When you read Acts 2 about the earliest Christian community, it’s almost too hard for us to believe. Everybody relinquished the idea of personal ownership and sold whatever they had? While Christians uphold values of frugality and charity, the Acts community took it to an extreme. What could turn their hearts to such radical generosity? Hint: It’s the same thing that can turn our hearts! (Photo: John Ragal, Creative Commons)
Lent is a perfect time to embrace spiritual disciplines that will sharpen our awareness, clear our mind, strengthen our self-control and help bring us closer to God. This year, instead of the usual painless disciplines of giving up chocolate or swearing for Lent, consider a discipline that will challenge your will and make a big difference — financial giving.
Now there’s nothing wrong with setting goals that will lead to positive changes in our lives, but I’ve noticed how self-centered my resolutions over the years tended to be. I resolve mostly to do things that will enrich MY life, firm up MY finances, improve MY health and promote MY happiness. Narcissistic resolutions are perfect for people of our me-first age, but methinks not so much for followers Jesus. (Photo by Erephas, used by Creative Commons license. Thanks!)
Where are you in your journey of faith, and how did you get here? Where are you going, and where do you think you will end up? Many of God’s faithful disciples don’t exactly know because they are are guided by the the Holy Spirit. How does God’s Positioning System work in your life? (Photo by the International Center for Tropical Agriculture, used by creative Commons License)
Most things take desire, time and practice to do well, and even more desire, more time and more practice to master. The same holds true for living with generosity. Good stewardship starts with desire and requires discipline and practice. But how can we cultivate the desire for people to live generously, when the whole proposition is counter-cultural? (Photo by Phillip West (who specializes in paper folding), used by Creative Commons license. Thanks!)
Time – the final frontier! Manage time well, and you’ve got it licked. As for me, I used to forget stuff, important stuff, on a regular basis. But I’ve discovered a low-tech wonder tool that has made my life a LOT easier. (Photo by Justin See, used by Creative Commons license. Thanks!)
Let’s take a deep breath, stewards, especially those of us who are burdened with the financial stewardship of our institutions. For Holy Week let’s put aside our congregational balance sheets, tables of giving and charts of weekly worship attendance. Lent is the penitential time when Christians take stock of our lives of faith and embrace […]
Where I live, it’s easy to remember the cycles of nature and the joyous, bountiful season of harvest. Mile after country mile in Adams County, Pennsylvania, brings you past apple orchards where the fruit, sometimes clustered like grapes, pulls the branches of the trees way down low, so the leaves sweep the ground. The harvest […]
What does your church’s annual budget represent? Is it a proud menu of the hopes, dreams and missionary ministries your congregation wants to accomplish in the year to come? Or is it a life-support prescription for how the congregation expects to pay the staff, keep the lights burning, the sanctuary heated and the grass mowed?
It’s Personal blog Summer is the time when many people take a break from the routine – from work, from school, and, yes, even church. The warmer temperatures and longer days of summer make it more enjoyable to spend time outdoors, and the slower pace gives us time to relax and engage in leisure activities. […]
