Tough Talk About Stewardship (Part II)

I promised you last month that I would say more about stewardship this month, but that I wouldn’t say one word about money. Well, here goes!

I offered you one definition of stewardship last month. Here is another definition, somewhat similar but also somewhat different: Stewardship is what we do when we recognize that everything that we have comes to us as a gift and a blessing from God, and we make conscious and deliberate choices to use those gifts and those blessings in responsible ways, seeking to be good stewards of the gifts and the blessings that God has entrusted to us.

This is a much more all-encompassing view of stewardship than one that focuses exclusively on money! It has to do with everything in our lives, and in the life of this world. It invites us to consider all the gifts and blessings that God has given us, and it challenges us to reflect on what we do with all these gifts and blessings.

What are the gifts and the blessings that God has given to us? What kind of choices can we make to use those gifts and blessings in responsible ways? How can we be good stewards of the gifts and the blessings that God has entrusted to us?

Here are some partial answers to those questions. This is by no means a complete list! As I keep growing in my own Christian walk and my understanding of what it means to be a responsible steward, I keep coming up with more answers. Some of these may be obvious to you; some of them may be new to you; you may be able to come up with some that I haven’t thought of yet. I am about to provide some partial answers – and each answer generates even more questions! Be aware that I am about to raise some issues that may be difficult to hear. Believe me, some of the issues I raise are difficult for me to hear!

What are some gifts and blessings that God has given to us, gifts and blessings for which we have some choice as to how we will use them, gifts and blessings that God has entrusted to us for which we are called to be good stewards? Here are a few. . . .

Our spiritual selves. Jesus calls us to love the Lord our God with all our soul. Each of us has a spark of the divine within us. We have the choice of nurturing that spark within us. Sometimes the world around us seems like it’s trying to stifle that spirit, rather than nurturing it. What can we do to be good stewards of the spiritual selves that God has gifted to us? There are a myriad of ways to do this. One way is through art, or music, or drama, or poetry, or writing - finding ways to allow our creative and expressive selves to move in harmony with the rhythms of God. There’s also much wisdom in that old familiar adage to “read the Bible and pray,” so long as we understand that is an invitation and an opportunity rather than as a mandate or a demand. The real trick with Bible reading and praying, in my mind, is making the connection to what’s really going on deep down inside us. When it comes to reading the Bible, I would say: soak in the scriptures! Drench yourself in God’s word. Don’t be afraid to struggle with the scriptures; I think one of the ways we really grow spiritually is when we ask tough questions of the text, and when we allow the text to ask tough questions of us. I can’t tell you how many times it’s the case that when I’m wrestling with the scriptures I find the text speaking to me in new ways that I had never considered before, challenging me in ways that I might not necessarily want to be challenged! When it comes to prayer, I would say: cut loose! Let it all hang out! Don’t be afraid to cry out to God from the very depths of your heart. Don’t be afraid to bring before God’s feet your toughest issues, your deepest hurts, your biggest worries, your greatest joys. Don’t be afraid to cry out to God with the fullest expression of your soul. I think God can handle it all! I find the Psalms to be a tremendously helpful resource and model; those poets who wrote many centuries ago weren’t afraid to talk about how they would drench their pillow at night with their tears, or about how they were afraid of people who wanted to do them harm, or how joyfully exuberant they were in those moments when – just when they thought things couldn’t possibly get any worse – something happened that made them feel the amazing grace of almighty God. The psalmists weren’t afraid to show God their real, raw feelings; neither should we. There is so much that we can do to nourish our spiritual selves; I have mentioned here just a few ways. God has given us the gift of our spiritual selves. How can we be responsible stewards of this wonderful gift that God has given us?

Our bodies. Jesus calls us to love the Lord our God with all our strength. Paul, in his first letter to the fledgling church in Corinth, describes a person’s body as “a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God” and calls his hearers to “glorify God in your body.” What can we do to be good stewards of the bodies that God has gifted to us? Do we smoke? Drink excessively? Use drugs? What kind of eating habits do we have? How much junk food or soda do we consume in a typical week? Are we getting enough protein? Fruits and vegetables? Are we overweight? Underweight? Do we get enough exercise? What are we doing to maintain our present level of physical health? What are we doing to improve our present level of physical health? God has given us the gift of our bodies. How can we be responsible stewards of this wonderful gift that God has given us?

Our minds. Jesus calls us to love the Lord our God with all our mind, and Paul challenged the early Christians in Rome to “be transformed by the renewing of your minds.” Of all the life on this planet (with the possible exception of the dolphins!), God has given to us the greatest degree of mental prowess. We humans have often used our minds for tremendously good causes, but unfortunately we have also used our minds for tremendously evil causes, developing horrible schemes throughout the pages of history for harming or destroying other beloved children of God. What can we do to be good stewards of the minds that God has gifted to us? What can we do to foster and stimulate the good use of this amazing gift? There are all sorts of possibilities. How about taking a class to explore a subject you’ve always been interested in? Or exploring the treasures to be found in the public library, or in an art museum? Or learning how to play an instrument? Or exploring more deeply the mysteries of the universe? Literature, art, music, science – there is so much out there worth learning about, so much that can enrich our understanding of and appreciation for this world in which we live and all the creatures in it. (And let it never be said that this is a church where you have to check your brain at the door!) God has given us the gift of our minds. How can we be responsible stewards of this wonderful gift that God has given us?

Our emotions. Jesus calls us to love the Lord our God with all our heart. In the ancient Hebrew world in which our faith originated, the heart was viewed as the seat of all human emotions. Paul talks about emotions a lot – anger, jealously, greed, enmity, envy, hatred, not to mention love, compassion, mercy, peacefulness, and so forth. We humans have been blessed with a tremendous range of emotions. What can we do to be good stewards of the emotions that God has gifted to us? Sometimes, we carry around grudges; sometimes, we carry around fears; sometimes, we carry around hurts; sometimes, we carry around worries; sometimes, we carry around anxiety; sometimes, we carry around jealousies; sometimes, we carry around all sorts of unpleasant emotions because we haven’t figured out how to let go of them and to embrace a more productive way of living. There are people out there who know how to help us work through the emotional baggage that is weighing us down so that we can become happier, healthier human beings, and there is no shame in going to these people to get help. God has given us the gift of our emotions. Howe can we be responsible stewards of this wonderful gift that God has given us?

Our tongues. There’s a wonderful section in the book of James in the New Testament about “taming the tongue.” The author calls the tongue “a restless evil, full of deadly poison,” says that “from the same mouth comes blessing and cursing,” and declares that “this ought not to be so.” He’s talking about the ways in which we speak to one another. What can we do to be good stewards of the tongues that God has gifted to us? Who among us has never been hurt by harsh words that others have spoken? Who among us has never yelled at somebody else? Words can build people up, but words can also tear people down. When we are angry, or upset, or frustrated, what do we do with our tongues? Do we lash out in ways that are hurtful and destructive? Or do we take a moment to catch our breath, and put forth a little extra effort to make sure that whatever comes out of our mouth is going to be constructive rather than destructive? God has given to us the gift of our tongues. How can we be responsible stewards of this wonderful gift that God has given us?

Our time. The psalmist proclaims, “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it!” Every day that we are alive comes to us as a gift from God. Every hour that we are alive comes to us as a gift from God – all 24/7/365 of them. God has blessed us with a tremendous amount of time. What can we do to be good stewards of the time that God has gifted to us? How do we find healthy balance between work and play, between service and Sabbath? Do we try to cram so much work into our day that we don’t have any time left for family, friends, ministry to others, or just plain rest? Or, alternatively, do we have so little work to do that we find ourselves bored, listless, struggling in vain trying to come up with things to do to keep us busy? How much of our time do we spend addressing our own “needs” (real or imagined), and how much of our time do we spend on the real needs of others? What is a healthy balance between care of self and responsibility to the world? God has given us the gift of time. How can we be responsible stewards of this wonderful gift that God has given us?

Our children. Jesus invited children to come to him; the books of Deuteronomy and Proverbs in the Old Testament both stress the importance of raising children responsibly; Psalm 103 celebrates the gift of God’s righteousness that is given to children’s children. Over and over again, we hear about the importance of children, and the responsibility we adults have for shepherding our children. As a parent, I know how difficult that “shepherding” work can be at times! Children are one of the greatest blessings that many of us are fortunate to be given, but they are also a tremendous responsibility. We have a responsibility to shepherd our children in responsible ways. That’s not always easy! What can we do to be good stewards of the children that God has gifted to us? There is no end of parenting resources out there, but there also, unfortunately, seems to be no end of children who have grown up with lingering scars from their childhood. I grieve when I hear stories of children who have been abused, or neglected, or deemed by a parent to be “not good enough” to receive their love and care, or who are viewed by their parents more as trophies than as people. Parenting is a tremendously rewarding task, but it is also tremendously challenging at times, and one of the questions those of us who are parents always need to be asking ourselves (no matter how old our children are!) is, “Am I being as good and responsible a parent as I can possibly be?” When I look at myself honestly, I know that too often the answer is, “No, I’m not; I could be doing better.” God has given us the gift of our children. How can we be responsible stewards of this wonderful gift that God has given us?

Our planet. In the creation story in the first chapter of Genesis, God gives to humanity some responsibility for this world that we live on, and all the other creatures with whom we share this earth. The psalmists repeatedly extol the beauties of the world. In recent years, we have become more aware of the impact we humans have had on the world and the creatures that live in it. We have, quite honestly, not been very good stewards of our world, and we and other creatures are suffering because of it. What can we do to be good stewards of the planet that God has gifted to us? What can we do to reduce our carbon footprint? Are there ways we can reduce gas consumption? Water consumption? Are there ways we can improve our home’s energy efficiency? (What about the energy efficiency of our church building?) How about carpooling to work, or walking or riding a bike to places near your home? What can we do to reduce unnecessary waste? What are some things we can do now to make this world a better and healthier place for our grandchildren, and their grandchildren? God has given us the gift of our planet. How can we be responsible stewards of this wonderful gift that God has given us?

Those are some of the gifts and blessings that I can think of that God has given to us, and some of the ways in which I believe God calls us to be good stewards of God’s gifts and blessings. Maybe you can think of some more. . . .

Next month, I conclude this little series on stewardship, with an emphasis on how God calls us to be responsible stewards for this community of faith. And again, I promise – I won’t mention money!

Peace and blessings,

Rev. Bill Pinches
Pastor