I have recently been hearing and reading a lot about the benefits of tithing and to be honest it brings up some mixed feelings.

I’ve put togther this post below from a number of sources on the web.

I would love to hear your opinions or experiences with tithing.

The subject of tithing can be charged with emotion and yet can be a good barometer to measure how you really feel about money.

Tithing is the practice of giving away 10% of your income (tithe means “tenth”), usually to a religious or charitable cause.  Many people absolutely swear by the practice of tithing and consider it integral to the process of wealth creation.

As a wealth creation strategy, it takes a certain level of faith to believe that you will gain more by giving more away and yet this is exactly what many spiritually aware teachers such as Mark Victor Hansen or Dr Joe Vitale are suggesting. To our logical minds this perhaps doesn’t make sense. If you earn $1000 and give away $100 then you have less, not more. But not understanding electricity or gravity doesn’t make them any less valid.

The benefits of tithing include:

• Overcoming scarcity thinking.  Tithing helps you develop a greater sense of abundance.  By giving away 10% of your income, you’re programming your subconscious to believe in abundance thinking.  This can make you more open and receptive to receiving money.  If you think abundance, you’re more likely to experience abundance.
• Supporting a worthy cause.  If the money you tithe is put to good use, you can financially support a cause that’s important to you.
• Achieve greater wealth.  Whenever you earn more money, your tithes increase as well, so your cause(s) receive greater financial support.  This can be extremely motivating for some people.

It is important that tithing should be done from a state of abundance.  If you harbour thoughts of scarcity as you tithe, then tithing will only become a source of incongruence and pain for you. This is the barometer mentioned earlier. If you feel in lack and are concerned with making ends meet then the idea of giving away 10% of your income can be difficult.

If you were certain however that giving money away was the quickest route to receiving more, then how much easier would it be to give? And would you stop at just 10%?

Consider the true purpose of tithing.  The purpose of tithing is to serve the highest good of all.  But it is only one of many ways to serve the highest good, certainly not the only way.  There are many other ways to serve the greater good.  Here are some ideas:

• Give time.  Donate time to a cause you find is worthy.  Perform an act of service.
• Give information.  Write articles, a newsletter or start a blog to share your knowledge freely with others who may benefit from it.
• Give talents.  Use your skills to help someone who can’t afford to pay for them.
• Give acknowledgement.  Smile at people.  Give someone a kind word today.  Acknowledge a job well done.
• Give encouragement.  Be supportive of those around you.  Let others know that you care about them.
• Give thoughts.  Intend the best for other people.  Give a silent blessing to the homeless person or the driver who cuts you off on traffic.
• Give touch.  Give someone a pat on the back, a handshake, or a hug. 

 Money is not the only way to give; there are times when money is actually the weakest form of giving in comparison to those above.  Consider the parent who gives a child money rather than attention, time or love.

Understanding is not as beneficial as knowing. You will only know that tithing creates greater abundance by trying it for yourself. Take the 30 day tithing challenge and share the results with others.

There is a place where giving is painless and receiving is selfless.  Find that place in your own life, and move towards it.  As you do this, your scarcity thinking will dissolve, and a mindset of abundance will flow through your reality. Steve Pavlina