The Way to Give by Arthur Mitchell

Seventh-day Adventist Missionary Society · Oakland, California · May 31, 1883

The Way to Give.

By Arthur Mitchell

As I was riding to church one Sabbath with a farmer, we fell into conversation on the subject of giving. He was an elder in the Presbyterian Church, a man between fifty and sixty years of age.

Said he, "I give a tenth of all I make to the Lord. Every crop of corn, every load of hay, every dozen of eggs I sell I keep account of, and one-tenth of the profit goes to the Lord. It came rather hard at first, but that is passed long ago. Now I only have to distribute what is already given. I am ready to listen to any reasonable application, and if I think it a good object it is nothing but a pleasure to give. That tenth

I have come to feel belongs to God. I never touch it. I should as soon think of spending my neighbor's money as that."

About the same time I met the pastor of this man. Said he, "That farmer is not only the largest giver, but the most cheerful giver in my parish. I preach in two churches. He helps liberally in sustaining both, and the money he gives is the least of the blessings he brings to us."

Some time after this I was conversing with a friend in Chicago, a young business man, on the same subject.

"Yes," said he, "I determined, when I was a clerk, the first year I earned anything for myself that I would set aside a fixed percentage of my income for benevolence. I made the resolution and have kept it."

"Well, you began early," I remarked.

"So I did," was the reply, "and it was well I did. My salary was small, and to give the proportion I fixed upon was hard; there has never been a year since when it would not have been harder. A year or two after I went into business for myself; it looked as though every cent was needed for capital. I am afraid I shouldn't have commenced the system that year. But having resolved and made a beginning already, I was ashamed to retreat. Then, the year after, I was married. That year I should have begged off, I am sure, if it had not been for the habit, by that time pretty well settled. That carried me through. Soon after came our big fire; then hard times, epizootics—in fact, almost every year a bad one to begin. Now I always say to my friends, begin to give as soon as you begin to make; start early."

I do not certainly know what proportion of his income the young merchant gives. Probably a tenth; not less, I am sure.

So here in Cleveland. A young man, just beginning his business life, came to me alone a few evenings since and said:—

"I like this idea of giving a regular proportion, and I'm going to begin now. I think I'll give a tenth. This year that will be five hundred dollars. It looks like a good deal to give away; and my business is growing; it will be more yet, I expect, next year; but it's the right way. My old Bible class teacher used to talk to us boys about it, and I'm going to do it."