Thoughts On Stewardship

It is Stewardship time again which means another stewardship campaign. I have a real ambivalence about stewardship campaigns (not about stewardship…about stewardship campaigns): they are necessary (in most churches) yet they are tiring. Tiring because they are labor intensive, but tiring for me especially because they mean coming up with another way to talk about stewardship. Stewardship campaigns create an almost unavoidable pull to find snappy, creative ways to convince folks to support the challenge budget.

That troubles me because I believe, paying bills is not why you pledge. Well, that’s not true. At a very basic level, paying bills is connected to why you pledge. But that connection should be consequential, not foundational. Which is to say, paying bills happens as a consequence of your pledge but that’s not the real reason you agree to support the work of a church.

There’s really only one reason why you agree to support the work of the church, be it this one or any other: Jesus Christ died for your sins.

That isn’t particularly creative…certainly it isn’t snappy. It doesn’t make for a catchy slogan for a stewardship campaign. In fact, on the face of it, it’s kind of a downer. But it’s the gospel truth (literally). We are called to faithful stewardship—the giving of time, talent, and treasure—because Jesus Christ died for our sins. Which is to say because we were each bought at a price…because we’ve been given the chance to be free and healed and whole…because of who and what we are compared to who and what we used to be or would otherwise be…because we are children of God…because we are heirs to the Kingdom…because once we were blind but now we see…because our very existences are witness to the reality of grace…because apart from relationship with God through Jesus Christ we can only be something less than we’re created to be…because God has chosen to do so much of the work of the Kingdom through us…because our best response to the gift of life that is ours through the cross is the way we choose to live that life…because, in the face of such overwhelming love, we cannot not give back what we’ve received.

If we, as Christians, both understood and embraced this single reason for supporting the work of the church, I suspect there’d be no need for labor-intensive campaigns and snappy slogans. Indeed, I suspect no church would ever have to ask for a dime—there’s no need to convince folks to do what they’ve already done…no need to ask for what you’ve already received.

So, on Sunday, November 18th, when I preach my stewardship sermon…no campaigning, no sloganeering, no good-natured pastoral arm-twisting. Instead, six words…one reality. Not creative, ingenious, or snappy. But the life-saving, life-changing gospel truth: Jesus Christ died for your sins.

Grace and peace,

Pastor Marie