"Scrooge Lives"

Christianity Today published an article this month entitled: "Scrooge Lives." The context of the article is the giving patterns of American Christians, and the results are interesting and alarming at the same time.

Here are some of the facts from the article:

1 out of every four American Protestants giving nothing away.
27% of Evangelicals tithe
36% gives less than 2%
5% of American Christians give 60% of monies donated to churches
Donors do not trust how their money is used
3% of all monies given to churches are used to minister to non-Christians
The biggest reason that Christians don't give is that they aren't asked

I wonder what Jesus would say if he were here today.

Would he be pleased that a handful of people are supporting over half the work?
Would he be pleased that despite being the wealthiest nation in the world, some of us don't give anything away?
How would he feel about only 3% being used to reach the sheep outside the sheepfold?

No wonder the Spirit is blowing in a new direction. By bringing us into smaller venues that can be done at little or no expense and giving ownership to the funds to the people who are serving, the doors are opening up to think about giving in a new way.

I am so grateful that Missio Lux has moved this direction. Perhaps in 10 years, I will be writing a different blog, one that states that 95% of Jesus followers are giving generously, that the majority of the gifts are going to reach out to serve the world beyond us, and that we trust where our funds are going because we are the ones making the decisions. That's my dream, for which we will continue to move intentionally towards making a reality.