The S Word # 18

THE THEOLOGY OF MONEY # 18
BY FAITH WITH THANKSGIVING
By Douglas Hambidge

Every one of the motivations above asks the wrong question. In various ways they are asking what the church needs, what project is planned, what crisis has arisen. They are asking to be told what would be a faith contribution, or they are assuming that current giving levels do not need to be revisited. Is there any other way of looking at stewardship in relation to what
motivates our giving? The best known verse in the whole of scripture says it all:

“God so loved the world that he gave ….” ---- John 3; 16

This sums up God’s attitude toward giving. God’s giving is motivated by God’s love. We’ve always known this, but most of us fail to relate it directly to stewardship and our approach to giving. The God I believe in has reached out to me and has taken the first step toward me. The God whose loving and giving are without limit calls me to make a response of faith and thanksgiving.

My response is expressed by the way in which I take God into account in my use of my time; in the way I expend my energies and use my skills; and in the way I spend my money. These symbolize and represent who I am. They declare that my response to God is the giving of who I am and what I have to God. It is this realization that drives and motivates stewardship. It is this that underlies everything I do. This is faith-driven stewardship.

More next week with #19