Foundations of Faith – Stewardship forces us to take a step back so that we understand who owns everything. We are not the owners of anything. God makes of stewards of his gifts to us.
Take Care
There was a wealthy man who was going on a trip. Before he left he put people in charge of his possessions. We call them stewards. The concept of stewardship shows up in the Lord of the Rings. The king is gone. The current rulers are simply stewards. God has given us gifts. We are stewards of everything. It is critical to understand this point, because if we think our possessions are ours, nothing else makes sense.
Eat or Drink or Whatever
Since everything we own really belongs to God, then everything we do can be used to his glory. This goes to the smallest details of your life. The baby sucking down a bottle – to the glory of God. A man eating pizza and drinking a beer after a hard days work – to the glory of God. The child obeying his parents by emptying the dishwasher – to the glory of God. You can see where this is going…
Talk About Money
Now because we live in the USA much of what we have will consist of money. We don’t live in a barter society. The last time I filled up my tank of gas I didn’t bring chickens to pay for the fuel. God gives us money. Some of the danger that goes along with this is greed. Our money seeks to own us! That’s why it’s important to remember that God owns our money. What can we do to honor God with our money? We can give some back to him. 1 Corinthians 16 offers some helpful tips.
- One the first day of the week – regularly
- In keeping with our income – use a percentage, start at 1%, God’s not interested in what you don’t have
- Each one of you – teach your children to drop that quarter in the offering plate
- Setting it aside – make a budget, plan our your offering
Want to hear more? Watch this week’s study from our series, Foundations of Faith – Stewardship.