Why I Started Tithing

I grew up in church, but tithing wasn’t really a topic that was talked about to my generation. I had also witnessed in my own life how financial disagreements can lead to the dissolution of marriages and bring devastation to families. So growing up, you could say I was missing out on what God had for me because I was misinformed, and talk about money—whether good or bad—just stirred up feelings of anxiety, uncertainty, and distrust.

It wasn’t until I moved to Florida for college where I was actually taught what tithing even was and why it mattered in my life. I was sitting in a service at Christ Fellowship, and I remember it being one of the first times that someone talking about money didn’t make me want to run out of the room. But ironically, that same Sunday, I was also facing the reality that I might not be able to afford to continue going to my college. I was already in way too deep with student loan debt, and financially it just didn’t make sense to stay. This reality was devastating because I had such great friends and had found a really great church. So the thought of tithing, when I didn’t even know how I’d be able to afford tuition, seemed like that message was meant for someone else—not me.

But it was in that service when I realized that tithing wasn’t about what God wanted from me, but so much more about what He wanted for me. I trusted God in every other area of my life except for the one area I needed Him to provide. So that week, I decided to start tithing and trusting God with what little I had—believing that He would do so much more. A few months later, after making preparations to most likely have to leave, the admissions department at my university had a position open up that just so happened to be in my dad’s field. My dad got the job, which meant that I was not only able to remain a student—I would spend the rest of my time there attending completely tuition-free. 

When I started tithing, I did so not expecting anything tangible in return but simply trusting that God would somehow provide—in whatever way that might look. And while He certainly provided financially, I think the greatest way He provided was by giving me peace in an area of my life that I simply had no trust. So trusting God with my finances has taught me that even though I might not always know what He’ll provide, I might not always know where, and I might not always know when—I just have peace that He will.

More In God We Trust? resources can be found here.