Gerry’s Geriatric Glimmerings

Talent Treasure Time

October is upon us, and time to think about our obligations as Saints of God and His earthly kingdom. This is NOT to say we are beginning a "Stewardship Campaign" at Nativity, but a realization that stewardship is an ongoing process, and to think about it now isn’t an indication that it’s time to make yourself scarce, lest we hit you up for money! Too often we think of saints as those who have gone on to their heavenly reward. But St. Paul describes all Christian ministers(and that is all of us) as saints and stewards of God’s bounty. Stewards are managers of another’s household. Believers are stewards of God’s gifts and graces (I Peter 4:10). As stewards we are obligated to be caretakers on earth of all that belongs to God. Those gifts, sometimes referred to as "talents" in Scripture, form one leg of the triangle of Christian stewardship. Talents, in order to be effective must be developed and used. So we call upon all the family of Church of the Nativity to assess the talents we have been given.

Treasure is the second leg of our stewardship triangle. I place it in the middle to underscore that it is not the most important part of our discussion. Mind you, in a world based on money, the church cannot survive if we have not the finances to continue God’s work, and I plead with you to continue to return a goodly portion of your treasure to the source from whence it came—our Lord God.

Completing this triangle is the third leg, that of time. How we allocate our time, and to what purpose, tells the world what things we hold most important. God needs our hands to carry on the work of His church. This takes time; this shows our stewardship.

"....faithful and brave and true...."

I guess this is what stewardship is really about: being true and faithful to God’s command to continue the work He gives us to do. We need to think and pray about becoming three-fold stewards of God. Now is the time for all good Christians to come to the aid of their church (with apologies to all typing teachers). Pledge that you will give of your Talent, Treasure and Time to continue your ministry.

"Who lived....for the Lord they loved and knew."

Whatever our station in life we have much to give , in return for what we have been given. Can we all share so that those who do not know the love of our Lord can experience Him, too?

"And one was....they are all of them Saints of God."

Consider your offerings of talent, treasure and time. Remember that all three are vital to the work of the church.