Whatever you want God to bless, you have to put him first in. So if you want God to bless your finances, you have to put him first in your money. This is the principle of tithing: You give the first 10 percent of your income back to God.

Deuteronomy 14:23 says, “The purpose of tithing is to teach you always to put God first in your lives.” God doesn’t need your money, but he wants what it represents — your heart. He wants you to trust him.

Do you tithe to the bread of life? Or do you tithe to your brother who’s been out of work for three years? No. That an Offering. Tithing is an act of worship. It goes to God. Malachi 3:10 says, “‘Bring to the storehouse a full tenth of what you earn …. Test me in this,’ says the LORD All-Powerful. ‘I will open the windows of heaven for you and pour out all the blessings you need’” The storehouse is the temple or the place where you worship God.

You do it on the day you worship. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 16:2, “On every Lord’s Day each of you should put aside something from what you have earned during the week, and use it for this offering. The amount depends on how much the Lord has helped you earn”. When you give to God on the first day of the week, the first part of your day, and the first part of your money, then you say to him, “You’re really number one in my life.”

Notice that the verse says “put aside.” You’ve got to plan this! Tithing should not be an impulsive thing. You’ve got to plan for it so that you are honoring God’s plan and purpose for tithing. Then, you can watch how God blesses and uses you and honors his promise in your life.

Like llamas and alpacas, tithes and offerings are grouped together a lot, but they’re definitely not the same thing. A tithe is a specific amount (10% of your income) that you give first, and an offering is anything extra that you give beyond that.

After you’ve tithed and paid all your bills and expenses for the month, you can use any extra money in your budget to give even more! This can look like giving a cash offering to your church above and beyond your normal tithe, giving money to a charity you support, giving to a friend in need, or giving your time and skills by volunteering.