A True Heart Story

Jesus tells us, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

When I think about where my heart was before tithing, I honestly cannot land on a firm place. Since embracing the tithe, though, my heart has been firmly planted near the foot of the cross and tied much more closely to Christ. I have embraced Him in my life, how He wants to work through me, and I am far more comfortable with my treasure being with and near Him.

So if I had to answer the question, “Where was your treasure before, and therefore your heart?” the answer becomes pretty clear.

I had heavy investments in real estate, and my heart was trapped inside those homes. I constantly watched the short term rental revenues, the appreciation in value, and at times became consumed with how I could leverage equity to acquire more properties. I was wrapped up in the paper wealth I was creating through these physical assets.

Did I actually love them? Not really.

Two of my rental properties I never even visited once. I bought them sight unseen based entirely on cash flow projections. I did not love those homes. I loved money, and the leverage those homes provided gave me access to more of it.

Isn’t it amazing how well Jesus knows us? After all, He became human. He understands exactly how our hearts work. His message that we cannot serve two masters is painfully true, and He does not leave it vague or indirect either.

“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”
Matthew 6:24

Looking back now, my heart was already revealing the truth inside that verse. I could serve God and still possess money, but that was not what was happening in my life. My devotion was aimed toward gaining more earthly wealth.

Years later, I realize I never even had an end goal in mind. There was no magic number of properties or net worth that would have finally satisfied me. More was simply the goal. More meant security in my mind. More meant insulation from future downturns. More meant I was somehow winning the race against time and getting ahead of others in my stage of life.

The faster I moved and accumulated, the faster I thought I could someday slow down and finally rest. What a terrible plan that really was. Full speed all the time, constant pressure, constant pursuit, and constant striving, all in hopes of reaching some future destination where I could finally relax.

But now, looking at it from a bird’s eye view, it seems less like a dream and more like a slow exhaustion leading nowhere meaningful.

What exactly was I planning to do once I finally slowed down? Drink coffee on the porch, play golf, write a little, travel occasionally, and enjoy a collection of homes in different places. It is the retirement dream many of us have been sold. We are told the goal of life is to eventually take it easy while we quietly ride into the sunset.

I am not sure that is how God calls us to live.

If our hearts belong to Him, then we are called into a life of serving Him and storing treasure in heaven. The vision I had built for myself contained very little service to the Lord and honestly very little eternal meaning.

I have come to believe that God’s heart deeply desires for us to invest into the gifts and purpose He has given us. His heart rejoices when ours aligns with His. When we work together with Him, serving others, spreading His love, and drawing people toward Jesus, life becomes deeply meaningful. That sounds far more fulfilling than retreating into a carefully manufactured world of comfort and isolation.

So why did my target change? Because my heart changed.

I began to understand that God wanted partnership with me, not because He needed something from me, but because He desired something for me. When my heart aligns with God’s heart, His glory shines through His creation. My purpose becomes clearer, my life gains direction, and suddenly things that once seemed important begin losing their grip on me.

It becomes a beautiful cycle. I align with Christ, God is glorified, others are served, my light shines brighter, my love grows deeper, and my mission becomes clearer. My time on earth begins impacting eternity instead of simply chasing comfort, accumulation, and temporary success. Treasure begins getting stored in heaven instead of endlessly shuffled around on earth.

That is a far better plan, so I embraced it.

What became the guardrail that started transforming my thinking? The tithe.

When I understood that tithing was protection for my heart, I immediately began practicing it. I do not want to pretend it was easy, because it was not. Those first checks were difficult to write. I wanted to do it, but I still felt a tight grip on those funds. I had spent years deploying money toward my own goals, my own security, and my own future plans. Returning it back to God required deliberate practice, trust, and reflection.

Protection for My Heart

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.”
Proverbs 4:23

This verse is critical to understanding why we tithe and why Jesus ties our treasure so closely to our hearts.

Notice what Solomon says. He does not say, “Pay attention to your heart every once in a while.” He says, “Above all else.” God is after our hearts more than anything else because everything flows from them. Everything.

Think about that for a moment. Our heart becomes the source from which our entire life flows. Even physically, this is true.

According to Harvard Medical School, the heart beats billions of times over a lifetime, carrying oxygen, nutrients, hormones, and life throughout the body. When the heart stops functioning properly, the body quickly suffers. Poor habits damage the heart over time. Arteries become clogged, blood flow becomes restricted, and disease develops. Yet healthy habits can restore strength, improve circulation, and even reverse damage.

The parallels to our spiritual hearts are impossible to ignore.

Physically speaking, our hearts carry life throughout the body. If they fail, the body suffers. Poor habits damage them, clogged arteries restrict healthy flow, and healthy disciplines strengthen them. Thankfully, course correction is possible.

The same is true spiritually.

Jesus makes a direct connection between treasure and the heart because He knows whatever captures our treasure eventually captures our devotion. Solomon warns us to guard the heart because everything flows from it. A healthy spiritual heart produces life, while a clogged spiritual heart produces death.

I believe the tithe is one of the greatest spiritual disciplines God has given us to protect that flow.

How the Tithe Mirrors Healthy Heart Habits

1. Tithing Is Spiritual Exercise

A healthy body is built through consistent exercise, not random effort. No one works out occasionally and expects life changing results. Fitness requires discipline, repetition, and growth over time.

Tithing works the same way.

Whether we receive a paycheck weekly, biweekly, monthly, or through business income, the tithe becomes a regular spiritual discipline tied directly to provision. As our income grows, our tithe grows. As our tithe grows, the impact God can make through our lives expands.

Tithing trains our hearts to place God first before we decide what to do with the remainder. It transforms our relationship with money from ownership into stewardship.

2. Where My Treasure Is, My Heart and My Life Follow

When we tithe consistently, our hearts naturally become more connected to our church community and the body of Christ. We begin seeing the fruit of generosity around us. Lives are impacted, needs are met, and the Gospel spreads. Slowly our habits begin changing as well.

We attend church more faithfully. We become more engaged in worship. We feel the Holy Spirit moving in our lives. We recognize ourselves as part of something eternal rather than simply isolated individuals trying to build our own kingdoms.

Tithing creates proximity to spiritually healthy environments, and proximity changes people.

3. Tithing Changes How We View Provision

In John chapter 6, Jesus tells us His flesh is real food and His blood is real drink. God constantly teaches eternal truths through physical things.

Communion is not simply bread and wine. It is worship, remembrance, and spiritual nourishment. Tithing works similarly.

A paycheck is physical, temporary, and earthly, but when we tithe, that physical income becomes an act of eternal worship. We recognize God as our provider. We release trust back to Him. We transform something temporary into something eternal.

Tithing teaches us to stop viewing money merely through earthly eyes.

4. The Tithe Helps Restore Proper Flow

When someone develops heart problems physically, doctors often prescribe medication, exercise, dietary changes, and sometimes surgery. But as long as the person is alive, there is still opportunity to change course.

Spiritually, the same hope exists.

God is the source of all provision. When the flow between our hearts and our Provider becomes blocked, problems begin appearing throughout our lives. Tithing restores proper flow. It becomes a spiritual prescription that realigns our hearts with God.

Returning the first portion back to Him restores order. Perspective changes. Trust deepens. Our relationship with the Father begins strengthening again.

Spiritual attacks on the heart are very real, and regular tithing becomes one of the greatest protections against them.

The tithe does not merely change our finances. It changes us.

-Mark