Stewardship is often thought of as giving money. It’s much more than that. Biblical stewardship means being a caretaker of God’s kingdom. In 1 Peter 4:10-11:
“Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power forever and ever. Amen.”
These gifts, these blessings, we each receive, are unique to us and should be used to experience God, being generous with our love to our families, our communities, and our world, as God has been generous with us.
It is not always easy to give. Our time, resources, and money are valuable, made more so by our cultural values and pressures. Living generously makes us better people- it increases our gratitude, puts God first, and provides peace with living out God’s given calling to each of us. And gratitude makes for happier, more content and kinder selves.
Sometimes it is obvious what our talents are to share; other times, it can be difficult to discern. St Thomas’ has so many opportunities to minister. There are commissions to serve on, events to plan, activities to participate in – whether it’s a big commitment or an occasional hand as time permits.
Our Ministry Fair is in MacColl Auditorium on February 27th after the 10am service. Come hear what our commissions have been doing, talk to Vestry members, and find out what your gifts are. Sign up for something if you feel a calling to do so. Meet new people and greet old friends. Feel the love and generosity of our great church community. If you haven’t been back to church in a while, please stop in for a bit – we miss you. If you can’t make it, let us know and we would love to have a chat.
If you want to dig deeper, we have a gifts discernment process, led by Ginger Goodrich. She will be leading a forum in the spring so stay tuned for more information. Your beautiful gifts are meant to be shared.
Questions and comments can be sent to discipleship@stthomaswhitemarsh.org.
Hope to see you on FEBRUARY 27TH!
Sharon Werner
Vestry Member and Lifelong Discipleship Commission (LDC)