Giving to the Church

[Woody]

Giving in the Seventh day Adventist Church world wide ...

Quote:

North America contributes about 63 percent when combining tithes and offerings. More specifically, about 13 percent is from members in the church's Southern! region of the U.S. and about 12 percent is from the Pacific region of the U.S.

I have to wonder if this is going to change with the current economic difficulties in the US ?

What I don't understand is how any one can argue about being like Jesus ... if they steal from him by not returning what is His. But, anyway ... that is a different story for a different time.

Why do you think that the other countries of the world are not doing their fair share? Most members are outside of the US ... and by far.

Your thoughts?

[Woody]

Hey dgrimm. You may be right.

[Dottie]

Redwood --

About the current economic situation:

Yesterday, I heard someone on the radio raising money for a charity. This year they raised more money than last year. Maybe people are more willing to share if there's a difficult time.

When we used to go Ingathering, the people in the poorer sections of town would give dollars, and the people in the "better" sections of town would give quarters.

[Joe_in_RP]

Tithes have always been a challenge. When your income is a typical Americans good wage its easy to pay tithe. But when you you are struggling, that's when the test comes.

I know several supporting ministries who have felt the impact of the economic crisis.

[phkrause]

Where did you get these statistics from? And are they just the SDA church or all people in general?

pk

[phkrause]

No dgrimm I was asking Redwood, and it seemed that he was talking about tithes and offerings, so I guessed that he meant SDAs or churches in general.

pk

[Woody]

Where did you get these statistics from? And are they just the SDA church or all people in general?

pk

Giving in the Seventh day Adventist Church world wide ...

Quote:

North America contributes about 63 percent when combining tithes and offerings. More specifically, about 13 percent is from members in the church's Southern! region of the U.S. and about 12 percent is from the Pacific region of the U.S.

I have to wonder if this is going to change with the current economic difficulties in the US ?

What I don't understand is how any one can argue about being like Jesus ... if they steal from him by not returning what is His. But, anyway ... that is a different story for a different time.

Why do you think that the other countries of the world are not doing their fair share? Most members are outside of the US ... and by far.

Your thoughts?

[GreatLakesGramma]

This morning I learned that so far this year in Michigan, where the unemployment rate is the highest in the nation, that tithes are slightly higher than last year at this time, if the figures are adjusted to remove a single large windfall tithe given last year during the same time period. So in spite of the economic situation here, God is blessing His faithful people.

[Woody]

I have no idea ... but I have to wonder what the comparison of the percentage of those who pay tithe in the poor countries such as Africa compared to the US percentage would be.

[Liz]

I know this is a little but...when I was younger I remember going ingathering with these little cans, we would go in groups....we don't do that anymore, or at least here we don't; does anyone do it anymore? If not, why did we stop doing this?

[Woody]

I know this is a little but...when I was younger I remember going ingathering with these little cans, we would go in groups....we don't do that anymore, or at least here we don't; does anyone do it anymore? If not, why did we stop doing this?

I think that with inflation ... the cans became too expensive. Seriously ... Ingathering was pretty much done away with by popular outcry. When I was growing up ... I did it each year and enjoyed it. But many of the adults were weary of it.

Nowadays ... people don't trust that those going door to door are legit.

[Liz]

Thanks, Dgrimm and Uncle Red, all of that makes sense. It is just a shame though, I miss that.

[phkrause]

I kind of remember it differently Redwood. When I was a kid we hated ingathering and the adults enjoyed it. Also I believe EGW mentions somewhere that if all in the church gave a faithful tithe and offering we would not need to do ingathering. Not sure that that is correct, but I do remember something to that effect.

pk

[Woody]

I kind of remember it differently Redwood. When I was a kid we hated ingathering and the adults enjoyed it. Also I believe EGW mentions somewhere that if all in the church gave a faithful tithe and offering we would not need to do ingathering. Not sure that that is correct, but I do remember something to that effect.

pk

Okay. I do have to give a confession now. The reason the kids like me enjoyed ingathering is because the church took us to Disneyland if we got a minimum of $50 . So each youth made sure they got the $50 . I guess to be honest ... it was the reward rather than the activity that we enjoyed.

[Liz]

Okay. I do have to give a confession now. The reason the kids like me enjoyed ingathering is because the church took us to Disneyland if we got a minimum of $50 . So each youth made sure they got the $50 . I guess to be honest ... it was the reward rather than the activity that we enjoyed.

Holy Cow!!! We didn't have any such incentive. The pastor strapped some kind of speaker thing on his car and it would play music, while the adults knocked on doors and talked, we kids would just hold the can and smile. We would then meet back at the church for hot cider and cookies. The only thing I didn't like was that we usually did it on Sunday night, and that was when Disney would show its movie of the week. Mom would always get me the book of whatever movie was being shown and "BAM" my love of reading was born. I still liked walking door to door, and listening to the music the pastor was playing.

What were we talking about?

[Woody]

Your Mom should have TIVOed it. Ha Ha.

And to add to my story .... those who got $50 got to go to Disneyland but if you got $100 ... the entire expenses were paid. I always got $100. I went their 6 or 7 times in my youth.

Never got old.

[phkrause]

gotcha..... :):) hahahahaha hehehehehe hohohohoho

pk

[GreatLakesGramma]

Actually, I was told when I joined the church, that the purpose of Ingathering was not so much for the money, though that was also a good thing, but mostly for the purpose of making those in the community aware of Adventist church and the world-wide relief work it does, and to GET THOSE PAPERS INTO THEIR HANDS. In other words an evangelistic outreach in disguise.

[Jeannieb43]

I know this is a little but...when I was younger I remember going ingathering with these little cans, we would go in groups....we don't do that anymore, or at least here we don't; does anyone do it anymore? If not, why did we stop doing this?

In our area we used to go door to door with singing groups and solicitors, up until about the mid-1970s. After that we had to stop because people were afraid to open their doors to strangers. We didn't want to be involved in some of the shootings that had been going on in some of the city neighborhoods. So our Ingathering solicitation began to dry up.

[Outta Here]

Our church stopped soliciting Ingathering funds at the turn of the century. There was no incentive as described above; only the promise of hot cocoa (or carob--depending on whom was serving) at the return of the evening.

It seemed an ineffective means of getting the Adventist message across, in my opinion. Rather, it made for a nice social gathering for those willing to brave the cold and the stress of door-to-door evangelism.

[carolaa]

Originally Posted By: Liz

I know this is a little but...when I was younger I remember going ingathering with these little cans, we would go in groups....we don't do that anymore, or at least here we don't; does anyone do it anymore? If not, why did we stop doing this?

I think that with inflation ... the cans became too expensive. Seriously ... Ingathering was pretty much done away with by popular outcry. When I was growing up ... I did it each year and enjoyed it. But many of the adults were weary of it.

Nowadays ... people don't trust that those going door to door are legit.

And vice versa - people who entice Ingatherers into their homes to harm them. Yeah, you had it pretty bad in California. Not like the frozen fun in the Midwest (said very tic!). I hated it. We kids over age 10 or so had to go to the doors alone. Doors slammed in your face. Mean dogs. Slipping on icy steps in the dark. Our incentive was a modest discount at summer camp.

[GreatLakesGramma]

One year, not long after I joined the church, our church got permission from local businesses for members to stand in front of the stores to solicit from the customers. A friend and I Ingathered in front of a grocery store. I didn't mind that at all. But going door to door was not my thing - never was, never will be. I don't like strangers coming to my door wanting something, and never felt comfortable doing to someone else what I did not like done to me.