The following is a question I received on tithe and debt.

"I am trying to resolve an apparent contradiction. The Bible says to live debt-free and it is also very clear about tithing and proving the Lord for his blessing. Through circumstances beyond my control, I now have an overdraft and if I tithe properly this will get much worse. The Lord loves a cheerful giver. How can I tithe cheerfully when I know that doing so increases my debt burden to scary proportions?"

Here is the reply I sent:

It's nice to hear from you. I take it from your question that you have visited my web site and read my pages on the tithe.

Now on to your question. It isn't actually an answer you need here but an explanation and some information.

The first thing I would say to you is that you are not ready to tithe! I know that may sound amazing and usually ministers tell you you have to tithe out of obedience. However, when God asks for His tithe in Malachi 3:10 He also asks you to prove Him with it.

You have to get ready to prove Him. This means that through hearing and hearing the Word of God on the tithe and His precious promises you come to the place where you are ready to give your tithe and call upon Him - with absolute expectation of an answer - to open the windows of Heaven on you and pour out of them a blessing into your life!

Your faith and your hope need to rise to the level that, far from expecting to go further behind in your financial situation, you expect your tithe to bring on you the tither's privilege of being prospered by God! This is how I tithe and this is how Jon Mackenzie tithes whose testimony is on my web site.

I trust this will help.

The following testimony came by email from a visitor to my web site. I believe her testimony will bless you and encourage your faith.

Your teaching on tithes is really a blessing. I notice the difference from the times I wasn't tithing and now that I am faithfully tithing. My bills were always late and I couldn't save even a penny and my credit was so messed up when I wasn't tithing.

Now that I am, my bills are always paid, and I notice that I am always getting a check from somewhere out of the blue, and that helped me clear up alot of debt and now my credit report is debt free.

I have been looking to buy an affordable coop or condo for me and my son but the maintenance fee and mortgage is so high I thought I wouldn't be able to afford it. But I have been praying and giving my tithes and special offering whenever I can, and the Lord has promised me that this year financially is my year. And slowly but surely his promise is prevailing.

Yours, Natalie G.

God's promise to those who prove Him

Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. And I will rebuke the devourer for your sakes, and he shall not destroy the fruits of your ground.

Malachi 3:10-11 - KJV

First God says, "Bring all the tithes!" Then He says, "Prove Me with this!"

God makes a demand on us and then tells us to make a demand on Him. He says, "Try Me out with your tithe. Watch Me prove Myself true to My Word to the tither!"

As a pastor, I am very conscious that the all round well-being of my church members depends for a large part on their diligent consistency in giving tithes. Yet, at the same time, I don't want to put any pressure on anyone to give them.

So one day in prayer I asked, "Lord, when is the moment in a spiritual babe's life that he or she should start tithing?" Immediately in my heart I heard, "New believers are ready to tithe the moment they're ready to prove Me with their tithe!"

Are you ready to prove God with your tithe? Get ready and tithe!