Money Back Guarantee

Posted by chuck maxwell on November 20th, 2008 filed in Chuck's blog

A pastor in another city has made an offer of a “3 month try tithing money back guarantee” to his church attenders in order to get them to commit to giving a tithe (10% of their income) to their church ministry. I emailed him and here’s what he told me about it.

“If they want to do it (or the Lord is nudging them to do it), they have to call me (or email me) and let me know.  I will pray for them every day of the three months.  We will take the difference between what they have been giving and the tithe and bank it.  If at the end of the three months they believe they have not been blessed more than they gave, we will give the money back.  If we don’t hear from them at the end of the three months we invest the money in the cause of Jesus through our church.”

He does go on to tell me he is not saying the blessing will necessarily be monetary. And it sounds like he is leaving the measure of blessing up to the “tither.” Which shows some confidence in the principle of giving with the right motive.

While I find the approach somewhat intriguing, especially in a time when giving is a little sporadic, I’m not sure it’s the right way to teach the principle of biblical stewardship. Can we guarantee we’ll know God’s blessing in 3 months? What if it takes 6? Should we give knowing we can get it back in 3 months, especially if we need some new tires or a water heater or a new Callaway driver?

I really appreciate this pastor’s willingness to pray for his people every day for 3 months though. That in itself will be a blessing to his folks and may be the best way to see God move into the wallets of his church attenders. But I anticipate he’ll have some takers on the offer. And if nothing else, the church will get to keep the interest!

What do you think?