It seems fair to ask, “God, do You really expect less of me – who has your Holy Spirit within and lives in the wealthiest society in human history – than You demanded of the poorest Israelite?”… The tithe is God's historical method to get us on the path of giving. In that sense, it can serve as a gateway to the joy of grace giving. It is unhealthy to view tithing as a place to stop, but it can be a good place to start… Tithing isn't the ceiling of giving; it's the floor. It's not the finish line of giving; it's just the starting blocks… True, some would be sacrificing more by giving 5% of their income than others would be by tithing or even giving 50 or 90%. Certainly the affluent should never “check off the box,” as if giving 10% automatically fulfills their obligation. The 90% belongs to God, too. He doesn't look at just what we give. He also looks at what we keep… When people tell me they can't afford to tithe, I ask them, “If your income was reduced by 10% would you die?” They say, “No.” And I say, “Then you've admitted that you can afford to tithe. It's just that you don't want to”… I have no problem with people who say “we're not under the tithe,” just as long as they're not using that as justification for giving less. But in my mind the current giving statistics among Christians clearly indicate most of us need a jump-start. If you find a gateway to giving that's better than the tithe, wonderful. But if not, why not start where God started His First Covenant children?

Randy Alcorn

CATEGORY	CUISINE	TAG	YIELD
Vegetables, Eggs, Meats		Main dish	4	Servings

INGREDIENTS

1 1/2	tb	Vegetable oil; divided
2		Eggs; beaten
1	c	Diced fully cooked ham OR- raw boneless pork
1	c	Finely chopped mushrooms (fresh)
1/2	c	Thinly sliced green onions including tops
3	c	Cooked brown rice; cooled
1	tb	Soy sauce

INSTRUCTIONS

In large skillet or wok, heat 1/2 tablespoon oil over medium heat. Add
eggs and cook without stirring until set.  Invert skillet over baking
sheet to remove cooked eggs; cut into 1-1/2 x 1/2-inch strips.  In same
skillet, heat remaining oil over medium-high heat.  Stir-fry ham,
mushrooms, and green onions in oil three minutes, or until mushrooms and
onions are tender.  Stir in cooked rice and egg strips; sprinkle with soy
sauce.  Toss lightly; heat thoroughly.
Each serving provides:
* 278 calories
* 14.1 g. protein
* 10.4 g. fat
* 31.3 g. carbohydrate
* 719 mg. sodium
* 156 mg. cholesterol
NOTE: Optional ingredients are omitted from the nutritional calculations.
When ingredient options appear in a recipe, the first ingredient choice is
used for calculation.
Source: Brown Rice
Reprinted with permission from The USA Rice Council
Electronic format courtesy of Karen Mintzias
File ftp://ftp.idiscover.co.uk/pub/food/mealmaster/recipes/usarice.zip

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“Death: the end of excuses, the beginning of eternity”