Stealing from the Lord

The Gantt Report

Stealing from the Lord

By Lucius Gantt

      I have visited a variety of places to worship. I’ve been to mosques, synagogues, temples and halls but on most occasions I go to a church to worship The Lord.

No place of worship that I’ve visited collects more offerings than Christian churches. I’ve donated to “tithes and offerings”, “missionary offerings”, “benevolent offerings”, “building fund” offerings and many other kinds of offerings.

Most churches take up at least two collections at every church meeting.

No matter how many church collections take place, when a member of the congregation is victimized by a fire, a flood, a tornado, a hurricane, an earthquake or a catastrophic injury or illness, most churches say they don’t have money to help the church member.

Well, somehow money is available to give the preacher a big raise, money is available to renovate the church office, the music director and the church band are never fired for lack of funds and most churches have vans and buses that are seldom used lined up in the church parking lots.

No disrespect but the preacher and the so-called “first lady” never look like the masses in the congregation.

The members of the church have two or three Sunday- go-to-meeting outfits but the pastor and his wife can go six months and never wear the same outfits. The members walk to church but the preacher drives a Cadillac or Mercedes Benz. The members live in the ghettos or the projects but the preacher lives in the church parsonage or in a gated community.

I’m glad religious leaders can have success and make money at the church but why can’t the churches improve the lives of the members in the same way, to the same degree?

Why can’t churches, especially big churches, set up banks and credit unions for the church members? Why can’t churches set up church schools for the church children? Why can’t churches set up affordable housing complexes for church members that need places to live? Why can’t churches do more to feed the hungry?

I wonder if the church trustees, boards of directors, deacons and mothers ever inquire about how much and where the missionary money that was collected is spent?

The biggest churches in the community where I live that take up the most money in church collections seem like the ones that do the least for individual congregation members.

When a church going member that has put money in the missionary and benevolent collection plate for nearly every year of his or her life needs help and goes to the church for assistance, some churches give them a list of community agencies.

The church tells the congregation member to call The Red Cross, call the Community Action Agency or call the Urban League.

When Yahweh Ben Yahweh was operating in South Florida he was demonized, criticized, hated and proclaimed a false prophet and a fake religious leader but his followers had jobs, they had church supported businesses, they had nice and affordable housing, they had schools and universities, and they had land!

If Yahweh could help his people why can’t other churches and religious groups help their flock, too?

The shepherd always feeds his sheep, protects his sheep and cares for the little baby lambs.

It is for this reason that the sheep can always recognize the voice of the shepherd.

If you’re wondering why fewer and fewer people are attending church services maybe some shepherds are misappropriating the sheep’s money.

Instead of doing all it can to help the congregation and the community at large, perhaps some shepherds are stealing in the name of The Lord!

If you have a good church with a good church leader, please support your church and please love God and love your neighbors. (Buy Gantt’s latest book “Beast Too: Dead Man Writing” online or any major book store. Contact Lucius at www.allworldconsultants.net)