As we begin our Annual Stewardship Campaign at Reynoldsburg Community Church, I want to start by saying thank you.
Thank you for the many ways you have faithfully supported the ministries God has called us to pursue together. You have faithfully given toward urgent needs, ongoing ministry, spiritual growth, and the movement of God to which we’re called to respond asdisciples of Jesus Christ. Your generosity matters. It blesses God, it blesses others, and it helps RCC live into the mission to which we have been called.
This year, I want to invite you to consider an important spiritual discipline: tithing.
For some, tithing (giving ten percent) may already be a regular part of your walk with God. For others, it may be something you are still learning about, wrestling with, or taking steps toward. Wherever you might be, I want to encourage you to see tithing not simply as a financial decision, but as a spiritual practice that shapes our hearts, deepens our trust, and teaches us to worship God with all that we have.
When I left a career in engineering to pursue full-time Christian ministry, I knew there would be many things I needed to learn. I expected Old and New Testament studies. I expected Greek and Hebrew. I expected practical training in ministry, worship, leadership, and how to organize the work of the church.
But one topic I hadn’t really thought much about was tithing — giving ten percent of my income to God through the church.
Early in ministry, I was told that as a leader in the church, tithing would be expected. Honestly, I had never really heard much about it before. My parents didn’t discuss financial matters with their children, and while I was in college, tithing didn’t feel especially urgent because I wasn’tearning much income.
But after graduation, that changed quickly.
I now had college tuition debt. I had purchased my first car. I was serving in a church with a $12,000 annual salary, and I couldn’t see how the math of giving ten percent was going to work. I felt overwhelmed, stretched thin, and unsure where to turn. The realities of finances, ministry, debt, and giving all came together at once, and I remember crying out to God in a moment of panic.
What I learned in that season has shaped my whole life.
- Tithing Isn’t About Money — It’s About Trusting God
The first truth God taught me is that tithing isn’t ultimately about money. It’s about trust.
I had to learn to lay everything I owned before God — not only my income, but also my debt, my fears, my plans, and my sense of control. I had to ask God to guide me and help me, especially when it looked like tithing would leave me with a monthly shortfall.
Tithing became a tangible step of faith. It taught me to depend on God, not just in theory, but in practice as I managed the everyday reality of bills, needs, and decisions.
In Malachi 3:10, God says:
“Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do,” says the Lord of Heaven’s Armies, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test!”
That invitation is remarkable. In tithing, God invites His people to trust Him and even test Him in a real and practical way. And over the years, I have found Him faithful every single time.
Come back next week to read something else I’ve learned about tithing along the way.
HOW TO GIVE:
RETURN the pledge card mailed to you either by mail or by bringing it to a worship service on October 11, Commitment Sunday.
SUBMIT your pledge online using the GIVE tab on our website. Scroll down to the “2027 Pledge” section at the bottom of the page.
TEXT the word PLEDGE to the church phone number (614-866-5864). This will also take you to the online pledge form.