Will giving for other ministry opportunities be counted as a part of Deeper?

There are hundreds of things that God leads people at Trinity to support. However, for budgeting and planning purposes, gifts designated for something other than the Deeper fund (e.g. alms, missions) are not counted as a part of your commitment. As you generously respond to other opportunities, your gift will be recorded and reflected in you annual giving statement in addition to your faith commitment to Deeper.

Are there additional ways besides cash that I can give to Deeper?

Be creative as you explore ways you and your family can give. Don’t overlook stored assets that you own. Gifts of appreciated property (stocks, IRA distributions, real estate, mutual funds, jewelry, artwork, collectibles, etc.) are excellent ways to give back to God and his work and they often have significant tax advantages. Please consult with a professional advisor for advice in your particular circumstance. If you need assistance with making a gift of property or stock, we would be delighted to help! You can contact Tom West, chairman of our development team, for questions about and instructions on how to do this (tfwests@gmail.com).

Can my cash gift toward Deeper be credited to my commitment amount?

The IRS requires that all gifts must be identifiable to the donor. If you prefer to give cash, simply place it in an envelope and clearly mark your name and address and our finance team will be able to credit it to your Deeper Commitment. Giving by check or online also creates an identifiable gift.

What if I’m a college student?

God has blessed Trinity by allowing us to invest in the lives of college students here in Tuscaloosa. Although college students are often living on tight budgets, the college years are an ideal time to develop a Kingdom-focused plan in the areas of personal budgeting and generous giving. This is a time when college students at Trinity should join forces and go all-in by giving generously over the next three years to help us to pursue a deeper impact for Jesus’ sake.

What if I don’t have a job right now?

What does that mean for my Deeper commitment?

Deeper is about radical dependence on God for everything in the gospel. God knows our every need, and Trinity wants to help meet the needs both in our church and in our community. If you do not have a job and are actively seeking one, we’d love for you to share this with one of our pastors so that our elders can be praying for you. Also, consider connecting in Sunday School or a Community Group, where you will find friends who are ready to encourage you and pray with you. Our hope is that you will be able to find a job so that you can be engaged in all that God has for you.

What if I can’t afford to give right now?

Even in times of scarcity, God wants our hearts. The widow who gave her last mite did not make a very big financial contribution, but Jesus said she gave the largest gift of all. Deeper is about all of us coming together, giving generously, and trusting God to do the rest. It may mean that God is asking you to trust him by making a faith commitment that you do not know how to fulfill right now. God has supplied our every need in Christ, and we trust that he will honor a heart that wants to give generously in response to the gospel. Deeper means all of us, together — for each other, for our neighbors, and for our world.

There may also be ways to be sacrificial with your lifestyle to create margin for generosity in your life. Some will cancel cable, and some will ditch their smartphone and return to a basic mobile phone. Others will play a little less golf, or sell their tickets to the game, and still others will forego a few caramel macchiatos every week. Some families have downsized their homes in order to give more freely for the progress of the gospel. This is a time for all of us to ask how our financial decisions reflect what we want to be deeper in our lives. Find ways to involve the entire family in this process. Use this as an opportunity to teach children and grandchildren to obey the Lord with a generous heart and to trust him. This is a great opportunity to take a look at our overall stewardship of all that God has entrusted to us.

What if I’m severely in debt right now? Am I still supposed to give?

It’s important for generosity to be a part of our lives at every point. If you are in the process of paying off debt, we commend you, and you should continue to do so. But the Bible does not teach that we withhold giving until we are debt-free. When we honor God by going Deeper with our giving, he promises to be involved with every other aspect of finances. Contact us if you would like to speak with a volunteer financial coach.

How does this help us serve the needs of our immediate neighbors and under resourced neighbors across our city?

Over the past several years, the session has prayerfully considered the next steps we should take as a church, including a church plant, church site, and expanding our current campus. At this point, we believe that the next best step is to pursue deeper ministry at our current location. We hope that this allows us to pursue other ministry opportunities in the future. 

When we moved to our current location, God was placing us better than we could have placed ourselves. We could not have known that neighborhoods would pop up as they have around the church. We have new neighbors visit every Sunday. With all the growth, there are another 600 homes projected to be built within walking distance of the church. This is an extraordinary opportunity to lead our neighbors deeper with Christ and for others.

As we equip more men and women to be deeper leaders for our church and community, we will become a greater blessing to our whole city. We will go every day through our vocations to love our neighbors as Jesus has commanded. Through deeper partnerships more of us will join with friends in ministries within under-resourced communities in our city. 

How much is enough?

Knowing that we should give can be easy, but knowing how much to give presents a greater challenge. God has always had his people give the “first fruits” of his provision back to him. Throughout the Old Testament, this took the form of the tithe. Approximately 400 years before the Law was given, both Abraham and Jacob offered the Lord a tithe of everything that he had given to them. The word “tithe” simply means “a tenth.” In response to the provision and the promise of God, these heroes of the faith offered the Lord not merely a tenth of their income but a tenth of everything God had given to them.

The Law codifies the principle of giving a tithe, but it also makes provision for peace offerings and freewill offerings to the Lord. Even the Law encouraged the people of God to exceed the minimum requirements of the Law!

Christ fulfilled the promise of the Law. This does not give us an excuse for no longer giving a tenth; rather, it should motivate us to give in grateful response to God. He keeps his promise and allows us the joy of being a part of his plan for meeting the needs of his people. In Acts, the Church did not allow a legalistic reading of the tithe to limit their generosity. Instead, they saw the immense needs among the Body of Christ and gave accordingly.

In short, “first fruit giving” is a universal biblical principle. The tithe is a good place to start for many believers, but it is not a good place to stay. The principle that guides us as we give is this: “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich” (2 Corinthians 8:9). The King of Kings left Heaven to give his life. If we are putting Him first in our lives, how will our giving reflect this?

Why do churches talk about money, finances, and giving so much?

We understand that money is a sensitive topic, and still Jesus spoke more about money than he did any other topic. Paul is so concerned about our tendency to separate our giving from our living of the Christian life that he admonishes us to excel in the grace of giving also (2 Corinthians 8:7). Giving is an essential part of the Christian life.

The church mentions money frequently because money is frequently a spiritual stumbling block in our lives. Our finances give us a false sense of security that should only come from God. Bringing this area of our lives under his control is simply of vital importance for every believer. Jesus plainly said, we cannot serve both God and money.

Jesus tells us, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21). Where are we investing our time, our talents, and our treasure? Jesus would tell us that the answers to those questions will reveal all we need to know about where our heart is. Let’s pray for one another during this season, that we would all put Jesus first, because that is the only place where he rightfully belongs.

For any additional questions please feel free to reach out to Pastor Vise at 205-391-2111 or rvise@trinitytuscaloosa.org.