At a graduation ceremony, the president of a Christian college stood at the podium and looked out over the huge crowd of people. He shook his head and said to himself (right into the microphone, of course!): “All these Christians in one place, and no one’s taking an offering!”

We take offerings a lot, don’t we? Every Sunday at worship services, the money plates are passed. In fact, we can hardly think of a meeting of Christians where there is not some suggestion about offerings, donations, or contributions. Money and religion seem to go hand in hand.

Indeed, someone told a story of an airplane that was experiencing problems. One of the engines had failed, and another was acting strange. The passengers were getting nervous. Some were beginning to panic. Finally, one fellow sitting near the fr…