What Would People Think of the Church if ...

I saw this bumper sticker the other day and just chuckled at we Christians. There is something about the "tithe" (giving 10% of your income) that is kind of a litmus test of whether Christians are obedient or not.
       Churches do it also. Pastors tell their congregations that 10% of all money that is given goes to missions. That does not seem to motivate people to give their tithe though. That always has felt like a small percent to me.
       I am grateful that churches which support my ministry tithe. My funding is part of that tithe, so I probably don't want to "look a gift horse in the mouth." Conventional wisdom says that I should be grateful for the 10% giving by churches, especially because some churches give away 2 or 3% only.
       And yet I would love to be part of a church that reverse tithes. That is, for every dollar you give to the church it turns around and gives away 90 cents. Can you imagine that? Wouldn't that be crazy?
       A church that I know used to have an annual budget of $3.4 million. They were running behind budget until December when $740,000 came in over the course of those 30 days. The church tithes, so $74,000 was given beyond itself. The other $666,000 was used for: the mortgage on the property (about 50%), salaries and year-end bonuses for pastors and staff (about 40%), and 10% was put into the bank 'for a rainy day."
      Let's just dream for a minute: What if the church kept $74,000 and gave away $666,000! Think of the many, many incredible causes and people who might have been blessed. 650K is a good chunk of change after all! It's a crazy dream, to be THAT generous as a church! I think it's a dream worth hanging on to.