Death, Stewardship and Show Me the Money

It seems like, at least recently, there is not a week that goes by that I don't hear about a death of someone that I either know well or at least know who the other person is talking about.  It's weird, I don't remember so many people dying when I was younger.  I think it's because I wasn't paying quite so much attention.  When I was younger, someone who was my age dying was a shocker!  Young people are not supposed to die.  Young people don't die.  I still think of myself as "youngish" but death doesn't surprise me as much any more.

United Methodist churches and many other churches pay close attention to death rates for one reason.  Many of our members are older and those same members have been the individuals who have consistently put money in the offering plate week after week, year after year.  Finance committees could set the budget with a high level of confidence year after year based on these members annual giving.  Stewardship was not a big deal because giving was pretty consistent.  That's not the case today.  Older members are dying and younger members are not coming along.  I understand the need to set a budget and to take pledges from members about their giving because the Finance committee needs to know if they can plan on enough money to be able to keep the lights on at the church.  But I don't ever remember annual Stewardship drives happening when I was growing up, nor do I remember taking a Sunday church service to collect pledge cards.  And now, it's gone beyond just one Sunday to a month of Sundays where the focus is Stewardship-meaning, fill out your pledge cards and show me the money.  The meaning of Stewardship has been narrowed to mean cash flow.  I really hate Stewardship drives!

I know, I know-you have to have them to get an idea of how much you can expect to come in over the next year as far as cash.  But Stewardship in my mind is so much more than just cash in the coffers!  What about the person who comes early every Sunday and makes the coffee?  What about the member who sings in the choir faithfully?  What about the member who volunteers year after year to teach Sunday School?  Oh, those are gifts and graces-that's totally different.  Really?  So their contribution as a member is not as important as the member who writes the $100 check every week?  So we choose not to do something because it might offend the check writer, even though it could be very important to the community?  Think about it-how much money do you save because someone volunteers to do something so you don't have to pay someone to do that task?  Doesn't that contribution have some impact in the Stewardship equation?  Rarely does that conversation come up in a Stewardship pledge drive.

Stewardship is about taking care of what we have been given.  It's about planting seeds and carefully tending.  It's about watering, weeding and pruning when necessary.   Money matters but it is only part of the equation. At our church, someone years ago must have been a pretty good steward of the children through Sunday School class and Youth Group because many of those younger generation members are coming back and bringing their children with them!  Not only are they coming back, they are finding ways to actively participate!  That is a pretty powerful legacy worthy of celebrating!  Yet, in many churches that probably would not even get a passing glance or mention.

It should be mentioned.  It should be celebrated along with a lot of other small tiny details that keep things running.  Our definition of Stewardship has gotten too narrow and we need to broaden it once again.

Let me quote Paul's words to Timothy in 1 Timothy, chapter 6 (NRSV)

"But those who want to be rich fall in to temptation and are trapped by many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.  For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains." 

Money itself is not evil, it is the obsession with money that causes the problem.  If I had to point to one thing in the church in general that we have become overly obsessive about, this would be one of the items that would make my list.  We need cash to pay the bills and support missions, no doubt.  But as a church we need more than that-we need faithful stewards who will help out in any way they can and do whatever is needed to spread the message!  Just because someone can not write a big check, do not undervalue their contribution.  Take the time to acknowledge their value as well!

If Stewardship could be viewed and shared through that lens, perhaps less people would feel the need to skip the entire month of November at church.  If, like my church, you added a section for volunteering on to the Stewardship card, members wouldn't feel the overwhelming need to throw up when that pledge card is pressed in to their hands.  Just a thought, but I think it is a thought worth considering!

Religion At Your Doorstep-The Importance of Home Work

Today is Labor Day and for many, it signals the end of summer and the onset of fall.  Labor Day was started as a holiday to celebrate the importance of the worker and was originally organized by Union leaders to show the solidarity of workers.  Let's face it, without workers willing to work nothing would get done!  Leaders and executives can plan all they want, but without workers, none of their plans can be implemented!  Workers do matter!

Jesus understood this in the spiritual realm as well.  So many of his parables focus on laborers and workers because he knew that without willing workers, nothing gets done!  So it's no surprise to me that in 1 Timothy 5, Paul reminds Timothy about the importance of taking care of the widows and doing work for them.  The Message paraphrase says this:

"...let them learn that religion begins at their own doorstep and that they should pay back with gratitude some of what they have received."

Work starts at home.  It starts with helping your family.  It expands to helping your friends, your community and the world around you, but it starts on your doorstep!

If this past week is any indication, I don't think that the average worker has forgotten this lesson!  People who were not effected by the flooding have joined together in their own community to help those who were effected.  I saw the same thing earlier in the spring in Joplin, Missouri after the tornado.  Family helping family.  Friend helping friend.  Neighbor helping neighbor.

What a contrast to the warning that Paul gives Timothy in 2 Timothy 3.  The Message paraphrase says:

"Don't be naive.  There are difficult times ahead.  As the end approaches, people are going to be self-absorbed, money-hungry, self-promoting, stuck-up, profane, contemptuous of parents, crude, coarse, dog-eat-dog, unbending, slanderers, impulsively wild, savage, cynical, treacherous, ruthless, bloated windbags, addicted to lust, and allergic to God.  They'll make a show of religion, but behind the scenes they're animals.  Stay clear of these people."

No, I'm not saying the end is near!  But I will admit, I see an awful lot today that fits Paul's description.  Particularly in the world of politics where the concern is not about doing the best for the country or the state or the community.  Rather, it is about doing the best for the individual candidate.  Or, in the corporate world where it is about doing the best for the profit margin so the CEO saves his job.

There is a stark contrast!  I have yet to see an elected official helping with clean up efforts.  They tour, they talk, they look fresh as a daisy standing in the chaos.  I have, however, seen family, friends, neighbors and strangers stepping in and getting their hands dirty and helping with the work.   I am puzzled by this disconnect.  They talk a good talk but where's the walk?  And I wonder if this explains why our unemployment rate has stayed so high?  Is it because they say they get it but the reality is, they honestly do not understand that they could make a huge difference if they would just get off their collective high horse and get to work?

We talk a lot about the unemployment rate as reported by the department of Labor which hovers right around 9%.  But there are economists who look at a larger picture and put the real unemployment rate at anywhere between 16% and 22%.  If the real rate is closer to 22% that means almost 1/4 of our eligible workforce is not working!  With all of the damage from various storms around the country is there really any reason for that number to be so high?  There is work to be done, so why can't our leadership work together to start rebuilding?  I don't get it, I really don't, why there is so little agreement on things that matter to everyone!  They are elected servants of the people first, and leaders second.  And Jesus made it very clear that a true leader serves others first and puts their own self-interest second.  The same principle applies to the business world as well.  It's not about the shareholder, it's about providing the best product to the client.  And in order to do that you provide your workers with the very best equipment to make that possible.  How could they have forgotten that?

I am just grateful that on this Labor Day I can point to individuals who have not forgotten this very basic lesson!  These individuals within their communities are practicing what they intuitively know to be right.  Religion starts at your own doorstep and it means helping others from your own grateful heart!  They are working together to clean up, rebuild and restore.

Thank you God for willing workers!  Let their example shine brightly for others to see!