Hebrews 11

This is a famous passage in the bible. it talks about all the faith of the old testament heroes. a lot of times people like to reference the verse about faith being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. i like those words and i think it is a great definition of faith. i like it. my favorite verse in this portion of scripture is verse 13, "All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance." what a depressing, but extremely encouraging comment. any time i'm worried about things working out, i have these people to look back on and glean some perspective from. recently i was involved in a conversation about tithing. i would have to say that i'm not faced with faith-breaking decisions like a 90-year old barren wife or the sacrifice of my son or walking on water or anything like that. i'm not even that worried about things like finding a job or paying bills or staying safe or trusting that it will be beautiful weather for my outdoor wedding or things like that. (i'm not getting married outdoors, by the way [maybe for that reason?!]). maybe i should be, but i'm not. anyway, i was in this conversation about tithing yesterday and it came to me that perhaps tithing is the most tangible way i can practice faith. i really think it is. real faith would be giving money when i can't afford it. real faith would be giving my money before i budget everything else, not afterward. real faith would be accepting of the possibility that i might have to sacrifice something dear to me like a regular meal or filling up my car with gas one time in order to make giving a priority. god promises he will take care of me. those people in the old testament died before the things promised them even came to fruition. i'm no abraham, but i reckon i can have more faith in the area of giving. having faith means that i make decisions on a daily basis confident that god will still take care of me -- that i don't have to worry about myself. i think i can do that and i can start by being more ready to give.