Tithing, giving, and Stonebreaker

October 30 2011Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. Malachi 3:10 (NIV)"Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." Luke 6:38 (NIV)We called him Brother Stonebreaker, he was my college basketball coach, hetaught basic accounting classes to aspiring young preachers, he ran the college’sbusiness office, and he was starting a church in Glendora. I liked him; he wasupbeat, energetic, encouraging, and obviously very busy. I ended up attendingthe church Brother Stonebreaker was pastoring because a guy in my dorm invitedme. They were meeting in an old building that used to be a movie theater, thena bar, and then just sat around vacant for some time. My second Sunday there aSunday school teacher snagged me to tell her class about Germany and tell mystory, my testimony, about how I became a follower of Christ, how I got saved.The good thing about not being able to prepare was that I didn’t have any time toget nervous either nor was there any chance of backing out. She just thought thatany Christian should be able to give his or her testimony at any time, and she wasright. She did me a great favor.Stonebreaker was a better coach than he was a preacher, but I loved his passion.Since he came out of the business and accounting world his favorite subjectto preach on was financial stewardship, how to handle money according tobiblical principles, and especially giving and tithing (giving 10% of your income).Somehow, if it wasn’t the outright theme, the topic found its way into most ofhis sermons. I am sure God put me under his preaching because I was completelyignorant on the subjects of biblical stewardship, giving, and tithing.At first I told myself that surely I was exempt because after all I was a poor foreign college student working for less than the minimum wage, and I was already investing most all my money to be trained in doing God’s work. Stonebreaker, however, dismantled my excuses one by one. It was as if he could read my mind from that pulpit. He would quote Malachi stating that withholding the tithe is like robbing God. He would ask, “Does God really have all of you if he is not in charge of your money?” He would challenge us to manage our money according to faith, making the tithe the starting point of trusting God’s principles when it came to money. He would remind us of God’s promises attached to the tithe and giving.You guessed it, after a few months I started tithing. I didn’t want to rob God. Iwanted to support my church. I wanted to experience God’s promises to giversand tithers. I wanted to live by faith. I wanted to be obedient to God. I wantedfor God to have all of me. I wanted God’s blessing on my life. I haven’t stopped;in fact since then my desire to give has only grown. And God has been faithful tome and Susie. None of his promises have failed. The things Pastor Stonebreakerpreached about I now have experienced, I know them to be true. I thank God forhim, he did me a great favor.To God be all glory,love you, Pastor Hans