Christian Stewardship

Christian Stewardship is . . .

. . . grateful and responsible use of God's gifts in the light of God's purpose as revealed in Jesus Christ.  Christian stewards, empowered by the Holy Spirit, commit themselves to conscious, purposeful decisions.

Stewardship is lived out in:

• living and telling the Good News;
• sharing with God in seeking justice, peace, and the integrity of creation in an interdependent universe;
• wisely employing God-given human resources, abilities, and relationships;
• sharing the material resources we hold and giving them in service, justice, and compassion;
• providing for future generations;
• sharing in the life, worship, and responsible stewardship of the Church and of its mission.

Both for the individual and for the community, stewardship is a joyful act for the sake of God's world.

This definition comes from the Standing Rules of the Ecumenical Stewardship Center. The Episcopal Church is a founding member of this group and remains active in its continuing work. You can find out more about ESC at their website, www.stewardshipresources.org.

How Giving and Spiritual Growth are Linked

It is possible that the church has no business raising money if it does not also see it as an opportunity for spiritual growth. Jesus talked more about money and material possessions in the Bible than any other topic. It is hard not to draw the conclusion that there must be a strong link between money and the nurture of our spiritual lives. Why else would he focus so much of our attention on it? Some would think that the way we handle our money is a window into our souls. Let's look at what the Bible has to say to us.

Everything belongs to God, we are Caretakers

In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth ... Genesis 1:1
You are not your own. For you were bought with a price I Corinthians 6:19-20
The Earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof Psalms 24:1

No matter how hard we have worked or how talented we are, once we start to unwrap where it all came from, we end up at God's front door. We, along with everything in the world (even opportunities, are His creation.

Everything we are and everything we have is a gift,
Gratitude is the only response

For God so loved the world that he gave his only son ... John 3:16

Jesus paid the debt for our sins, therefore our lives are built on grace. The primary motivation for giving is gratitude. It is one of the most powerful positive forces in the world. Gratitude is the door to inner peace and wholeness. Gratitude fosters a sense of abundance and therefore frees us to be generous.

God is a Giver... Therefore we are Givers

Riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all. In your hand it is to make great and to give strength to all. And now we thank you, our God, and praise your glorious name... for all things come of thee, and of thine own have we given thee.
1 Chronicles 29: 12-14

We are made in the image of God. He is generous, therefore we are generous. This must be why it feels so good to be helpful and do nice things for others. When we are giving, we are reflecting the likeness of God. It is our basic nature to give of ourselves. The act of clinging to, worrying about, and protecting our worldly things is actually a very restricting and suffocating way to live. Sir Winston Churchill said it this way, "We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give."

Abundance is the Christian way of Life

He took the seven loaves and the fish and when he had given thanks he broke them and gave them to the disciples and they in turn to the people. They all ate and were satisfied. Matthew 15:36-29
And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. I tell you do not worry about your life. Matthew 6:25-34

No wonder we get confused and are filled with fear. We live in a culture that is driven by a market economy that needs to create scarcity so it can fill our needs. We receive as many as 5,000 messages daily designed to convince us to spend money we don't have to buy things we don't need to impress people we don't even like. Even the poor among us have more than most of the people who have ever lived. Our self-worth is measured by our net worth, but Jesus wants us to live in the opposite frame of mind. How many times in the Bible do we find the works "fear not?" We are, after all, in God's loving care. We must learn to think, "I am rich, I have enough, I have more than I need, and I choose not to focus my live on unnecessary things."

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Giving is a Witness to our Faith

Raising money for the church is an opportunity for spiritual experiences and learning about our relationship with God and our "things." The Biblical standard of giving is the tithe. Ten percent of all we have and are is given back to God as a symbol of our gratitude. It becomes our most tangible witness to the world of our love for God. The Christian witness is very clear and has been consistent down through the ages. God is good, trustworthy, and will care for us. God knows our every need and is faithful. We receive by giving. Giving is a way to step out in faith and see the hand of God in or lives.

At the General Convention in 2000, members of the Standing Commission on Stewardship and Development proclaimed the following message to the Church:

We believe... We are children of God, and we need to give. In every aspect of our lives, we are entrusted to be stewards of God's creation. god invites us to give freely and to exercise joyfully our gifts through mission and ministry.

We commit ourselves... to boldly claim God's abundant provision in our lives; to offer extravagantly our time, talent, and money to do God's work; and to practice tithing as a minimum standard of giving.

We challenge members of the Episcopal Church... to confront our fears of scarcity; to embrace a new vision of stewardship through a joyful response to God's extravagant gifts; and to empower the mission of Christ through generous giving.

We invite... all leadership groups in dioceses and congregations to develop their own stewardship statements in order to promote response to the gospel.

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Adapted from The Alleluia Fund: A Guide for Dioceses and Congregations

The Gifts of Time, Talent and Treasure

Gift of Time - The Great Commission is the normative mission statement for the church.  "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you." (Matthew 28:19-20a RSV).  It is through our Missionary giving of time that we can make the Christ known to those who know Him not.

Gift of Talent - Christian stewardship is using the gifts God has given us, to do the work God is calling us to do.  Discerning and carrying out God's purpose is the primary purpose of our lives.  The primary role of the church is to guide individuals in discernment of the mission for their lives and the use of their resources in accomplishing it.  Do you hear a call to be truer to your Christian beliefs?

Gift of Treasure - How we use money says more about our value system than anything we say or do.  Some would think that the way we handle our money is a window into our souls.  In funding ministry there are three faces of financial stewardship.  Annual giving (ordinary stewardship) is the regular practice of returning to God a portion of all that God has given us.  Capital giving (extraordinary stewardship) involves the special occasions that arise in the life of Christian communities that call us to give beyond our ordinary habit. Legacy giving (legacy stewardship) is the way in which we address the matter of disposing of the accumulations of our lifetime.