When the Numbers Do Not Add Up
From “Trusting the Lord Through Tithes and Offerings,” by Elder Patricio M. Giuffra · Saturday afternoon session, October 2026 General Conference
The big idea
The law of tithing is a law of faith; as we obey it we show the Lord that we trust Him, and He works in our lives in His own time and way.
Objective
Learners will explain in their own words why tithing is a matter of trust more than money, and will choose one way to show the Lord their trust this week.
Before you teach
- Read Elder Giuffra's talk, Trusting the Lord Through Tithes and Offerings, and mark paragraphs 2–10 (the story from Puerto Montt) and 11–13.
- Have the talk open on a phone or printed so groups can read from it.
- Bring paper and pens for silent writing.
- Write on the board: What does my tithing say to the Lord?
- Pray for anyone in your class for whom money is a heavy worry right now, and plan to teach gently.
Lesson plan
Thirty minutes in 6 parts. Times are a guide; let the Spirit and the learners set the pace.
Begin: When obedience does not make sense on paper
- Invite someone to pray. You may sing or read the words of Because I Have Been Given Much.
- Explain that Elder Giuffra of the Seventy admitted that a sister's reasons for not paying tithing made sense from a worldly perspective. Today we look at what he learned.
- Ask the first question below. Give pairs one minute each to talk, then take one or two brief responses. Do not ask anyone to share details about money.
- When has keeping a commandment looked unreasonable on paper, and what helped you decide what to do?
Discover: A sister in Puerto Montt
- Form groups of three or four. Ask each group to read paragraphs 2–10 of the talk aloud, changing readers at each paragraph.
- Ask groups to look for two turning points: what changed for the young missionary, and what changed for the sister.
- Bring the class together. Read aloud the first two key quotes: President Caballero's counsel and the sister's prayer.
- Ask the questions below. Let several people answer before you add anything.
- Elder Giuffra wondered whether the Lord might have an exception for her. Why do you think his mission president saw an exception as denying her something rather than sparing her?
- What do you notice about the way this sister prayed? What did she ask for, and what did she not ask for?
Search: The widow and the windows
- Explain that President Caballero answered by reading the account of the widow's mite, and that Elder Giuffra closed his talk with Malachi.
- Ask half the class to read Mark 12:41–44 in pairs and the other half to read Malachi 3:8, 10 in pairs. Each pair looks for what the passage teaches about the giver's heart and about the Lord.
- Invite one pair from each half to report. Then point to the words prove me in Malachi 3:10 and ask the first question below.
- Share President Oaks's words that Elder Giuffra quoted (see aligned quotes) and ask the second question.
- The Lord invites us to prove Him. What does that invitation tell you about Him?
- How has tithing prepared you to keep other covenants, including those made in the house of the Lord?
Ponder: Why we obey, and what we can count on
- Read the third key quote, the principle Elder Giuffra's wife teaches. Invite the class to turn to John 14:15 and read it silently.
- Read paragraph 13 of the talk aloud. Point out that the speaker does not promise freedom from trials; he names financial hardship, illness and loss.
- Give two minutes of silent writing on the question on the board: What does my tithing say to the Lord? No one will be asked to share what they wrote.
- Ask the question below and invite two or three to answer.
- According to paragraph 13, what three things can we be sure of even when we do not understand our trials?
Witness: Blessings temporal and spiritual
- Read the fourth key quote. Then read Elder Bednar's sentence, which Elder Villanueva quoted at this conference (see aligned quotes).
- Invite one or two learners to share briefly a blessing from living this law that they nearly overlooked. Ask them to keep amounts and private details out of it.
- As a check for understanding, ask a volunteer to finish this sentence in their own words: Tithing is a law of faith because …
Act: Choose how you will show your trust
- Explain that Elder Giuffra did not extend a specific assignment; he bore testimony. Invite learners to decide for themselves how to act on it, and show the ideas in the act list.
- Ask each person to write one thing they will do this week under what they wrote earlier.
- Read Elder Giuffra's testimony that as we obey this law we allow the Lord to work miracles in our lives, often in ways we do not expect. Add your own witness of the Savior.
- Tell the class that next week you will begin by asking what they noticed about the Lord's hand when they looked for it.
Key passages from the talk
“Elder Giuffra, you are no one to deny this sister the blessings of the law of tithing. There are no exceptions to this commandment.”
“Last night I knelt in prayer and told Heavenly Father that I truly wanted to become a member of His Church and that He would need to help me live this law.”
“We keep the commandments because we love God, not merely because we hope to receive the blessings that come from obedience.”
“I testify that the law of tithing is a law of faith. As we obey it, we demonstrate our trust in the Lord and allow Him to work miracles in our lives, often in ways we do not expect.”
Scriptures
- Mark 12:41–44 Half the class reads it in pairs, looking for what the Savior noticed about the widow and what her gift showed about her heart.
- Malachi 3:8, 10 The other half reads it in pairs, marking what the Lord asks and what He promises; then discuss the words prove me as a class.
- John 14:15 Read silently after the quote from paragraph 12, to connect keeping commandments with loving the Savior.
Other voices that agree
“Tithe paying is evidence that we accept the law of sacrifice. It also prepares us for the law of consecration and the other higher laws of the celestial kingdom.”
“As we live the law of tithing, we often receive significant but subtle blessings that are not always what we expect and easily can be overlooked”
Three things to remember
- Tithing is a law of faith; paying it tells the Lord I trust Him.
- We keep the commandments because we love God, not only for the blessings.
- The Lord knows my circumstances, honors my obedience, and fulfills His promises in His own time and way.
Ways to act this week
- Before you next pay tithing or a fast offering, kneel and tell Heavenly Father in your own words why you are doing it.
- If living this law feels beyond you right now, pray as the sister in the story did: tell Heavenly Father what you desire and ask Him to help you live it.
- Each evening this week, write down one blessing, temporal or spiritual, that you might otherwise have overlooked.
- Read Mark 12:41–44 with someone in your home and talk about what the Savior sees when we give.
Suggestions written for this lesson, not the speaker’s words.
Music
- Because I Have Been Given Much
- Count Your Blessings
Adapting the lesson
- At home: read paragraphs 2–10 together around the table, then ask each person to answer the board question aloud or in a journal.
- Large class: skip the group reading; ask three readers to read the story from the front, then have people discuss the questions with the person beside them.
- Short on time: keep the story, Malachi 3:8, 10, the silent writing and the act segment.
This lesson is an independent study aid written for this site. It is not an official lesson of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Quotations are word for word from the official talk; paragraph numbers count the paragraphs of the talk as published at churchofjesuschrist.org, not counting headings or picture captions. The activities, questions and ideas for acting are suggestions; follow the Spirit and adapt them to those you teach.