You can’t out-give God
David and Cate Dyck just bought land in East St. Paul, a rural municipality north of Winnipeg. They are excited to build a new house and move away from their South Osborne home so that their sons, Lincoln and Makai, can attend a school with a German bilingual program. Building a new house is a big financial commitment, but one thing the Dycks know for sure is that it won't affect their charitable donation habits.
"We're excited about [the new house], but it won't change how we give," says David, 29.
He and Cate both grew up in homes where giving away at least the first 10 per cent of one's income to church was expected. Both were also taught to go above and beyond that and donate to other causes as well.
"It was non-negotiable," says Cate, 28. "If you got paid on Friday, the tithe was in the offering plate that Sunday."
Those lessons impacted the way David, who is the director of business development at a local trucking company, and Cate, who runs her own photography business, manage their finances today. In addition to giving 10 per cent of their income to their church, Calvary Temple, they also support a handful of organizations they feel passionate about, including Siloam Mission and Crisis Pregnancy Centre of Winnipeg.
Deciding how much of their income to donate, and where to donate it, is something all young people must do as they grow up in the church.
Melanie Kampen, a 23-year-old master's student at Conrad Grebel University College in Waterloo, Ontario, also learned growing up that giving a 10 per cent tithe is what Christians should do. She thinks that tithing is important, but is wary of being too calculated in her giving.
"I think the danger of calculating a per cent amount of your income to give removes you from your giving in a sense," Kampen says. "It can become very calculated and just one more thing on your list of things to do today that you can check off."
Kampen believes giving should be an act of generosity and discipleship, so instead of focusing on percentages and exact numbers, she prefers to keep her giving spontaneous.
"If I ever find events that are raising money, and it's something that I'm really passionate about or can really get behind, then I tend to donate," she says. She adds that she prefers to donate to small, local organizations that may not have a wide constituency of supporters or access to government funding.
Johnny Fukumoto and his wife, Jen, give away at least 10 per cent of their income. Fukumoto, who owns his own group personal training facility in the Elmwood neighbourhood in Winnipeg, says it's not always easy for him to part with his money, but he's all right with the discomfort he feels at times.
"If you're giving and it's not really hurting a little bit in some way, for me that indicates I'm probably not giving enough," he says.
The Fukumotos giving habits are something that are always being modified, he adds.
"Each year I feel we have to have a conversation about how much we're going to give, because it will always change," he says. "But the attitude that it's important, and that we need to continue to grow and mature and really trust God with that aspect of our life, remains constant."
One of Fukumoto's inspirations is his father, who no longer keeps track of how much he gives and believes that you can't out-give God.
"No matter how much my dad gives, he believes it's no comparison to what he experiences in terms of being provided for," Fukumoto says.
The Dycks feel similarly, and hope to pass on the same lessons they learned as children to their sons.
"The attitude we want to teach them is that [the money] is not ours—it's from God and we're managers of it," Cate says. "Giving away that first tithe is an acknowledgment of that."
Dear Readers:
ChristianWeek relies on your generous support. please take a minute and donate to help give voice to stories that inform, encourage and inspire.
Donations of $20 or more will receive a charitable receipt.Thank you, from Christianweek.
