Sunday as though it were an obligation for attending, perhaps even an admission charge.

There is no charge. Our giving is something that we must do for our spiritual health. God provides for us abundantly, beyond our wildest expectations. We are created to carry out His purposes for us. So we need to use His gifts as He would have us use them. And we need to dedicate at least a tithe, the first ten percent, back to Him as a way of acknowledging His gracious giving and acknowledging that His economy is one of abundance.

For some of us, committing to tithing immediately could cause disruption and anxiety. It shouldn’t, but it is a matter of faith and faith is built over time. Commit, then, to a plan to be practicing a full tithe within the next two to five years including increasing the percentage of the income that you are giving in each of those years.