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Stewardship
First, for those of you who
have come around for quite some time now and had given up on me, I do apologize.
Things have gone a little haywire over the past few months and I quickly found
myself surrounded in a whirlwind of activity and hard decisions that have kept
me away from the keyboard. I guess it’s a bit funny that my first topic back
should be stewardship. I haven’t been the greatest steward of the time I’ve
been given. But hey, I’m human and I’m back now.
Stewardship … a common topic about this time every year for churches. Many
people are asked to fill out pledge cards, stating what they intend to spend
over the next year. Yet others are subjected to the pastor railing on about the
benefits of giving during this informal start of the church year. And yet others
… well, they get both! But it is almost like pulling teeth sometimes to get
congregations to give enough to operate. Then there are all the disagreements
about tithing. Is 10% the right amount? Do I use pre-tax or post-tax income for
figuring tithing? Can missional giving be part of my tithe or does it have to be
extra? You know, if we have to argue about it, we’ve already missed the idea
of “joyful” giving.
We tend to treat financial giving like our taxes. Most of us will pay what is
required to stay in God’s favor. Yet we look for every loophole to cut our
giving to the minimum. Hey, it’s not filling out your taxes, it’s giving to
God. It is not about paying, it’s about giving and sharing. It’s supposed to
be joyful, not a dreaded requirement. If you are worried about giving too much,
you’ve missed the point. We give because we have received. It is a form of
sacrifice to say thanks to God and to maintain the congregation so that the Word
can be shared and studied and spread.
Giving is a discipline, yes, but should also be a joy. Since it’s in the
Bible, many feel that 10% is the right amount. I’m not too sure about that.
The tithe was a requirement of the Jewish Temple system. And there were three
different tithes that took about 23% of one’s income in a year. We’re not
under the
Temple
system anymore and churches are not to be confused with the
Temple
. And as Jesus superceded portions of the law with his new understanding of the
law, one written on our hearts, the notion of Tithing is ready for change.
Oh, don’t get me wrong,
we’re still called to give. But we don’t do it out of obligation for God
loves a cheerful giver. The amount we will be called to give will be different
for different people. Those that have little will be called upon to give little.
Those that have more will be called upon to give more. You may have several
children, low income and use virtually every dollar to put food on the table.
You may be called upon to give pennies. Don’t take food out of the mouths of
your children to give to God. You will make them see God as a thief who robs the
poor. Or you may have great income, few dependents and buy a new car every
couple of years. You may be called to give thousands of dollars. You may even be
called upon to give 20% or 30% of your income. But that is between you and God
and no human has the right to dictate the amount you give to God.
Doesn’t seem fair does it?
Too bad, life isn’t fair. And think about this: you may have worked hard for
what you have, but where did you get your abilities and talents from that allow
you to make the income you do? As I grabbed a shower this morning, a thought hit
me. (No bruises; don’t worry, I’m okay, it was just a thought.) As the water
cascaded down me, I wondered; do we really ever own anything, what can we really
possess in this life? I pondered the old Israelite law, where after 7 years, all
lands reverted back to their original owner. Slaves were even given the
opportunity to go free. The idea of stewardship was strong in the Israelite
tradition. It was understood that they don’t own anything but live rent-free
on land provided for them by God. When they die, it goes to someone else.
I can no more hold anything in
this life than I can stop the water running over me. Oh, I can divert it a bit,
but hold it or stop it … no! So as I’m diverting what comes to me, why not
divert some back to God who from all blessings flow. True, God doesn’t really
need what I can give, but does enjoy the offer. I like to think of it as saying
‘Thank You’ when given a gift. It’s such a small thing to do when you
think of it. And what were you going to do with all that other stuff you’d
buy, anyway, save it for your children? Oh, please, haven’t you seen all the
junk that’s sold at estate sales?
Trust me, give something back to God with a smile and a joyous heart. I believe
you will begin to enjoy what you have here even better. Think of all that you
have as blessings raining down on you from Heaven. And then stand in the middle
of each “rainstorm” and jump and dance and play in the water. The blessings
received from giving are much better than I can get across here. And just think
of all the things you won’t have to clean, or guard or worry about. See
don’t you feel better already?
Come
around anytime, I’ll be here and so will God.
To
send Pastor Dennis an email, just click on his name.
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Pastor
Dennis Devotions 