Comments on: Tithing: Gross vs the Net, Sending it with a Credit Card, & a Tax Write-Off

By: Chris Peach

Chris Peach — Mon, 16 Jul 2018 20:58:08 +0000

In reply to Steveark. Yes! I agree with you Steve. Tithing keeps things in perspective.

By: Steveark

Steveark — Sat, 14 Jul 2018 19:12:18 +0000

My wife and I tithed on our gross income our entire careers from the $18,000 salary I started at to the several hundred thousand I made my last year of my full time career. We still tithe on my six figure side gigs in retirement and I firmly believe the money we’ve given through the local church has blessed my family more than anyone else. It kept money in perspective and since it was a big check, bigger than any of our bills or mortgage, we felt it when we gave. One thing I have no clear idea about though is how do you tithe in retirement after you quit making an income? Tithing is based on your “increase” and things like Social Security and investments are coming from money you already tithed on previously and in some cases haven’t even grown at the rate of inflation so there has been no increase. Plus if you were to try to calculate it somehow, assuming you even had the records for the net growth of your assets, it would be mind boggling. I’m thinking right now we’ll probably keep tithing based on what we actually spend, if I stop earning, as we draw that out of our investments. Just like using gross instead of net as the basis all these years, why not be on the high side of the equation, after all He has given us much more than we needed!

By: Marc

Marc — Fri, 13 Jul 2018 11:59:28 +0000

My parents were missionaries when I was growing up, so it was easy to see the importance of giving since our family was dependent on financial support from churches and individuals. Early on in my adult life I gave my tithe to the church and didn’t give much thought into how I gave (it wasn’t necessarily 10%, kind of depended on where I was at financially), but I gave to the church and not much else. I personally don’t feel that 10% has any real significance to us today. The past few years I’ve tried to give as I feel led by God, not necessarily a specific percentage, and not all to my local church. In the New Testament Jesus talks a lot more about giving to the poor and helping people in need than he does about giving to the church. Now instead of just writing a check to my church I spread out my giving and give to other causes that help the needy as well (World Vision and The Exodus Road for example). Since I’ve changed my approach my giving has been a lot more rewarding, it’s something I think about a lot and motivates me to make money so I can give more, and I’ve been led to give more than I would have in the past. I still think it’s important to give to my local church, but I think that’s only part of the bigger picture.