Submitted by Joy (Red Deer, AB Canada)
A story about one family’s journey into complete trust
How do you come home and tell your wife that you felt that God was asking you to take a leap of and give away 90% of your income and live off the remaining 10%?
I was so nervous I could hardly get the words out. I was just an average guy making average money, my wife is a stay at home mom to our four young children. Even with my wife making a little bit of extra money cleaning my company office one night a week, it would still take a miracle to be able to make it. But I prayed that if this was really from the Lord, that he would have to work in my wife’s heart like he did in mine.
The look on her face said it all. I could see in her eyes that she thought I was crazy. She listened to everything I said, and then raised her doubts to me. She tried bargaining for a compromise on the percent we would give away, but I told her I felt it had to ninety percent. She promised to pray about it and get back to me. I went to bed that night with serious doubts that she would ever consider it.
The next couple of days were hectic around our house and it was two days before we had a chance to sit down and talk. I’m in, she said with a nervous smile. Now I was scared. We crunched some numbers and with the ten percent along with other small sources of income, we could get by on a very slashed grocery budget and absolutely no extras. After all ten percent of my paycheck didn’t even cover one of the two monthly mortgage payments! We also decided that we would tell absolutely no one that we know, as we thought people would end up helping us out in a year that they knew we would be extremely poor, and we wanted to rely solely on faith and prayer.
That was back in the beginning of January, its now almost mid-May and by grace and a few miracles we have made just over 1/3 of the way. It has been difficult and hard at times, but we wouldnt change it for anything. Stepping out of a consumer driven culture has been difficult, but being able to give so generously has been such a blessing that we cant really describe it. I feel like we will never be the same. Our kids have done so great accepting that we are living with less financially, its proven to us that money and material possessions have very little to do with childrens happiness.
We would love to share our complete story along with the stories of people that we have been able to bless with you after a full 365 days of reverse tithing, and let people know that generous and sacrificial giving will completely change your life.
Thank-you for this amazing website
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