Someone said something at the Stewardship Committee meeting the other
night and if he reads this, I do not use this illustration as a
criticism of him, but because the member voiced something that most
people think.
The man was talking about a fund-raiser that another church around
here had sponsored to raise money for camper-ships for the Lutheran
Camp Calumet. It was for a good cause. The event was a golf
tournament. And there was a dinner afterwards.
What this avid golfer said was, "You got something for your money."
Isn't that what we all want? We want to see something for our money.
If not a day of golf and a dinner, the next best thing would be
something visible in the church for the money that we give.
So much of what we give to does not have such immediately visible
rewards. We are raising money now to start a "Good News Garage" in
Rhode Island. At this point we have nothing to show. But at least at
the last fund-raiser people got clean cars for their money.
What visible rewards do we get for what we put in the plate. We may
get a piece of paper to show the IRS, but what do we get that we can
really see?
Like so many things in life the results of the money and the time are
not always evident right away, if ever. Especially in a church, where
the biggest expense is often a pastor's salary. Today I was struck by
what we can see if we really look. I saw new young families who came
to church so that their babies can be baptized and brought up in the
faith. I looked out and saw a woman that I had counseled. My
congregation's money supports me so that I can do these things. I
didn't even know if I would ever see her in church. She had driven a
half an hour to be there. She looked so good in comparison to the
last time I saw her that I almost didn't know who she was.
Look any Sunday and see what I see. See the faces of the children in
Sunday School and the upturned face of an old man who can no longer
kneel when I say, "The body of Christ given for you."
Not only are these rewarding to me because the time and the prayers
and the effort I have expended are showing fruit, it should be
rewarding to my congregation. It is their offerings that support this
work.
God could do it all without us. But God has chosen to be visible in
this way so that we can be blessed by being a part of God's work in
this world.
Lord,
May all of our eyes be opened so that we may see the work that you are
doing in this world through our offerings and or gifts and our time.
Amen
