Some Thoughts On Stewardship

Stewardship:  Managing, caring for, responsible for something. 

This managing, caring for or being responsible for something could be Children, a job, your car, a home, time, a violin, or many other things.  I was reading an article on Stewardship in Christian Personal Finance and it made me think about how many things I am steward over.  Some of those things I do a good job of managing, others things I could steward better. 

Money is one of the things I am a good steward over.  I pay my tithes, my bills, buy groceries, save a bit, and everything else comes after.  But I wasn't always good about tithing.  It took wise words from an older Christian woman and a step of faith.  The wise older Christian woman told me that people don't understand that even if they only tithe what they use at church it would be helpful.  She said "There is not a club or organization I could join that would not charge me for membership. That is because the organization or club had to pay for lights, water, the building, and pay for the position of the people who worked there. Plus they had to pay for any printed information they gave out."

At church there are lights, water, electricity, a parking lot that must be resurfaced every few years, seats and carpets that must be replaced or recovered after many years of use, and the Pastor and staff that has to be paid for, as well as the bulletins that must be printed each week.  Now days, a website is almost mandatory and a full band.  We hope those are maintained free but since the worship leader of a large church is usually full time he/she must be paid as well.

The open road with God. 

 was not tithing often at that time  but my friends comments made me think hard.  From that time on I always put something in the plate.  Then a few years later my son wanted to go on a missionary trip with Reign Ministries/Royal Servants, a wonderful organization I highly recommend, and I knew in my heart he was to go.  He did everything to raise the money the way they asked him to but the money just wasn't coming in.  I prayed "God I am going to write the check to pay for his mission trip because I know You want him to go, but You have to take care of all of these other needs we have. I know that You will You promised to take care of me."  That was a very bold prayer and action for me because up to that point I had not trusted God much with "My money".  Nor had I trusted Him to truly take care of my finances.

God not only took care of our needs after that, but a line of credit we had paid on and then dipped back into for many years was paid off.  We had money in our savings at the end of the year and we never missed the nearly $1000 it took to help our son go on the missions trip.  As it turned out it was a very pivotal trip in the lives of both my son's that years as both truly got saved because of what my son learned on that trip.  I felt God had told me that if I take care of what is on God's heart first He would more than take care of my needs.  After that I began to tithe more and now have the faith to tithe all that God asks for.  Knowing for sure that God would be taking care of me when I put Him first with His money.

I became a good steward over what God had given to me financially, now I was reaping the benefits of His promises.  Still as I read that article I became aware that there are other things that I could do better to be a good steward over the things God has given me.  What are some of those things?  Time is number one.  I like to waste it.  I spend too much time on the computer looking at silly stuff like Facebook.  Do I need to see one more post about how much this or that political figure is liked or disliked?  The majority of the people I see on FB are people I will see sometime in the week or month so I don't really need this daily interaction.

Penterest is another place I love to waste time.  Why do I need to pin all those items.  Will I actually make those recipes, bags, dresses, dolls, etc.?  Am I going to visit any of the "Place I'd love to Visit"?  Are those deep house cleaning suggestion ever going to be put to good use?  Really, why on earth do I need all those boards?  It is so much fun to be there and I love looking at EVERYTHING but why?  I could do a lot better with my time.  I could be sewing on my brand new sewing machine that my sweet husband bought me.  That would be real good stewardship. I need new curtains in the front rooms, and matching pillow covers.  I have birthdays coming up that could use some special gifts.  I could sew my husband some shirts and myself some dresses.  God blessed me through my husband with a sewing machine and I need to make it hum.

Another time waster for me is Hulu.  I love to watch old movies and TV shows while I iron, which is probably okay but often I end up sitting down to watch for another hour or so after the shirts have been ironed.   Better yet I could be spending time listening to the word or watching a Christian show instead of reruns on Hulu.  Or I could be cleaning my house so it shines instead of just being presentable.   There are so many things I could do that would show better stewardship of the wonderful
 life God have given me.

I have noticed I am getting a bit pasty white.  I should get outside in God's creation and play with the wonderful little dog He has blessed me with and maybe trim a bush or sweep the patio more often. There are so many thing I could do, with so little effort that would show better steward ship than what I am showing now.

My rag-a-muffin DOG.

If giving 10% of the money back to God that He has so faithfully given to my husband and I has been such a blessing then what would my life, in general, be like if I stopped to think about everything else in my life and gave at least 10% of that to God instead of mindlessly going through my day?  What about your day?  

I read the word everyday and I pray without ceasing through out the day.  Maybe money is not the only thing that God should have 10% of.  Maybe 2 hours and 40 minutes of my day should be devoted to Him.  I do notice the more time I spend with God the more my day goes by with joy and peace.  Oh just think of it, two hours and forty minutes with God, just Him and I, or you and Him.  Makes your eyebrows go up doesn't it.  Wouldn't that be a sweet chunk of time?

Well this is my year to be a better steward over all the things God brings to my attention.  I like the idea of starting with more time with Him.   I am sure I'll be letting you know how it goes and would love to hear what you are being a better steward over and how it is going.

Colossians 3:12, 23-24 (NLT) Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.  

Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.  Remember that the Lord will give you an inheritance as your reward, and that the Master you are serving is Christ.

NOTE: After writing this I was reading a blog I love to read and thought it connected with my thoughts here in many ways.  Here is the link to a house cleaning article that I found interesting.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

I am so thankful for Martin Luther King Jr. and the Civil Rights movement.  I was born in 1955 so I have heard of him all my life and in the 1960's saw on the news all the upheaval of  the movement.  But, today I go to a church of many nationalities and races.  Some of my dearest friends are of many races and I love them all.  I can hug my sisters and tell them I love them and no one can tell me I can't love them.  So Praise God for the value He brought to the many men and women who were oppressed and disregarded before but now are able to stand, sit, go, and drink from fountains, and rightly so, who could not before.  And Praise God that those of us who never thought that oppression was correct, can openly agree with the change and love our brothers and sister of all races.

John 13:34-35  “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

A Word To Study, Wednesday

Praise:
To express approval about someone or something.

Praise is something we all like.  Even those who try to down play the praise given to them, for something good they have done, are most likely enjoying the expression's of Praise they are receiving. Because we are made in God's image we want praise.  God wants our praise too.  In the Bible we can read often we are to Praise God and there is, in general, so much to praise Him for.

There is something freeing, literally, when we praise God, especially in times of great need or distress. Acts 16:19-34 is the account of Paul in prison with Silas. In verses 25 and 26 it says it was around mid-night and they were singing songs of Praise, then the chains fell of of them because of an earthquake. Physically they were free but because they chose to Praise God in the worst of circumstances their hearts were already free before the chains fell off.

We too can feel that freedom in Praising God when things are bad.  When I was in the hospital a few years ago to get my gallbladder out something had gone wrong and they had to get a certain level on my potassium before they could operate.   I remember the pain was unbearable at times and the morphine they gave me always ran out before the time for the next dose.  During that time, usually about a half hour, I would praise God with remembered scripture, my own words and with tongues.  The pain didn't go away but I felt calmer and seemed to notice it less.  God is good and it is a practice I have had since I first learn about this "rule" so to speak, some time ago.

We should praise God daily and I do because there is always something to Praise Him for in every day but in times of illness, financial problems, problems in relationships, depression and any other type of trouble, Praise God as well.  He is still the God who saves you and He is still the God who takes care of all your needs.  Praise Him every day no matter what is going on in this temporary place before we go to spend the rest of eternity with Him.  Just like Paul you may be in chains, figuratively though, but they will fall away when you Praise God.

Here are some verses for you to look up that will encourage you to Praise God:

Acts 16:19-34, Psalm 103, in fact just thumb though the Psalms and see how many are about praising God.  You will be amazed.  Hebrews 13:13-16 Let the fruit of your lips be Praise to God.  Romans 15, Philippians 4:8 dwelling on the negative?  Dwell on this instead and Praise God for all the good in your life.

This year as you are reading through your bible, either through a set reading program or as you look over the sermon you have heard each week, take note of how often you see Praise to God in the verses you are reading. Look at the circumstances around it and why they were Praising Him.  Incorporate Praise into your daily prayer time.  It will make a big difference in how you feel and what you are thankful for.  I think you'll find you have a lot more Praise for God when you look at how worthy God is of your praise.

My family: Me, Dan, and Gus.

Happy New Year Everyone.