As a new year approaches, you’ve probably already made out your 2024 resolutions. If you’re a Christian, one of those resolutions might include being a better steward of the church. The church has conditioned us to believe that God requires ten percent of our earnings before taxes.
Year after year, we enter the new year with a commitment to do better with our tithes and offerings. Some committed Christians will place their hopes for a dream vacation, new car, home remodels, and more on the back burner to be obedient to the pastor.
Some devout Christians will tell you that if you give God his first, he’ll bless you by answering your prayers. If we’re to be honest, it doesn’t always work that way. I’ve seen people give their last to the church and never reach their goals. In contrast, others give nothing and live a life of material abundance.
Honestly, this conversation isn’t about tithing. It’s about fulfilling someone else’s 2024 resolution. Before you sign another pledge card, here’s why it’s time to put your goals first.
Does the Church Consider Your Personal 2024 Resolutions?
It may be a strange question to ask, but it’s also one that most Christians never consider. Think about it, on December 31st, many people will head out around nine pm to attend church services. For some, it’s midnight mass at the Catholic church or Watch Night Services in the traditional black church.
For many years, I attended a church where the Watch Night service was a prelude to fulfilling the pastor’s dream of building a new church. Not homes for the homeless, food pantries for the hungry, or improving services for the communities near the church.
Year after year, church members packed the sanctuary to bring in the new year with God. There were times when, if you weren’t in the sanctuary by 8:30, you’d be sent to overflow locations or turned away. Year after year, attendees received a fundraising sales pitch on helping the pastor fulfill his dream and not theirs.
Does the Church’s Need Match the Pastors’ Vision?
Don’t get me wrong, if the church requires a new edifice because it’s outgrown the existing church, that’s fine. If the church is falling apart and the city is trying to condemn it, then yes, as a member, you should want to help rebuild. However, should you forgo your dream or your vision so the pastor can say his vision came to fruition?
As you enter into your church services tonight, on Sunday, or in the months to come, ask yourself, are you giving to the vision of the church as a whole? Or are you putting your goals aside to help the pastor reach his?
This thought came to me recently when I heard a pastor say the church had paid off a $2.5 million mortgage. When I attended their watch night service over 20 years ago, God blessed the church to raise $250K to stop foreclosure. Since then, they have celebrated million-dollar milestones in the name of the “vision,” but I guarantee you, there will be a new campaign pitch tonight.
If this is the case, or if you belong to a church that’s constantly asking you to give to the vision, ask yourself, is this God’s vision or the pastor's vision? Next, ask yourself, what does God think of your vision for yourself, your family, and your future?
Does God want you to put off the desires of your heart, the things that will make your life better? Or does He want you to continue to give the additional fruits of your labor to someone else’s dream?
Your 2024 Resolutions Deserve to Come to Fruition
Your 2024 resolutions are promises to yourself and your family to do something different in the new year. It’s okay to resolve to keep your commitment to paying your tithes. However, you also owe it to yourself to reward you and your family with the things you desire.
Don’t let anyone guilt you into believing anything different.
Make 2024 your best year ever. You work hard for the things you need and desire. God sees you, and He wants you to live your best life. Happy New Year!
In 2024, I will finally honor my dream to release my book, When Sunday Comes Will I Still Believe God. It has been a long time coming. Be the first to know when the pre-sale begins by becoming a site member.
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Much Love,
Tracy
Tracy L. Darity is the author of He Me Loves Me He Loves Me Not!, Love…Like Snow in Florida On a Hot Summer Day, and The Red Bear Society.