SOLI/Update

www.stewardshipoflife.org

No hot water: A first-world dilemma

Pity me! The hot water heater in my house bit the dust last week.

Pity me! I'm reduced to heating water in a pan on the stove for dishwashing and shaving. I'm taking showers at the YWCA.

Pity me! The plumber had to special order the shorter unit that will fit in my crawl space, and with his busy schedule I've had to go more than a week now without hot water, including a whole weekend!

I need your pity because I probably won't get much from the 1.1 billion people in the world who lack safe, clean, plentiful drinking water, according to the United Nations. Or from the families of the 3 million people who die each year from preventable water-related illnesses, according to the World Bank. (Read the UN and World Bank reports and other water-related resources in Gleanings.) Or pity from the millions who have to get water from an outside source and carry it home. Or from the millions who have running water but can only dream of hot water.

My hot water dilemma reminds me how many blessings we take for granted as citizens of a safe, wealthy, industrialized nation. We are so used to peace, freedom, plentiful food and safe water that we forget what blessings they really are. These are the blessings that newcomers to our shores unfailingly appreciate.

Personal stewardship begins with an attitude of gratitude for the gifts that God has given us, and gratitude becomes difficult when we take our everyday blessings for granted.

My weeklong experience without hot water has reminded me to appreciate anew the abundance that God is giving me: Good health, a great family, wonderful friends, a job, a house, running water, central heat, electricity, a car, and life in a free and peaceful country.

It's everything I need. More than most of the world's people have. So I can share more, right? How about you?

-Rob Blezard, webmaster and editor

New this week:

Faithful Finances 101
In this weekly stewardship newsletter, Jerry Hoffman praises the recent stewardship book, Faithful finances 101: From the poverty of fear and greed to the riches of spiritual investing. The work by Gary Moore debunks the morality of the marketplace, Hoffman says. "Moore sees that one of the biggest problems facing people is our tendency to compartmentalize our lives. ... We don’t consider how love to our neighbor applies when we purchase a stock, mutual fund or make other investment." Click here for the newsletter. From Stewardship for the 21st Century at Luther Seminary.

Welcome to 'Sinners Anonymous'

"I have long told people who feel no need to go to church that it is precisely when we are strong that we need to go to church for the sake of someone there who needs us to be there. Maybe just a smile or a presence, or a strong, sure voice reciting the creed. Or maybe it is to support the pastor and laugh at her pitiful jokes and help her by our presence to be strong for others." Click here for the Rev. Dana Reardon's weekly stewardship column.

Are you a good steward of your time

Subtitled "How discovering your spiritual gifts benefit your time management," this essay takes a fresh look at a shopworn topic. When we as congregational leaders focus on our own best spiritual gifts, not only do we benefit, but so does our church and the people we serve. Click here for the article. From Building Church Leaders.

Digging Deeper: Money and Your Heart

Why is it harder for a rich person to go to heaven than for a camel to go through the eye of a needle? This piece from Moody Magazine offers some valuable insights. "Money can make it hard for an independently minded person to admit his need and dependently trust Christ for eternal salvation." Click here for Digging Deeper. This week's Treasure Chest offering.

Relationships: The glue that holds your church together

Most towns boast plenty of churches where people can hear the Word of God, so what will encourage people to become a part of yours? Church-growth guru Rick Warren says churches that encourage relationships among members have an edge, and the smartest churches encourage relationships in everything they do. Click here for Relationships. Posted on Warren's website Pastors.com.