A NEW YEAR – A NEW COVENANT – A TITHE OF TIME

John Ross Thompson

January 7, 2008


One of the long-standing Methodist traditions throughout nearly 300 years is making a new covenant with God as a new year begins. John Wesley began the practice, and it has proved to be deeply fulfilling for many persons.

Unlike New Year’s resolutions, which are usually well-intentioned but don’t very often mean a real change in one’s life, a covenant with God can be a life-changing or a life-recharging experience.

Simply put, such a covenant means that a person resolves, hand-in-hand with God, to walk a better path. It means opening oneself to the leading of the Holy Spirit, letting God direct our paths in the coming months. It involves emptying ourselves of self-directed desires, and saying to God, “Here I am, send me.”

Such a covenant needs tangible ways of being measured. A desire without benchmarks usually fades away. Here is a suggestion.

We are familiar with a tithe, which is usually interpreted as giving one-tenth of one’s income to God’s work. I recommend a tithe of one’s time as well. The new year is a perfect time to do so.

What if you determined the time over which you have control, beyond working hours and sleep? Then if you took one-tenth of that time each week, and monitored it in a journal, you will probably be surprised how much you can do for God and others.

I suggest that of the one-tenth time you give to God, you spent one-half in study and spiritual growth, perhaps including a regular study group with others. The other one-half of your time tithe could be in serving God through the church and by reaching out to others.

Others who have done this have been surprised how much time remained for all of the other needs of their lives and how good they felt about growing and serving. Let me know what your experience is.