Give to Live

By Stan Toler

In Give to Live, best-selling author Stan Toler inspires and equips Christians to live generously and to trust God with their finances and lives.
John Wesley said we should earn all we can, save all we can, and give all we can. This is great advice, but the reality for many Christians today is more like, “Earn all you can, can all you get and sit on the lid!”

Generosity does not come naturally for most of us, yet it is the first economic principle in God’s kingdom. Time after time, God’s Word instructs us to be gener-ous with what God gives us. This is how we honor God, impact others, and receive a blessing in the process.

This timely and practical book includes a full study guide with small-group discussion questions for each chapter.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dust Jacket Press
• Release date: Jun 22, 2015
• ISBN: 9781943140985

Stan Toler

Stan Toler has spoken in over 90 countries and written over 100 books with sales of more than 3 million copies. Toler for many years served as vice president and instructor for INJOY, John C. Maxwell’s institute for training leaders to make a difference in the world.

Book preview

Introduction

a new way to live!

In 1978 I heard Dr. Chuck Millhuff preach a message that he titled Giving Living. The message was life impacting. In fact, I invited Chuck to come and share his message at every church I pastored from that time forward. While this book in no way copies his great message, the title was indeed inspired by the best message on giving that I have ever heard. This book describes a new way of living from what most of us are used to. Simply put, it is a lifestyle of abundance, generosity, and openness to others: We need to give to live.

John Wesley’s advice on personal finances has been summed up as: Earn all you can, save all you can, give all you can.¹ It is great advice, but generosity does not come naturally to most of us. Perhaps the strategy of most Christians today is to Earn all you can, can all you get, sit on the lid!

Many good Christians find it difficult to practice generosity. We are trained by the society we live in to be the exact opposite of generous. We are conditioned by an endless stream of marketing and advertising to focus on obtaining all the stuff we can and to amass as much material wealth as we possibly can. The saying He who dies with the most toys wins is one that we are all familiar with. That is unfortunate because generosity is the first law of economics in God’s kingdom. When we are generous with what we have, we honor God, impact others, and receive a blessing in the process.

In this book, we’ll identify some of the major obstacles to developing a giving lifestyle, and you will discover that it is possible to have a complete change of heart in the area of generosity and personal stewardship.

This book will motivate and equip readers to practice a lifestyle of generosity. You will—

understand the biblical principle of generosity;

learn to trust God with your personal finances;

discover practical ways to practice a lifestyle of generosity;

realize the impact your giving can make upon the world; and

experience the blessing that comes from giving to others.

God doesn’t intend for us to be trapped by the standards of this world; he has given us a new way!

Giving Is More Rewarding Than Consuming

Brethren, join in following my example, and observe those who walk according to the pattern you have in us. For many walk, of whom I often told you, and now tell you even weeping, that they are enemies of the cross of Christ, whose end is destruction, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who set their minds on earthly things. For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself. (Phil. 3:17–21 NASB)

August H. Francke was a German preacher who, in the latter part of the seventeenth century founded an orphanage to care for the homeless children of Halle. He told of a time when he desperately needed funds to carry on his work and found help from an unexpected source:

In 1698, I sent a ducat (nine shillings and sixpence) to a very poor woman, whom afflictions and trials had awakened to see the importance of her soul. She sent me word that the ducat had been delivered to her at a time when she much needed it, and that she had intreated the Lord to reward our poor with many ducats. Soon after a benevolent person offered me one single and twelve double ducats; and, on the same day, a friend from Sweden sent me two ducats: these again were immediately followed by five and twenty sent by post from some person unknown; and by a further twenty presented to the charity by an eminent person. About the same time, Prince Lewis of Wirtemburgh died at Eisenach, and bequeathed us five hundred golden ducats, deposited in a bag, and inscribed For the Hospital at Halle—I now remembered the prayer of the pious woman who intreated the Lord to reward our poor with many ducats.²

Whether or not we receive such remarkable and indisputable compensation for our generosity, we can be grateful knowing that we have been delivered from the futility of chasing things and given the privilege of meeting others’ needs.

Blessing Doesn’t Come from Recognition

Charles Spurgeon and his wife would sell the eggs their chickens laid; but they refused to give them away, even to close relatives. As a result, some people thought of the Spurgeon family as greedy and grasping. They accepted the criticisms without defending themselves, and only after Mrs. Spurgeon died was the full story revealed. All the profits from the sale of their eggs went to support two elderly widows. Because the Spurgeons were unwilling to let their left hand know what their right hand was doing (Matt. 6:3), they endured the attacks in silence.³

When our most important priority is not our happiness but the happiness of others, we understand the essence of kingdom living.

I love the story of Samuel Hearne, an eighteenth-century explorer who travelled to the Coppermine River in the Northwest territories of Canada. Hearne tells how a group of natives tricked and plundered me and my companions of almost every useful article we had, among which was my gun … till at last nothing was left but the empty bag, which they permitted me to keep. The next day, Hearne wrote, as the above ravagers had materially lightened my load, by taking everything from me … this part of my journey was the easiest and most pleasant of any I had experienced since my leaving the fort. The devastating loss of Hearne’s supplies meant nothing more to him than easing the load.⁴

How we respond to losing some of our resources for God’s work depends on whether we are on the move or waiting for our last stand. For Christians on the move, everything is for temporary use; all of our resources are borrowed. We have our minds on heavenly things. We are waiting for a Savior from heaven. That Savior is, of course, Jesus Christ.

Jesus discussed this idea in Luke 12:33 when he said, Sell your possessions and give to charity; make yourselves money belts which do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near nor moth destroys (NASB). As a citizen of the kingdom, you no longer view your possessions only in terms of how they benefit you, but how they may benefit others.

It’s an Exciting Adventure

A man once came to Peter Marshall, former chaplain of the Unites States Senate, with a concern about tithing. I have a problem, he said. I have been tithing for some time. It wasn’t too bad when I was making $20,000 a year; I could afford to give up $2,000. But now that I am making $500,000, there is no way I can afford to give away $50,000 a year.

Peter Marshall reflected on this wealthy man’s dilemma but gave no advice. He simply said, Yes, sir. I see that you have a problem. I think we ought to pray about it. Is that all right?

The man agreed, so Dr. Marshall bowed his head and prayed, Dear Lord, this man has a problem, and I pray that you will help him. Please reduce his salary back to the place where he can afford to tithe.⁵

We may laugh at the wealthy man whom Dr. Marshall so kindly put in his place; but when you think about it, tithing is rather ridiculous. No one in his or her right mind would simply give away $50,000 a year. It doesn’t make sense. That’s a lot of money, even for someone who is rich. Imagine if this gentleman invested his $50,000 every year instead of giving it to the church. With compound interest, he could retire fifteen years later as a multimillionaire! Asking him to tithe the whole $50,000 per year is actually requiring him to give up more than just that amount, which is significant enough—it’s asking him to give up the investment money he could have earned with it too. Is that even fair of God to ask someone to give more than 10 percent?

God’s way doesn’t always seem best. Sometimes we may wonder if God is a bit too far removed from life here on earth to understand what is realistic for us. God may seem like the CEO of a big company who gives a rousing talk to all the employees about how their hard work and extra hours are making such a difference—without having any idea of what it’s like to be a single parent with demanding kids or to have ailing parents who need constant care or to have a second job to pay the bills. He just doesn’t know what he’s asking. Or God may remind us of parents who told us to be nice to the weird kid—without realizing that meant we would get beat up. They just didn’t know what they were asking. Or God may remind us of a spouse who wants to have a big vacation added to the budget without decreasing spending or increasing earnings. He or she just doesn’t get it.

Is God’s tithing plan a little out of touch—maybe nice in theory, but highly impractical or even impossible?

To answer that question we must have a broader understanding of what God is like; we have to go beyond the question of tithing. We have to ask: Who is God and how does he relate to us?

God certainly is removed from us. We are not even microscopic specks in the vast universe he created. He stands outside of time, beyond the laws of gravity, and without limitation. He is holy, perfect, and almighty. He is too big for us, too mysterious for us, and too holy for us to even look at him: So how are we supposed to draw near to him? And the more apt question is: How he can possibly understand us?

Philip Yancey tells a story about keeping a saltwater aquarium. Management of a marine aquarium, he discovered, was no easy task. He had to run a portable chemical laboratory to monitor the nitrate levels and the ammonia content. He pumped in vitamins, antibiotics, sulfa drugs, and enough enzymes to make a rock grow. He filtered the water through glass fibers and charcoal and exposed it to ultraviolet light.

You would think, in view of all the energy expended on their behalf, that his fish would at least be grateful. Not so. Every time Yancey’s shadow loomed above the tank, they dove for cover into the nearest shell. They showed him one emotion only: fear.

Although Yancey opened the lid and dropped in food on a regular schedule, three times a day, they responded to each visit as a sure sign of his designs to torture them. He could not convince them of his true concern. To his fish, Yancey was a deity. He was too large for them, his actions too incomprehensible. His acts of mercy they saw as cruelty; his attempts at healing they viewed as destruction.

Yancey began to see that changing their perceptions would require a form of incarnation. He would have to become a fish and speak to them in a language they could understand.⁶

We’re like fish to God. He knows what’s best for us, and he loves us. That’s why he incarnated himself. He is too big for us to understand or to believe that he understands us, so he came down from heaven in the form of a human being—as a helpless baby—to speak our language. He wants us to trust him, not to scatter like fish in an aquarium when he draws near.

God’s command to tithe our income feels like an intrusion—just as Yancey’s tank cleaning must have felt like an intrusion to the fish. We may not see how tithing helps us or how not tithing hurts us. It comes down to trust. When God’s shadow looms above our aquarium as we’re paying our bills and managing our budgets, are we going to hide in a shell or swim joyfully up to the surface with our tithe in hand? Do we trust him enough? ‘For I know the plans I have for you,’ declares the LORD, ‘plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future’ (Jer. 29:11).

It may not make sense to you to give away $50,000 a year, or even $50 a year. But it makes sense to God. And his way really is better than ours. Are you ready to begin the adventure of a lifetime, a life marked by abundance, possibility, and blessing? Your own Give to Live life awaits!

PART 1

God’s Secret to a Successful Life

Let’s identify the key theological principles that form the foundation for a giving lifestyle—stewardship, trust, blessing, and love. You will discover that God created us to find our greatest joy in loving him and others. This will enable you to make a conceptual change from putting yourself first to putting others first.

1

What’s Mine Is Yours

understanding stewardship

Key Insight

God owns everything and allows you to manage his wealth.

In the early morning hours of September 8, 1860, a ship called the Augusta raced out of control through the tumultuous waters of Lake Michigan. Before the captain could shout out the order, the 129-foot schooner smashed into the side of the crowded passenger steamer, The Lady Elgin, which was on its way back to Milwaukee after a night of dinner and dancing in Chicago.

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Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the LORD or fully declare his praise?

—Psalm 106:1–2

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As The Lady Elgin foundered seven miles off the coast of Illinois and slowly broke apart, guests from the steamboat chopped off doors and pieces of the deck to float on. Luckily, the water temperature of Lake Michigan in September was at its warmest. It was still frigid, but a virtual hot bath compared to the below freezing temperatures of late fall and winter. An estimated five hundred survivors were afloat on pieces of The Lady or treading water as dawn approached.

At daybreak, students from Northwestern University’s life-saving squad gathered on the shore and began to rescue the people out of the water who had floated into the shallows. One brave student, Edward W. Spencer, swam out deep into the waters a total of seventeen times, saving people each time. After his seventeenth trip into the deepest parts of the water, fatigue and delirium set in and he was taken back to the university where he lay sick in bed for several months. Edward Spencer’s health revived, and after he graduated from school he moved to California where he died at the age of eighty-one. A local newspaper reported a tragic fact of this story in his obituary—not one of the people he rescued ever visited Edward to thank him. Not one out of seventeen ever showed him gratitude over a sixty-year period.¹

Ingratitude has plagued the human race since the time of Adam and Eve. Ingratitude toward the salvation of a loving God, offered free of charge via painful sacrifice, seems to be of the worst kind. We are prone to make our needs known. We cry out to God for help, for rescue from the miry pit. But how often do we voice our gratitude? How often do we say, Thank you?

In the opening verses of Psalm 106, David offered helpful advice about proper thanksgiving: Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever. Who can proclaim the mighty acts of the LORD or fully declare his praise? (vv. 1–2). In these short stanzas, David gave us the what, why, and wow of giving thanks to the Lord. As we walk through these three facets, open your hearts in honesty before the Lord. Ask the Holy Spirit to measure and weigh your gratitude.

The What: Give Thanks to the Lord

The statement is simple. The command is clear. Give thanks to the Lord. The psalmist offered no alternative option or prerequisite requirements. He did not say to give thanks to the Lord if you feel like it or think you have a good reason. Give thanks to the Lord. This is what you are to do. At all times, in all circumstances. David was taking for granted your reverence for Almighty God. He made this command, this request, on the foundation of a theology that knows that God is the supreme being of the universe and worthy of our unending praise and thanksgiving. David knew that God is the source of all goodness, of all blessings.

David later gave reasons why we should give thanks to the Lord, but I love that he began with the straightforward action of what we are supposed to do as followers of God. And this prompting from David applies to all areas of our lives. We are to praise God for the material blessings and the spiritual ones, the big and