Pastors and Offerings (one of my Facebook notes)

People I am here humbly seeking your advice. I am not here to judge anyone. So to all you deeply religious people, please do not take offense to my note and to those I may offend, please let me say, I truly apologize.

Ok, please help me understand some Pastors. I’m not talking about YOUR Pastor; I’m talking about the one with the Lincoln Town Car, the $7.1 million dollar home, the Rolex Watch and the vacation home in the Bahamas. I want to know when did preaching, and delivering God’s message became so rewarding and I’m not talking about in the holy sense.

Church members are in debt, houses are foreclosing, cars are being repossessed and they’re paying for the Pastors to live lavishly. I understand quite well about paying your tithes, yes I know about the “up-keeping” of the building and such, so don’t get me wrong. What I don’t get is how many times they send around that offering plate during one service. I always leave church feeling like I just got robbed, ready to call 911. I walked in with money for my mortgage, my cell phone bill and my credit cards and walked out with my pocketbook empty, having to beg fifty cents for the pay phone to call a ride to take me to the homeless shelter.

I don’t want to go to hell just because I’m broke. But that’s how they make you feel sometimes; do you really think God told that man that everyone should give up $100 dollars? And how many times is he going to say that in ONE day? And another thing, when did churches start to accept credit cards? “If you don’t have the cash, we’ll take the credit card,” are you kidding me? This is church!! Not a strip joint.

I want to go to church, get uplifted with the word and leave with that feeling. I don’t want to go to church hiding my pocketbook like I’m on the subway. I’ve been leaving feeling really guilty, because I know God sees everything and he definitely saw the five bucks I had hidden in my Bible hoping to buy the Lottery later. But then should I really feel guilty, I mean after all, if I win, ten percent goes to the church right? Or maybe 20 percent…or…maybe fifty by the time they’re done with me, but you get the point right?