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July 7, 2009
The validity of tithing testimonies
Tithing Video Testimony ... Manipulation or Education? raises an important question. Is it ethical to present tithing testimonies when encouraging others to give, or is it simply an evil scheme to stir up emotions and generate a response?
My friend Ken Hemphill says that there is a four-letter word being whispered in private hallway conversations and in staff meetings in nearly every church today ... cash. Church leaders are afraid to talk about money because it has been the bane of so many in such a public profession. No one want so to be the next one who gets tagged as a spiritual and emotional manipulator.
Refusing to discuss (or ignoring) the subject of money and ministry leaves the church, and particularly its leaders, is a peculiar situation. On the one hand, there are direct costs associated with ministry. There are operational/institutional costs as well as programming costs. Unless we want to abandon any church organization larger than what can been contained in a home and be supported through passing the hat around the room to cover minimal expenses, we must come to grips with the reality that ministry and money are connected. On the other hand, the fear of many church leaders is that if they are seen asking for money too often, then the ministry will be lost in their appeals for money to support the ministry. The risk is spending all money raised to raise more money.
For the church leader who find themselves at the epicenter of this tension, let me give you something to consider: The only person worried about talking about money is you. The person in the pew understands it takes money to run a business (and yes, the church as an institutuion is a business by pure definition). The person in the pew is also expecting you to articulate your needs and demonstrate measurable ministry results through past giving. This is where tithing testimonies come into play.
The word "tithing" has become one of those theological footballs that people like to kick around. At the end of the day, tithing is descriptive of how the ministry of the church is funded. (How you define and practice tithing is a theological issue and is outside the scope of this blog. I'll leave that debate for the halls of academia. My goal is to help church leaders fully fund the ministry they have been called to accomplish through the local churches they serve.) Giving is an emotional process, not an intellectual accent to an objective point of view. Therefore, it makes perfect sense to provide testimonies of how people's lives have been changed through the ministry of your church.
If someone opposed to the theological implications of tithing, listens to this testimony from yesterday's post again, what they will hear is someone who found a healthy alternative to deal with the stressful situation of unemployment through his church and his faith. The church he participated in was obviously a place where he was involved and committed. The fact that he stayed involved even during the few months he was struggling to financially support the ministry of the church demonstrates that the ministry of the church made enough of an impact that he clung to it in his time of need and found a solution to his very real and personal problem. This is a measurable act of ministry: a life that has been changed and empowered through the ministry of the church. This is the best ROI any church can hope to provide its membership.
I suppose one could argue that this video is pure manipulation, but then you'd have to say the same thing about every non-profit who tells its story through its participants and members who volunteer and financially support the work of the cause or organization. While another person may or may not arrive at the same conclusion regarding the practice of tithing, the video clearly illustrates that there are multiples ways to deal with money. If I'm in the same situation and see this video, it might cause me to begin asking questions and exploring what God has to say about money. And we know that many churches have used financial freedom as a gateway to discuss true, eternal freedom in Christ.
Show the video. That's my vote. If the act of giving in and of itself is an emotional process, then testimonies offer people the chance to share how their life has been changed through the ministry of their church. If giving is down in your church, start telling better stories that illustrate measurable acts of ministry.
Posted by bstroup at July 7, 2009 6:20 AM
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