“Holly, where are those three tithe envelopes you filled out last week?” The question was gentle, yet unmistakable.
It woke me up. On Friday morning, December 27, 2019, God definitely got my attention. But what was the problem?
The previous Sabbath, our church bulletin mentioned a shortfall in the building fund offerings, in hopes that members would give sufficiently to make the full monthly payment on our church loan. Glancing at the announcements, I had immediately wondered just who was slacking off. Wasn’t our family always faithful and generous in our giving? As family finance officer, deputized by my husband at marriage, I made out regular tithes and offerings checks for the Joers family funds.
A few years back, I added my mom’s finances to my load. “He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much,” Luke 16:10a. Yes, I was a good steward, albeit a multitasking one. As Scripture says, “Let all things be done decently, and in order,” 1 Corinthians 14:40. Yep, that’s a rule of life for me.
Maybe I should just make sure our tithes and offerings are current.
Sure enough, as I checked Mom’s bank notebook, I found that, oops!, I had not figured her tithes and offerings the last time I balanced her bank account. Consequently, I had not written the check to the church either. Well, I’ll just fix that right away, and just in time for the last Sabbath of 2019. Phew!
For good measure, I flipped through the Joers checkbook as well. Looks good, but since we have a few checks I haven’t cashed, I’ll go ahead and write a check to cover tithes and offerings for those, and then I can include an offering for Ingathering (okay, Hope for Humanity!) since I was too busy to canvass those businesses…
In my now-hyper-conscientious state, I scoured my wallet and desk for any and all receipts and uncashed checks. Somehow we ended up with three envelopes to turn in on Sabbath. Patting myself on the back for getting straight with God just under the New Year’s wire, I planned to turn them in early, when we had our Christmas Eve prayer meeting.
So why did God wake me up about the tithe envelopes? Didn’t I put them in my purse…? Hmmm, our Christmas Eve prayer meeting was cancelled...but...oh, let me just go look! Short-cutting my normal morning rising routine, I dug through my purse, but all in vain. The three tithe envelopes were not in it or even near it. They had vanished.
I went to town on Tuesday, didn’t I? Could they have fallen out at Walmart? Yikes! Are they maybe on the front seat of my car? Did I…? Panic threatened to derail my morning calm, my thoughtful Bible study and prayer. Then the solution came. If indeed God woke me up about this dilemma, He must know the answer! He must know where the misplaced tithe envelopes lay. Why not ask Him?
“Oh Dear Father, I just woke up. It’s Friday, Preparation Day. I don’t have time to turn the house upside down looking for these tithe envelopes. I need to change the sheets, cook for potluck, clean the house, and so on.
“I’m so thankful I was able to write the checks just in time, before the end of the year. But I need to turn them in tomorrow, December 28. You surely know where they are, and you have alerted me that your funds are misplaced. Please, please help me to stay calm and show me where to look.”
I left the matter with God, and got out my Sabbath School lesson. Oh, how we need more Ezras and Nehemiahs today. God’s remnant church is struggling! I must be faithful, no matter what.
After breakfast, I went into my office with the same prayer in my heart. Might as well exercise my faith and act as if I believe God will help me. Amazingly, I was calm, peaceful. I had not torn the house apart. I had not even dashed outside to search my car. Instead, God led me into my office, and I sat down at my desk as if to pay my bills.
My right hand reached up to the pigeonhole where I keep the empty tithe envelopes, and I pulled out the top of the stack, as if to restart my computations of God’s portion. Three envelopes. Three thick envelopes, and one is unsealed. I peeked inside. YES! I never would have guessed…
I’m happier than the woman who lost the silver coin! I want to call all my friends and neighbors, too, “saying, Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which I had lost,” Luke 15: 9. Not only did I find the money I lost, but I found it quickly and easily, without losing my mind. Praise God from whom all blessings flow!
Can you guess one of my 2020 resolutions?
And that we should bring...our offerings...and the tithes...unto the Levites...and we will not forsake the house of our God” (Nehemiah 10:37-39).
Holly Joers lives with her husband and son in rural Arkansas, where she serves as stewardship director in her local Seventh-day Adventist church. She prays to be a more faithful steward in 2020.
