To have an effective ministry of giving, you must have proper priorities. Many people pay all of their bills and then tithe to God out of what is left.

That may be common practice, but the Bible teaches otherwise.

Thou shalt take of the first of all the fruit of the earth, which thou shalt bring of thy land that the Lord thy God giveth thee, and shalt put it in a basket, and shalt go unto the place which the Lord thy God shall choose to place his name there.

And thou shalt speak and say before the Lord thy God...And now, behold, I have brought the firstfruits of the land, which thou, O Lord, hast given me.

And thou shalt set it before the Lord thy God, and worship before the Lord thy God. When thou hast made an end of tithing....
(Deut. 26:2,5,10,12)

Tithing is to bring God the firstfruits before paying bills. His Word says to tithe before doing anything else with your "fruits" (finances)!

If you put God first, as He says to do, then surely He will bless you.

Then saith he unto them, "Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's."
(Matt. 22:21)

Please be wise enough to see that if you tithe and make offerings after paying all bills, you leave yourself at the mercy of your bills. They control your tithes and offerings.

But if you tithe first and give generous offerings, your tithes and offerings control your bills.

Malachi 3:10 and 11 speaks of open windows for tithing and uninterrupted harvests for your offerings.

Always keep your bills in their proper place, behind the tithe. Put God's business first and He will put your business first.

Source: The Basics of Abundance by John Avanzini
Excerpt permission granted by Harrison House Publishers