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“Extraordinary Tithe” continues to fund mission

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“Tithe is sacred,” noted Juan Prestol-Puesán, treasurer of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, “and we do not deal with it trivially.” Prestol-Puesán comments were made as part of an update for the General Conference Executive Committee on the Church’s use of a large tithe return that began in 2007.   
An Unexpected Commitment 
Prestol-Puesán’s financial report briefly rehearsed the history of this “extraordinary tithe,” a term used to designate sizable tithe returns given under special…

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Concern for Others

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A few years ago a world-wide media event served as an illustration of how our society does not want us to get along with each other. Recall the cartoons that were drawn of Muhammad by some cartoon journalist in Europe? Apparently someone drew these cartoons which are extremely offensive to Muslims. But I guess not too many people paid it much attention since they were in circulation for months without much fuss. Well, another, more enterprising journalist decided this real offense ought to be published far and wide, so he wrote more about it. And it worked.

Soon the entire world was caught up in a pitched ideological battle about religion and secular society. Politicians and religious leaders weighed in on the issue; riots and demonstrations were held all over the world. Property was destroyed and people were killed over it. And the journalists, newspapers, internet media, and pundits reaped the financial reward of their hard work. And just what hard work was it? The hard work of showing the world the lines of division and discord that they themselves had created! These media sources banked millions of dollars off of our voracious appetite for reading about and engaging in such societal conflict. Conflict created, distributed, and maintained by the media who profited by it!

In this context of division, those of us who care for the presence of a non-divisive and peace-loving religion must stand up and try to make a difference. We do so only by avoiding the urge to fight. By making the personal decision to avoid conflict and seek something greater. One principle in our efforts to get along with each other calls for altruism.

Be Concerned for Others

The intent of 1 Peter 3.15 should move us toward an old value in our society, namely, altruism.

“Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect…” 1 Peter 3:15 (NIV)

Altruism means that we uphold the interest of the other person as primary in our minds. We set aside our personal interests as the most important part of any interaction and instead set up the interests of the other as of most importance. This is hard in a society that continually encourages us to ask, “What’s in it for me?” Our society pushes us to be egocentric to the extreme. Someone needs to uphold altruism, if we can have any hope for getting along.

This is true on the personal level and it’s true at the international, political level as well. Some simple rules to keep in mind when engaging the other with altruism include the following: First, try to listen without interrupting. It seems so basic but is often not present in our heated conversations with others. When we allow the other to speak we model the kind of character that God would have us practice. Second, we must maintain confidentiality when our conversations are private in nature. The primal drive to be gossipers seems to overwhelm us at times. Altruism pushes us to place ourselves in the shoes of the other and realize that we would not want people talking that way about us, if the roles were reversed.

Why should we uphold the interests of the other, with the reverence that Peter calls us to? We should do so because the other is inherently valued by God. In the book of Genesis 1:27 we read that God created humankind in his image. It is because of this fact, that each and every person carries the image of God, that we must value the other in such a strong way. Even when the other person is a scoundrel, we owe them respect as a creation of God.

Sometimes this pushes us to go outside our comfort zone. Sometime we must negotiate a path between our faith convictions and those of the other so that we can live in peace rather than bloody warfare. In the New Testament book of John, the story is told about a woman who was caught in the act of adultery and then brought before Jesus for condemnation. According to the laws of the Hebrew people, Jesus was supposed to announce condemnation and then have the woman stoned to death. The beginning of John 8 tells how Jesus did not do what the other thought he should do. He upheld the principle of altruism in the face of a crowd of religious leaders who were primarily concerned for themselves. Jesus upheld a primary interest in the life of the woman and taught the others present to do the same. In the end of the story, after the others were gone, he gently chastised the woman to repent and then sent her on her way.

In this scene from the life of Christ, we see that it was the personal character of Jesus that helped ease this tension filled situation. Something he did routinely. Rather than fighting about the rules and regulations of their religion, Jesus practiced the character traits of a loving God as a means of setting aside the ever-present conflict.

Mark F. Carr writes from the Pacific Northwest.

The post Concern for Others appeared first on Answers for Me.

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Article excerpt posted on en.intercer.net from Answers for Me.

In Mexico, thousands of Adventists celebrate and train for small groups ministry

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Nearly 5,000 Seventh-day Adventist small-group leaders across the Inter-Oceanic region of Mexico celebrated evangelism growth, strengthened their ministry and renewed their commitment to continuing to share the gospel in their communities, during a large gathering Aug. 17-18, 2018.
The festival celebration, coined as “Mission First”, held at the Centro Expositor (Exhibitor Convention Center) in Puebla, Mexico, brought Adventist world leaders to witness the progress of the church and encourage…

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Overcoming Shame

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“Pop, do you want to sit with me for a bit?”

I’ve been asking my father this question since I was a kid. My father knows that what it really means is, “Can you sit down, rub my feet and tell me a story.” I’m 30 and it’s still one of my favorite parts of my visits to my parent’s house.

My father’s stories are often set in his hometown of Barahona, a small town on the southwestern coast of the Dominican Republic.

Today my father told me a story of shame.

At the age of seven, my father was tasked with earning a peso everyday for his family. He would leave his house at sunrise and set out to sell 50 pastelitos (a Dominican dish similar to a Mexican tamale) at 2 cents each around his hometown. Despite his age, he knew that his family desperately needed his financial contribution, so he would often skip school if he was unable to sell all of his pastelitos before the morning school bell rang. Sometimes my dad would go as much as a week without attending his classes.

In the evening, his classmates often asked him where he had been, but my dad would make up a story about an illness or visiting a relative. The truth was just too shameful to tell. He was sure that his friends would never associate with a street kid.

One day, after an unsuccessful morning, my father decided to skip school and try his luck at selling pastelitos on the other side of town. Unfortunately, to get there he had to pass by the schoolhouse, which he tried his best to pass unnoticed. Suddenly he heard, “Hey it’s Felipe! And he’s selling pastelitos!”

One of his classmates had seen him pass by the schoolhouse.

A lump formed in my father’s throat as he continued his walk to the other side of town. He didn’t know how he’d be able to face his friends again.

“Wait!” the same voice yelled out.

My father spun around and he saw his friends and classmates running towards him, coin purses in hand.

My father sold out of pastelitos that day and for many days after that.

Today my father told me a story of shame. I was reminded that shame is crippling and it can keep you away from the things you most need.

But I was also reminded that my Savior took my shame long ago and hung it on a cross. And when He sees me carry it, He calls out my name and He runs to me.

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him (John 3:17, NIV).

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Article excerpt posted on en.intercer.net from Answers for Me.

Avoid the Edge

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A story is told of a very wealthy gentleman who lived in a palatial mansion, on a high mountain, overlooking the surrounding valleys. The only problem was that reaching his gorgeous manor house required traveling along a very narrow winding road with a steep mountain slope on one side and sheer drop off on the other. Due to the early retirement of his current chauffeur, he placed an ad in his local paper for a new limousine driver. When he conducted the interviews, he asked each person one very important question, “How close can you safely drive along the edge of my winding road?” The first prospect responded, “Sir, I can drive within two feet of the edge and feel perfectly safe.” The second individual answered, “Sir, I can drive within twelve inches of the edge and you will be safe and sound.” The third person replied, “For your protection, Sir, I guarantee I will drive as far away as is possible from that edge and keep you and your family out of harms way.” The last applicant became the new driver.

What about you? Are you living too close to the edge? The edge is a miserable and desolate place to live. Individuals who exist from one paycheck to another live there. People who have no financial plan hang on for dear life at the edge. People who continually max out their credit cards barely survive falling off the edge.

A Freedom Fund

The remedy for living on the financial edge is very simple: Just move away! Not two feet, not twelve inches, but as far away as possible. One thing that puts distance between you and your family and the edge is a Freedom Fund. Some people call it a Contingency Account; others call it an Emergency Account. However or whatever you name this account or fund, it is for one important purpose—to save your financial skin when unexpected, unforeseen, and unanticipated expenses hit you broadside and threaten to push you over the edge. The Freedom Fund is your personal debt insurance and the best alternative to using plastic.

Why do you need it?

There are a number of reasons to have this rainy day Freedom Fund. First, scripture admonishes us to do so: “The wise man saves for the future, but the foolish man spends whatever he gets.” (Proverbs 21:20 TLB). Secondly, Christian author, Ellen White reminds us that “every week a portion of your wages should be reserved and in no case touched unless suffering actual want.”* Finally, according to current statistics, the typical amount the average American spent last year on those unexpected expenditures was $2,000.

From a more practical viewpoint, it seems to me that when something breaks or needs repairing in my house, it usually comes in pairs or, even worse, in triplicate. Take your appliances. First, your refrigerator defroster stops functioning, then the toaster dies, followed usually by the hair dryer quitting—and you are already late for work. When these essential appliances need maintenance or replacing, most people immediately reach for their only emergency fund—a personal loan with very high interest called a credit card.

There are two more areas that will inevitably challenge your family finances: motor vehicle and medical crises. According to one national survey, two thirds of unanticipated expenditures are related to medical care and motor vehicles.

How to fund it?

Instead of borrowing for these financial crises, begin putting money regularly into your Freedom Fund. Set a goal of $25 per week or $50 each payday until your Freedom Fund is fully invested. If you have trouble getting started, why not have a garage sale? You will be happily surprised that in one morning you may have as much as $300 to $500 as your first deposit.

How to maintain it?

Once you begin to save for your Freedom Fund, you may be tempted to start seeing it as part of your long term investments—it is NOT; it is simply money that is available for unforeseen financial emergencies. Here are the ABC’s of this fund:

Availability—Because life’s emergencies take us by surprise, your Freedom Fund must be in liquid cash. It needs to be in a bank or credit union account where you can get your hands on it immediately or, at the most, within twenty-four hours.

Be Safe—Unlike the stock market or mutual funds, your Freedom Fund needs to be where its principal has no risk. Saving accounts are the safest, but they currently pay little to nothing in interest. One of the best places to put this money is in a certificate of deposit (CD). A CD will pay more interest than a bank savings account but you are required to put it in for a set time period, such as 60 days, 90 days, or 1-5 years. If you must make an early withdrawal from your CD for an unanticipated emergency, the worst that will happen is that you will lose your interest for that period.

Continual Growth—Because you will need your Freedom Fund for a lifetime, as a good steward you will always be on the lookout for places to put this money with the best compounding interest, yet still meeting the other two requirements.

Final words

Remember, no matter the crisis, even if you are up to your eyeballs in debt, you must have a freedom fund. The good news is that Murphy’s Law does sometimes work in reverse: when you have your Freedom Fund fully vested, it seems financial challenges vanish and you no longer have to live on the edge.

Gordon Botting writes from Northern California.

The post Avoid the Edge appeared first on Answers for Me.

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Article excerpt posted on en.intercer.net from Answers for Me.

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