That moment when you look at your finances and wonder: "Is there ever going to be enough?"
We've all been there.
The bills pile up. Unexpected expenses emerge. Financial goals seem to drift further away.
And in the midst of it all, you hear teachings about tithing and giving.
You've tried to be faithful with your giving.
You've set aside portions of your income.
You've supported your local church and various ministries.
Yet sometimes, doubt creeps in. Questions surface about whether your giving really matters, whether God's promises of provision are actually true for you.
This isn't about a lack of faith. It's about needing a new vision, a way to see God's economy that makes sense to your heart, not just your calculator.
For me, everything changed when I stopped seeing tithing as a mathematical obligation...
And started visualizing the spiritual reality behind it: open floodgates of heaven pouring out blessing.
If you're ready to reimagine your relationship with giving and receiving, You're in the right place.
Let me show you how one powerful verse can transform how you see financial abundance through faithful giving.
SCRIPTURE (Warm-Up)
"Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it."
— Malachi 3:10 (NIV)
Let's slow this down.
Before we break it apart, just... sit with it.
Breathe it in like a quiet stretch.
Let the words settle.
Storehouses... floodgates... blessings pouring out.
Not a dry religious duty. Not a prosperity formula. Not a transactional exchange.
A vivid picture of overabundance that defies containment.
That one biblical image tells me something important:
God's economy operates on entirely different principles than ours.
In earthly economics, when you give something away, you have less.
But in God's economy? Giving can activate abundance beyond what you can contain.
Think about those floodgates. They're not slightly ajar, they're thrown open. The blessing doesn't trickle; it pours. It doesn't partially fill; it overflows all available space.
That's how God views the relationship between faithful giving and His provision.
It isn't just about percentages or amounts.
It's about faith, trusting God enough to put His principles to the test.
When we start our giving journey with this verse, we give ourselves permission to shift our perspective.
To bring the whole tithe. To test God's faithfulness. To expect abundance.
So before you view giving as just a spiritual obligation, start here:
One verse.
One breath.
One biblical truth: God invites us to test His promise of overflowing provision.
ENGAGE (Strength Training)
This is where we build spiritual muscle for your biblical abundance, not by doing more, but by seeing more.
When you engage with Scripture about faithful giving, you're not just reading it...
You're interacting with it.
You're letting it speak through visuals, symbols, reflections, and rhythm.
Let's walk through how to engage with Malachi 3:10 using a few gentle tools:
1. Let One Phrase Capture Your Imagination
As you read this verse, certain words seem to leap off the page, don't they?
For some, it might be "test me", that bold invitation from God Himself.
For others, the image of "floodgates of heaven" creates an immediate visual.
Maybe "so much blessing" resonates with a deep longing in your heart.
Or perhaps the idea of "not room enough" challenges your concept of limitation.
Take a moment. Which words in Malachi 3:10 seem illuminated for you right now?
Circle them. Underline them. Color them.
In that illumination, God is often speaking directly to your current season.
2. Ask Visual Questions
Let's say you chose "floodgates of heaven." Try asking:
- What do floodgates look like? How are they different from a faucet or a small door?
- What happens when floodgates are suddenly opened after being closed?
- What would it feel like to stand beneath opened floodgates of blessing?
- How might my expectations change if I truly visualised God's blessing this way?
These questions help you move from reading the verse... to seeing it through a biblical lens.
3. Sketch It Out (Even If You're Not "Artistic")
Here's a simple visual you can try:
- At the top of your page, draw clouds representing heaven.
- Below that, draw large gates or dam-like floodgates.
- Draw the gates open wide with abundant water pouring through.
- Below, draw a simple figure with arms outstretched, but the blessing is clearly more than they can contain.
- Around the edges, draw simple overflowing containers representing "not room enough to store it."
You've just made a visual verse map, one of the simplest ways to remember biblical truth through imagery.
Don't worry about perfection. This isn't performance.
It's presence with God's Word.
Why This Works
When you interact with this verse visually or symbolically, it gets anchored in your heart for Biblical abundance.
It moves from your eyes to your heart.
And from your heart... to your daily financial decisions.
This is what engaging God's Word about faithful giving looks like.
It's creative. Reflective. Biblically-grounded.
And you can do it, one verse at a time.
EXPERIENCE (Cool Down)
Now that you've studied and seen this verse...
What do you do with it?
This is the part of Bible study that often gets skipped.
But it's where the real growth happens.
It's where the Word becomes activated, not just remembered, but lived.
Let's reflect:
1. Where Does This Verse Meet Your Life?
This verse invites you to test God in the area of tithing and expect abundant blessing, not as a formula for getting rich, but as a revelation of God's generous character.
So pause and ask yourself:
What's my current experience with tithing? Am I bringing the "whole tithe"?- Have I ever approached giving as a way to "test" God's faithfulness?
- Where do I need to expand my capacity to receive God's blessings?
Write your honest answers.
This is your real-life application.
And God's Word wants to meet you here, with grace, not shame.
2. Let the Word Guide You Gently
Now bring Malachi 3:10 back to that place.
You don't need to completely revamp your giving practices overnight.
You just need one gentle step toward faithful giving today.
So ask:
What's one way I can move toward bringing my "whole tithe" today?
Maybe it's:
- Setting up an automatic giving system that happens before other expenses
- Calculating what a full tithe would be for your current income
- Taking a small step toward increasing your giving if you're not at a full tithe
- Journaling about areas where you've seen God's provision in the past
Small doesn't mean insignificant.
Small often means sacred.
3. Journaling Prompt
Write this in your journal (or say it out loud):
"God, You invite me to test Your faithfulness through giving. Help me trust You with my finances today by ________. Open my eyes to see Your abundant provision all around me."
Let this verse become a prayer, a rhythm, a biblical perspective you return to.
Because financial abundance doesn't come from clutching what we have, It comes from participating in God's economy of generous giving and receiving.
YOU JUST STUDIED THE BIBLE!
You didn't need to read a theological treatise on tithing.
You didn't need a financial advisor's analysis of Malachi.
You didn't need to debate the applicability of Old Testament principles.
You just needed a verse.
A pause.
A biblical perspective.
That's what Bible study for financial wellness can be, simple, visual, Spirit-led.
It's not about perfecting a giving formula.
It's about trusting the One who owns everything and promises to provide abundantly.
So if you've ever felt uncertain about your giving practices...
If you've ever wondered if God's promises of provision apply to you...
Let this moment be your gentle reminder:
Seeing giving through Scripture is an invitation to test God's faithfulness.
Reflecting on heaven's floodgates transforms your expectations.
Taking one small step toward faithful giving opens you to immeasurable blessing.