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God created humanity with a capacity to know, love, and worship Him. Worship is that place where the heart of God and the heart of His child meet.

Oswald Chambers said, "Worship is giving God the best He has given you." Worship carries the idea of showing reverence to God. It's an active, adoring response whereby we declare His worth. To worship means to bow down and pay homage to God: "Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord our Maker" (Psalm 95:6).

The Bible has much to say about Christians and their money. The Bible contains more than two thousand verses on the subject. Time and again, the Bible associates our money with our commitment and relationship to the Lord.

The word give has been defined as "to make a present of." One of the many ways we can give to others is to give financially. Through giving, the early church helped one another and invested in what God was accomplishing.

Sadly, the concept of giving has become distorted today. Yet our giving is vitally connected to who we are.

Giving is a spiritual sacrifice and an expression of love and gratitude, because everything we have comes from God (see 1 Chronicles 29:14). Some people say, "I can't afford to give!" in reality, we can't afford not to give. David said that he will not give to the Lord that which cost him nothing (see 2 Samuel 24:24). No matter what we give to God, what is left will always sustain us better than if we hadn't given at all.

The way we give indicates a great deal about our spirituality. Our giving reveals our value system. Jesus said, "For where our treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matthew 6:21). God does not ask us to give because He needs our resources. Rather He challenges us to make Him the focus of our lives instead of our money and possessions.

Although the Apostle Paul never overemphasized the subject of giving, he never neglected the importance of it, either in 1 Corinthians 16:1-2, we find specific guidelines for giving: it is to be a universal practice for believers (v. 1); it is to be done regularly (v. 2); it is a personal act (v. 2); and it is something we should be prepared to do (v. 2). As we give, God will meet our needs and prosper us (see 2 Corinthians 9:6-10).

God promises to bless us if we have the right attitude toward giving (see Luke 6:38; Proverbs 3:9-10). However, some people give with the wrong motives.

They may give in an attempt to manipulate God, to relieve guilt, to increase self-worth, to achieve recognition, to obtain power, or to gain tax advantages.

However, the Bible instructs us to "let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver" (2 Corinthians 9:7). The motives that God desires for our giving are to express our love to Him, please Him, lay up treasures in heaven, and help reach the world for Jesus Christ.

A steward oversees the affairs and property of another person. Stewardship implies that everything we have belongs to God. Being a good steward means to manage our resources well and use them to glorify God.

Old Testament law required God's people to give ten percent of their income, which could include flocks, herds, or crops. This ten percent was known as a tithe. In addition to the tithe, God's people were required to give offerings to the Lord for the care of the temple and the salaries of the priests. In the days of Israel, tithing was not voluntary giving. It was demanded as a form of taxation.

Is tithing for today? Dr. J. B. Gabrell made this observation: "It is unthinkable from the standpoint of the cross that anyone would give less under grace than the Jews gave under law." God makes an incredible promise to those who give to His work. He will "open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you such blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it" (Malachi 3:10-11).

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from the Holy Bible, New King James Version (NKJV), copyright@ 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.