The Bible clearly teaches the principle of giving, and money is just one demonstration of commitment to the work and ministry of the church to which we belong. We want to be a generous people, providing the church with the resources to do things well, as well as to demonstrate God's generosity outside this church in what we give away.

We believe Jesus affirms the Old Testament command to tithe to the church (Matthew 23:23-24 - a reasonable interpretation of that in today's world is to gift aid 10% of net income) and that as we do that in a spirit of generosity God will bless us:

Proverbs 11:25 (ANIV) 
        A generous man will prosper;
            he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed.
 

See also Proverbs 11:25, Proverbs 22:9.

For some of us, this may seem a frightening step. Jesus gives many reassurances on the point such as "Do not worry. Your father in heaven knows what you need!" Matthew 6:31-33). God also says, "Test me in this." This is the only place in the bible where we are commanded to test God. If money is an area of worry for you, start with a smaller percentage and see if you are not blessed by God... (Malachi 3:10)

For some people the issue is ownership - they feel the money belongs to them, yet the bible says, "The earth is the Lords and everything in it (Psalm 24:1). For others it seems too great a sacrifice, yet the sacrifice is what authenticates the heart of worship in the giver. King David in the Old Testament understood this; in 1 Chronicles 21:24 (MsgB) he says, "I will not offer God sacrifices that are no sacrifice."

As Billy Graham once said, "If a person gets his attitude to money straight, it will help straighten out almost every other area of his life."

We invite you to join us on an adventure of faith and counter-cultural living!