Mention the word “stewardship” to the average person, and the first thing that comes to mind is money. Somehow, most Christians equate “stewardship” with money or with giving to the church. But its more than that.
Certainly, money is an important part of what we might call “total stewardship.” But total stewardship is much more than money. Total stewardship has been likened to a three-legged stool. Money is just one of the legs of that stool. The other two legs are just as important. Those are “time” and “talents.” Total stewardship consists of time, talents and treasure.
Imagine the three-legged stool known as total stewardship. What happens to that stool if one of the three legs is removed. Obviously, the stool will be unable to stand and will fall over! In the same way, if we do not give attention to time, talents and treasure, our church’s ministry and outreach will suffer. For us to accomplish all that God has set before us here at Calvary United Methodist Church we need to give proper attention to time, talents and treasure. Stewardship is about how we manage and make use of all that God provides to us.
One of the hymns I love is “Take My Life, and Let It Be”. It is a prayer asking that God might take all that we offer and use it for God’s purposes in the world.
“…Take my moments and my days;
let them flow in ceaseless praise,
take my hands, and let them move
at the impulse of thy love.”
Our faith is not primarily a matter of what beliefs we hold or where our membership resides. Our faith is made evident in how we live our lives and the ways in which we show love, generosity and service to others, just as we see in Jesus Christ. That has very much to do with how we use our time, talent, and treasure.
Grace and peace,
Pastor Steve