| A Cheerful Giver? |
| Written by Kandise Lucas, PhD. | |
? Tithing.There! I said it! So many ideas, fears, thoughts, etc. go through one’s mind when this word is said. It can be said by a preacher in a pulpit or a televangelist on tv…the well of emotions is same. Give ten percent of your income….remember, gross, NOT net. I was raised as a “tither.” My mother, who is an ordained minister, always made sure that we gave a tenth of our allowance every week during Sunday school. As I grew and became more independent, I continued this practice. For over twenty years, I cheerfully gave my tithe and much more to every church that I attended. Prior to arriving to service each week, I would neatly and thankfully complete my tithing envelope, making sure that my handwriting was neat and the flap was tightly sealed. I would then place the envelop in my bible under my favorite scripture for that week. When Sunday arrived, I could not wait to get to church for Sunday school and morning service. The choir would sing, the mother of the church would testify, a deacon would pray, and then……it was time to pass the plate! I could finally give my tithe. Approximately ten years ago, I joined a church in Richmond, Virginia, where I had relocated to be near my family and attend graduate school. I continued to bring my tithe on a regular basis because I enjoyed the act of giving and felt honored to support God and the ministry efforts of my church. Unfortunately, my enjoyment and honor associated with giving to God and my church began to change into frustration, disgust, and distrust. During a semi-annual church meeting, it was brought to my attention that for every dollar that I gave to the church, less than twenty cents went toward ministry. The remaining eighty cents went toward what the church leadership designated as “administrative costs.” After further research, I found that a majority of the administrative costs were attributed to the Fortune 500 salaries that the church staff was being paid. To complicate matters, I had witnessed desperate men, single mothers, and senior citizens that had given to the church for decades, being refused financial support or offered very little support during a time of crisis. While the church could not meet their needs, they found the funds to increase salaries and hire more unneeded, inefficient staff. The final straw for me was when I read a weekly church bulletin that printed an announcement advising churchgoers that if they had not contributed to the church financially within the last year, they would classified as an “inactive” member. I began to wonder about the hundreds of individuals that did not have the means to give financially but gave selflessly of their time and talent year after year, which was more valuable then any form of currency. What would they be, “active inactive” members? On the same note, is it acceptable for an individual to live in another state, never serve in the church, but sends a check every month to be deemed an “active” member? At that point, I understood that the church that I was a part of was profit-driven, not people-driven. While I am not against a fair wage for a fair day’s work, I did take issue with the fact that a nonprofit organization, my church, felt justified in breaking ranks with other nonprofit organizations and opted to severely overcompensate the staff and support business pursuits at the expense of properly funding a variety of core ministries, which included our children’s ministry and our mature adults. t was at that point that I realized that I was giving to make a man, his family, and his friends wealthy, not to further God’s purpose. This realization, as devastating as it was to know that church leaders would take advantage of generous givers in such a selfish manner, led me to rethink and restudy the concept of tithing. I no longer gave with a “cheerful heart”. For me, my church and its leadership had transformed itself into a poorly managed corporate entity that had a charitable component as a technicality. Once again, serving people as representatives of God’s love was not their priority. Fulfilling selfish agendas was. Of course, I came under a great deal of scrutiny and attack by church leaders, family, and friends as a result of my decision to stop tithing to the church. Nevertheless, I stand by my new revelation to give with a “cheerful heart.” One cannot do this when they know that the monies that they give are being misused and mismanaged for selfish gain. I also opted not to be one of those that gives out of obligation, which is just as bad as not giving at all or giving irresponsibly. Since this experience, I have done a great deal of research and have asked many questions regarding the spending of the monies that I give to an organization, faith-based or otherwise. I often request annual reports, 990 tax forms, and complete a search on www.irs.gov in order to see if their nonprofit status has been revoked prior to giving. If an organization refuses to provide this information or is not financially transparent, then they cannot be trusted to manage any monies appropriately. Giving is an act that requires us to be responsible and selective stewards so as not to give irresponsibly. While we may not be too cheerful to pay our mortgage, electric bill, or car insurance, we can find an organization, faith-based or otherwise, that deserves our hard earned monies to which we can give cheerfully. I would like to express my gratitude to all of the organizations that operate in integrity when overseeing finances provided through giving people. I also want to thank Rev. Ralph Hodge for his faith, pursuit of truth, and courage to encourage others to give cheerfully, not out of obligation. “Managing money is a matter of the heart…” |
