NEXT STEPS: GiveSmakprov

WHAT IS IT? [Illustrations included in this devotional are not visible in this view. Illustrations are only supported in the Bible App for iOS, Android, and at Bible.com] Hopefully reading those verses yesterday began to give you an idea of how God views money. As far as tithing goes, it began as a command and exercise for God's people to remember just exactly where their provision came from. Whether of their flock or of their garden, the first ten percent of whatever they gained was to be given back to God; and not only ten percent, but the best ten percent. There's something about giving your first back to God that reminds you that He actually is the reason you have any of it to begin with. And there is nothing that will move faster and get a tighter grip around our heart than our money. As we'll see in the coming passages, this tithing and returning back to God is actually less of an obligation and more of a gift - it helps us to keep our hearts from relying on something so fickle. It provides us with a tangible way of saying, "God, I trust you and I know that you can do far more with this ten percent than I could do with the ninety percent!" Why do we tithe? Because it helps us to remember who our real Provider is!