There do seem to be certain guidelines for giving that we have in our churches. But beyond that, what are we to do with our money? Should we give everything beyond our basic necessities to the church or charity? Or is there room in a Biblical view of money for buying something outside of what we need to survive?

Share your thoughts!

There are a lot of different, related questions lurking beneath the simple “Is tithing mandatory for Christians?” The Bible clearly and repeatedly stresses the importance of generosity—but what does that mean in practical terms? Here are a few questions to mull over as you consider the issue of tithing:

Do you think the 10%-of-your-income tithing ratio is mandated by Scripture? If not, is there another formula mandated?

Should we consider outside-of-church giving to be separate from our tithe to church, or are they all part of the Biblical tithe?

Have you ever been torn between tithing to church and giving to other worthy, but non-church, causes?

How seriously does your church take tithing? If you went a month without giving anything to church, would your church take notice? Would they leave that entirely to your own discretion, treat it as a matter of church discipline, or something in between?

What formula or style of giving feels most appropriate and Biblical to you?

That’s a lot of questions, and I’d like to unpack some of them in future posts. But for now, watch the CNN video above and stop by Out of Ur to follow the discussion there.

Have you ever purposefully meditated on a part of scripture? If so, what verses or passages have you found to be good for meditation?

Share your thoughts in the comments!

You cannot love your neighbor if you do not know that neighbor. Time spent with neighbors that does not result in conversions, does not result in spiritual conversation, or does not result in any greater appreciation of the work of Christ, is not a net loss. Let us be resolved to undertake this kind of work confident that it is a legitimate end unto itself, that our culture deserves our attention, and that God will call us to account for the time spent serving neighbors.

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I would like to make a radical suggestion. The suggestion is not that knowing the neighbors should be important to Christians. The radical thesis I would like to present is: actually get it on your calendar for next month, and make that a habit.

Head over to the Gospel Coalition to read the rest of the post, including six steps to take to make the gathering successful.

How have you successfully reached out to your neighbors? Is there anything from Ben’s post that you’d like to try?

What about you? What traits have you admired in your pastors?

Share your thoughts!

It’s not that other charities are necessarily frauds or that your money won’t do any good. But as the blog post lays out, the specific needs of post-tsunami Japan are quite different than those of (for example) post-earthquake Haiti. In Japan, for instance, money may be a less pressing need than specialized relief teams.

The Givewell blog recommends Doctors Without Borders and the Japanese Red Cross as worthwhile causes. You might agree or disagree with those recommendations; but their reasoning seems pretty compelling. Perhaps you know of (and may have donated to) other organizations working in Japan. What charities would you recommend for somebody looking to help? When disaster strikes and you want to donate, do you give to the same organization each time, or do you tailor your donations specifically to the immediate need?

With Spring on people’s minds, I think it’s a good time to ask a simple question: what’s your favorite part of God’s Creation? Is it trees? Mountains? Lakes? Or something else?

Share your thoughts in the comments!

What kicked off this thought process was a convicting question at Near Emmaus: “If Scripture is not trustworthy where it bothers you, then why assume it is trustworthy where it does not?”

Here’s an excerpt from the post:

If YHWH God seems angry and vindictive, they assume that Scripture is wrong. If there are passages that use language that makes us feel a bit of uneasy in our modern, scientific world-view, they assume Scripture is wrong. If there are passages that present eschatological statements that seem confusing and/or cryptic, they assume Scripture is wrong. If we read passages where Jesus is seen as cosmic judge, they assume Scripture is wrong.

If Jesus says love your neighbor, Scripture is obviously right then. If it condemns those who do not take care of the orphan and the widow, then the ethics of Scripture make sense as do threats of judgment. If it says God is love, well, we like that so it must be right.

Read the rest of the post and the comments at nearemmaus.wordpress.com.

I’ve tried to keep this in mind as I’ve done my personal Bible study over the past week. It’s been difficult, but worthwhile.

Are there specific passages or books that you find difficult to approach from the standpoint of “This is trustworthy?”

It’s interesting to compare the lists from 2010 and 2009. Does anything on the list surprise you?

Some of you are thinking to yourselves: “One hour? I don’t have time for that!” Me neither—it’s going to be difficult for me to make the time, but that’s the point. And my hat is off to those of you who are thinking, “One hour? That seems so short!”

What about you? Are you fasting from anything, or doing anything special for Lent this year?