PASTOR'S PEN

Six Stewardship Myths

by Rev. Bill Wood

When you hear the word stewardship in church, sometimes the first thought that comes to mind is, “Oh, they want more money.” Stewardship is about much more than money. So what, exactly, is it?

Christian stewardship is a way of life—caring for everything that God has given us. Over half of everything Jesus of Nazareth said had to do with the stewardship of time, abilities, possessions or money.

Of all of these gifts from God, the stewardship of money can be the most difficult to talk about; myths and misunderstandings abound. Here are a few:

• Giving is an obligation of being a Christian. It is not an obligation; it is a joy. “Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” [2 Corinthians 9:7]. Through giving, we participate in the mission of what we are giving to. Donated dollars help nurture a child’s growing knowledge of Jesus, or create a supportive and loving community for older adults, or provide for the needy as they struggle to make their way amid the multiple challenges that have come their way. In our giving, we participate in God’s work in the world and show our appreciation to God for his generosity. This, rightly, brings us great joy.

• It’s my money; I get to decide how to use it. The foundational principle of Christian stewardship is that it is NOT your money! “The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it [Psalm 24:1]. Nothing is ours. The world, and everything in it, is owned by God but on loan to us. God calls us to care for it and use it not according to our whim but according to his purpose. When God blesses us with more money than we need, God expects us to use the excess to share with others.

• I should give to the church to help balance the budget. Strangely enough, this is NOT a good reason to give. Yes, budgets need to be balanced. Yes, the church has bills that need to be paid. Yes, there is a world of need that church funds will be used to help meet. But none of these is reason enough to give. The need will always be bigger than our ability to meet it. We give because God wants us to. Giving is what Christians do.

• Generosity means giving 10% of my income to God. The Old Testament has many examples of God’s desire that his people give to him the “first fruits” of what the land produced—a tenth (tithe) of all that came in—and to live off the remaining 90%. But Jesus teaches generosity as an act of the heart, with no upper limits, no constraints. In 2 Corinthians 16, Paul instructs the new members of the church to ”give proportionally to God in accordance with his blessings.” So giving generously should be in proportion to what God has given us; it could be even more than 10% of your income. Our giving should be meaningful whether the economic times are good or bad, whether we are confident or scared.

• First Pres doesn’t need my money; it has a large endowment and is a rich church. Thanks to the generosity of past members, First Pres has been the recipient of several bequests that make up its endowment investment portfolio. The endowments have restrictions as to how the income from the investments may be used. A strong stock market in past years has made it possible for endowment income to fund 1/3 of current church operations and programs. This is unsustainable. Reaching sustainability at our current giving level will result in severe cutbacks or elimination of programs and operations within a few years. We must start to grow our giving now in order to expand our programs, cover our costs in the future, and rejoice in the ongoing mission of First Pres.

• First Pres has a number of generous givers; my giving won’t make much of a difference. Not everyone has the same resources to give. Generosity is not about the dollar amount but has to do with the proportion of your income that you give. It is not about the difference it will make to the church, but about the difference it will make to YOU. What you are capable of giving matters to God. Give until it feels good to you what you are giving!

So with this fall’s stewardship campaign, let’s start a new tradition—one of generous giving from the heart. Give with gratitude and joy, because of what God has given to you!

 

Grace and peace,