God's Promise to Our Descendants

 

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1 Samuel 20:14-15 GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

¹⁴But as long as I live, promise me that you will show me kindness because of the Lord. And even when I die, ¹⁵never stop being kind to my family.

 

Jonathan was speaking to David. With prophetic vision, Jonathan looked into the future. He realized that David was in the ascendancy and he was on the decline. At the time he was speaking he was crown prince. His father ruled the country as a tyrant, like the kings of the other nations around him. Through prophets, including Samuel, God had spoken to Saul. The only effect this had was to harden his heart and to further alienate himself from God.

At 70 I, too, feel the weight of time on my shoulders. Who knows when my call will come? My mother died at 66, and her mother at roughly the same age. On the other hand, my dad died at close to 101, and his dad at 69.

My concern is that Sylvia be well looked after when I’m gone. She has only been a wage earner for a few years of her life. So she and I will be living on what social security I have earned and what denominational sustentation the church will decide to grant me after working for them for 45 years.

Am I worried? No, not really. The Lord had seen to it that we have always been fed and clothed and housed. And I know my Lord. He often does things in very strange ways. But he does not forget his own.

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I first wrote this in March of 2012, before I had any definite plans for retirement. A little over a year later I did retire. Over the last decade God has richly blessed us in both finances and health. As time has gone by, my faith has only grown stronger in God’s promise to look after us.

 

Thank you, heavenly Father. You have more children than anyone can count, yet you love us each one individually and do look after us!

 

 

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[1] https://www.learnreligions.com/jonathan-in-the-bible-701186

Tithe

  

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2 Samuel 24:24

Good News Translation

²⁴ But the king answered, “No, I will pay you for it. I will not offer to the Lord my God sacrifices that have cost me nothing.”

 

All of us who have worked for wages know that our employer deducts various taxes from every paycheck. On our first paycheck, we may indeed have been surprised when we didn’t get the full amount that we had calculated we would receive. When Sylvia and I were in Africa as missionaries, the mission board also withheld tithe from our paychecks. It was calculated in such a way as to take out the most possible. When I inquired why they didn’t let me pay tithe voluntarily, I was told that then most people would not pay tithe. However, by doing this they were robbing us of a special blessing from God.

You may ask, “Are there different ways to calculate tithe?” Yes. One way is to take the gross salary before any withdrawals. Thus, if you earn $10 per hour and work 40 hours per week, your gross wages are $400. So, you would pay $40 for tithe.

A second way is to reason that your Social Security deduction is an investment towards your retirement. I reasoned that when I retired, I would pay tithe on my Social Security. I am retired now, and that is what I do today. Therefore, I deferred my tithe on that portion until I actually received it. Since the withholding for SS is 6.2% from the $400 I had earned, I would be deferring $24.80 towards my retirement. So, my gross income minus $24.80 is $375.20. My tithe for that paycheck would be $37.52.

A third and simplest way is to pay tithe on the actual value of your check. So, if the actual check you got for your week’s work was $312.00, you would pay $31.20 tithe.

If you are confused about how to calculate your tithe, speak to several experienced members of your church. This may include your pastor and the church treasurer. See how they calculate tithe and why they calculate their “increase” the way they do. (Warning: You will find that there are some high-ranking members in your church who do not pay tithe. Ignore their input entirely.)

No matter which way you end up paying tithe, do it faithfully. This is acknowledging God as the provider and owner of all. Your tithe to the Lord will cost you something.

Now read Malachi 3:10 again. You will find your after-tithe dollars go farther than if you don’t pay tithe. Try it! The Lord wants you to test Him on this matter.

In case you’re wondering how Sylvia and I pay tithe, for the 43 years since we have returned from Africa, we have used a modification of the second method above. We found that the Lord has blessed us abundantly. And we strongly encourage you to take the Lord’s promise about tithe paying literally. During our stay in Africa, when our tithe was deducted along with taxes, we didn’t voluntarily pay tithe. We missed both the feeling of sacrifice when we voluntarily pay tithe and also much of the abundant blessing promised to tithe payers.

We are blessed beyond measure by Your generous care for us, gracious Lord. Thank You!

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