Tithing When Money is Tight

It’s been said that the poor spend first and invest what’s left while the rich invest first and spend what’s left. I’d like to create my own version that says the generous give first and spend what left while the greedy spend first and give what’s left.

One of the most common reactions I get from people after talking about tithing or giving is, “Andrew, that’s great for you. But I can’t tithe because money is tight right now.” I truly do sympathize with families who are caught between a financial rock and a hard place. It’s painful to have more month at the end of your money. One of the joys of speaking about tithing and generosity is seeing how the Lord provides in miraculous ways.

God makes an unbelievable statement in Malachi 3 where he says give him the full tithe—the full ten percent of your income—and test him to see if he won’t come through again and again to meet your needs. But how many of us aren’t testing God with our giving—but with our spending?

We test God by withholding our tithe because we say we’ve fallen on hard times—in denial that it’s our spending that got us here, not a legitimate financial or medical emergency. We test God by spending 98% of our income on ourselves—or worse, 120% of it on ourselves with the help of credit cards.

Let’s go back to the basics. If you can’t tithe because money is tight for you, you may be committing one or all of these sins.

#1: You’ve Confused What’s Mandatory and Discretionary

Mandatory is anything required for you to live. Let’s define those:

• Housing
• Food
• Water
• Electricity
• Cell phone
• Transportation
• Internet

But what I’ve found is people have confused what’s mandatory with what’s discretionary. Disney vacations are discretionary. The latest iPhone upgrade is discretionary. Eating out, Door Dash, new cars, and subscriptions from everything from streaming services to meat and makeup—all discretionary. I haven’t even mentioned paying someone else to clean your house or wash your car or grocery shop for you or do other things you can do yourself. I could go on and on here.

In the 1950’s, the average new home was 950 square feet whereas today, it’s about 2,500 square feet.[1] Today, we have two-income households and fewer children per family—yet the size of the average American home has more than doubled from what it used to be.[2] Entitlement and expectation have gone through the roof.

Too many people today are trying to keep up with the Joneses—and by that, I mean what the Joneses post on social media—rather than seeking to glorify and honor God with their finances. When you get a raise or a promotion, it’s all too easy to increase your standard of living rather than your giving. You can now afford to get into more debt—and often do! No wonder money is too tight to tithe.

#2: You Don’t Plan Your Spending

People who fail to plan, plan to fail. If you’ve followed me for any length of time, you know that I don’t like budgets. Why is that? Simply, budgets don’t work. They aren’t sustainable. But that doesn’t mean do nothing. Have a spending plan.

A recent survey showed that 65% of people don’t even know where their money is going. They’re just coasting through life financially without ever knowing where their money is going until it’s too late. But people who have what’s called a spending plan spend less money. It’s that simple.

What’s a spending plan? Where you write down where your money’s going on a monthly basis. You’re basically driving looking through the rear-view mirror. It allows you take inventory of what needs to go and what categories you need to add more to, like saving. This works because there’s nothing like putting the numbers right in front of you in black and white because they don’t lie. I encourage you to start by writing down the last three months’ worth of expenses and then make this a monthly practice. Categorize, eliminate the unnecessary, and make adjustments.

We think spending everything we have is more fun than being self-disciplined so we have enough to give—but it’s not! Indulging in comforts and instant gratification means you’re missing out on the joy of sacrificial giving. C.S. Lewis wisely said:

“It would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.”

#3: You Spend Too Much Money on Convenience

Money is also going to be too tight to tithe if you’re spending too much on convenience items, services, and food. Money’s going to be tight if you’re using Door Dash multiple times a week instead of cooking at home. Money’s going to be tight if you’re in the Starbucks drive thru constantly. And how is it almost ten dollars for a venti latte now? But I digress. Money’s going to be tight if there’s a new stack of Amazon Prime boxes on your welcome mat every few days.

Here’s another example: I often hear families complain that they can’t afford healthy food at the grocery store. Haven’t you heard this before? Well I can’t agree. Sorry, it’s just not true. It is expensive to buy conveniently packaged healthy meals. But you can’t tell me that some of the healthiest raw ingredients are expensive such as celery, carrots, bananas, lentils, rice and beans, and oats.

Convenience saves time and effort, but it comes at a cost—you pay more money for less product. Now I’m not suggesting you live so simply you’re eating a diet of lentils every night—although, fun fact, they were the first food mentioned outside the garden of Eden in the Bible. But you get my point: It’s harder to prepare lentils than it is to buy a premade salad or go through the drive thru of the nearest fast-food joint or order through Door Dash. The fees alone can be outrageous!

#4: You Haven’t Created Margin

Finally, if money is too tight to tithe, it’s likely because you haven’t created margin. Many believers today are out of balance and have no margin to be generous.

Leviticus 19:9-10 says:

“When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap your field right up to its edge, neither shall you gather the gleanings after your harvest. And you shall not strip your vineyard bare, neither shall you gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard. You shall leave them for the poor and for the sojourner: I am the Lord your God.”

I love this verse because God is instructing the Israelites and us to leave a little on the vine and in your fields. What does that mean?

• Leave a little for harder financial times that you don’t see coming.
• Leave a little in the wallet so you can give spontaneously.
• Leave a little time in your week to minister to someone who’s struggling, whether that means calling to check on and pray with them or taking them out for lunch.
• Leaving a little means double the meal that you’re making for dinner so you can take it to someone in need.
• Leave vacation time so you can take a mission trip in the summer.

Living bountifully is living with margin. If you’re consuming everything you have—all your time, money, and resources—on yourself, then there’s a margin issue.

Conclusion

So step out on faith and give your tithe. In fact, I challenge you to give an offering over and above your tithe! Don’t be afraid to step out in obedience in the management of your finances and see what God does.

This blog opened by saying the generous give first and spend what left while the greedy spend first and give what’s left. Often, the greedy don’t have anything left to give. There’s nothing left.

You may think I’m harsh. Jesus told the rich young ruler, “Sell all you have and give the money to the poor.” And he walked away sorrowful. His possessions possessed him. It wasn’t that he couldn’t do it but that he didn’t want to. I leave you with that thought.

[1] https://themreport.com/news/data/06-17-2022/average-new-home-size

[2] https://patch.com/pennsylvania/hellertown/bp–how-a-right-sized-1950s-home-became-a-tight-fit-in-2012