04 December 2023| Oslo, Norway[Tor Tjeransen]
In the summer of 1996, Elidon Bardhi, a 21-year-old male from Albania, was baptised by the Finnish evangelist Pekka Tähti. Just a few months after his baptism, the members of his new local church family invited Bardhi to take on the role of head deacon. Among his many responsibilities, one was to deliver inspirational messages from the Bible, particularly from Malachi chapter 3, prior to the offering taken up during Sabbath worship: “‘Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house.'”
Posting to a Town with a High Crime Rate
At this time, Elidon was an unsalaried student at the Police Academy in Tirana, with tithing more of a theory than a reality to him. However, after completing his training, he worked in Shkodër, a town with a well-earned reputation for high crime. The civil and financial unrest in Shkodër at the time was remarkable. Many citizens had lost their savings due to a pyramid scheme, making the prisons so overcrowded that the government declared a temporary amnesty and let the prisoners go. While the criminals were supposed to return to jail after a few months, the reality was different, and they did not. With the high number of criminals circulating in the community, Elidon’s work as a police constable was going to be hard work and action-filled.
Despite the challenging environment and a small salary – insufficient to cover his basic needs, Elidon was determined to be faithful to God. Upon receiving his first paycheck, he remembered the promise of Malachi 3:10: “‘Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,’ says the Lord Almighty, ‘and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it.'” Holding onto this promise, Elidon willingly returned 10% of his income to the Lord, fully aware that the remaining 90% would not cover his expenses.
Blessings Amidst Challenges
Elidon knew his salary was simply not enough to cover his needs. However, The police department had an incentive programme. Constables, including Elidon, received a bonus at the end of the month for successful law enforcement actions, including locking up criminals. As each month brought unique circumstances, they resulted in a much-needed bonus. Elidon, connecting the dots, saw these bonuses as blessings, as God fulfilled His promise through the words of the prophet Malachi. Reflecting on his journey, Elidon, who now serves as Programme Director for the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (Norway), testifies to the enduring blessings he received. “My experience of returning tithe as a young man was wonderful. God blessed me, and I have always been able to meet my financial obligations,” he reflected.
The original version of this story was published on the Norwegian Union Conference website. [Photo: Tor Tjeransen/Adventist Media Exchange, CC BY 4.0].
