Flooded with Blessings

I admire people who stand up in testimony meeting and bear witness of the blessings that come from paying tithing. My husband and I have always paid our tithing, but until a few months ago we would just forget about it as soon as we’d mailed the check to our bishop.

Recently, however, I learned the importance of tithing when my husband, Victor, lost his job. My income was sufficient to buy our food but not to pay our mortgage. When Victor handed me his severance pay, I hesitated to pay tithing on it. What if Victor couldn’t get another job right away? Where would we live if we couldn’t keep up with our mortgage payments?

For the first time in my life, I needed confirmation that paying tithing was the right thing to do. I reviewed 3 Ne. 24:8–12: “And prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of Hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing that there shall not be room enough to receive it” (3 Ne. 24:10). Then I turned to D&C 82:10: “I, the Lord, am bound when ye do what I say; but when ye do not what I say, ye have no promise.”

After much prayer and soul searching, I paid the tithing on Victor’s severance pay. Upon inquiring, we were happy to learn that we had six months of breathing room on our mortgage. Getting a new job, however, proved difficult. As Victor traveled the length and breadth of South Africa’s Transvaal Province, he was told that he was too old, or too qualified, or too well paid, or that he had the wrong background.

Finally, a placement agency scheduled him for an interview at a large mining company. On the day of his visit, the company put Victor through a grueling series of allergy tests in addition to all the usual screening requirements. I fasted and prayed all that day long.

Two days later, he was offered the job. When we drove down to sign the employment papers, the company showed us a lovely home that was included in the compensation package.

Sometimes it is tempting to stop paying tithing when our financial circumstances worsen. But I have learned that during difficult seasons we must keep honoring our covenants and follow a righteous course. By enduring in paying our tithes, Victor and I survived adversity and were flooded with more blessings than we had ever received before.