This week, we come to Article 21: Christian Stewardship. At first glance, the concept of stewardship is fairly ecumenical. In fact, I am told that it is one area of Christian theology that often has broad based agreement across denominational lines. And yet, my experience has been that most people tend to think only of money when the topic of stewardship comes up. Our article for this week, however, is much more holistic in its approach to stewardship. It includes money and yet names so much more.
Depending upon how you divide things up or define the subcategories of stewardship, there are at least six areas within our article on stewardship that invite our attention and consideration.
1. Tangible Resources (Money and Possessions)
2. Time
3. Talents and Skills
4. Creation
5. Spiritual Health (intake) and Relationships (output)
6. Physical Health
In naming these six areas, we suggest that stewardship is not just a subset of our faith but rather that it should be interwoven into every aspect of our lives, a thread that an integral part of the fabric of our lives. Because as Psalm 24:1 points out, everything is the Lord's; including us. It is not just that our money is actually God's but rather that all of creation is His. As such we are required us to be good stewards of all that is part of our lives, not just our money.
Moreover as Matthew 6:24-33 instructs us, we are not to be seeking the things of this world. We are not to be worrying about how our needs will be provided for. We are not to be trying to serve both God and money. Rather, the whole of our lives should be about seeking first His Kingdom and His Righteousness and in so doing, all of the rest of this will come into place. Being good stewards is about being good managers of all of God's resources; but more than that, it is about living a life of seeking God first.
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1 comment:
Hey Dave,
I like the idea of holistic stewardship as you approach this topic. It fit well with the idea of shalom that we are called to live. I also like the image of piece of clothe or tapestery that you referenced. It reminds me of the scene from the Radicals movie where Michael Satler talks about how one bad thread ruins the whole clothe. Well, neglecting one thread in our lives can throw it all off. Also, there is a social justice aspect of this and a formational aspect. Just a few thoughts
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