Christianity After

 TITHING An issue I see often within the church is the issue of money--actually the issue of tithing. I hear people say things such as, "I've got to give my tithes to the church this week,"  and "I'm going to volunteer my time to the church this week and count it as my tithes."  In the first instance often they are merely giving an offering to the church. A tithe is 10% of your income. A tithe is not the same thing as an offering. A tithe is not 2%, or 5% or even 9% of your income--it is 10% and anything over 10% that you may give to the church is an offering. In the second example, a tithe is to be 10% of your income--it does not involve time.  Another point I often hear within the church is: "I'm giving my tithe to the church and I'm designating it for the XYZ project." The tithe belongs to the church to use as it deems proper for the use of supporting ministry. If a condition is placed on a tithe by the tither then it is no longer a tith

 This blog is about Christianity and about Christianity after I retired from 28 years of ministry in the United Methodist Church.    The purpose of this blog is to draw people closer to God, or to cause them to draw closer to God. So what qualifications do I have to do this? First, and foremost, I am a child of God and I know Jesus Christ is my personal Savior.  Secondly, I am a retired United Methodist minister after 28 years of ministry. I have served a total of 23 churches in Alabama and West Florida. I have a Master of Divinity from Asbury Theological Seminary and a Ph.D. in Christian Counseling from Newburgh Theological Seminary. I was the AWF Conference historian for 4 years. I have served on various district committees such as Building and Locations, and Committee on Ministry. I have served in churches in the following counties: Hale, Clark, Barbour, Mobile, Baldwin, Autauga, Dale, and Choctaw, and in Pensacola in Florida. I am a published writer. I once served as a religion cor