Stewardship - An Attitude of Gratitude...

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1 Many people are aware of the concept of Stewardship,- recognizing that everything we have is a gift from God, being grateful, developing our gifts and generously sharing them with others. But how do we practice stewardship in everyday life? Invest in your prayer life - giving TIME to God Pray to God frequently throughout the day, every day. Designate specific times and keep your appointment with God. Talk and listen to God. Stewardship is not an exclusive club. Everyone is a steward. But living a stewardship lifestyle isn t easy. It may require a change of heart. It is a true conversion that means we: Make room for the Holy Spirit in our hearts. Recognize other gods in our lives (job, money, power, ego) and put God first. Stop complaining about what we don t have and be grateful for the gifts we have been given. Jesus taught us to pray: Our Father, who art in Heaven (Matthew 6:9) Be willing to help others - share your TALENT. Decrease dependence on me (the belief that I have to make things happen) and increase trust in God. Participate in parish activities, ministries, and organizations. Accept responsibility for helping others do not be afraid to take the lead. For we are God s co-workers. (1 Corinthians 3:9) Be generous with your financial gifts - offer your TREASURE Generously share a portion of the money you have earned. Give cheerfully, without expecting anything in return. He who sows bountifully will reap bountifully for God loves a cheerful giver. (2 Cor 6-9) Admit things don t always go according to our schedule and that God s plan is always better. Stewardship is a lifestyle of generously sharing our gifts. As disciples of Jesus, we are called to be stewards of the gifts we have been given. The cornerstone of stewardship is prayer. Without prayer, we may be good volunteers or donors, but we are not good stewards! Stewardship requires action. Past generations built the Church. It is our responsibility to develop and nurture our gifts for future generations. As St. Francis of Assisi said Preach the Gospel at all times. Use words when necessary. Stewardship is not easy, but it has tremendous rewards Love, Peace, and Joy on earth and eternal life in Heaven!

2 Online Giving Has This Ever Happened to You? The ushers come forward to begin the Offertory collection process. You lean over and ask your spouse if she has the envelope? She replies that she left it on the table for you to put in your pocket. Ooops! No envelope to give this week! In the rush of getting off to church, we all forget the envelope once in a while. Giving Greener Are you trying to cut down on the paper you use? Is the check you write to our parish one of the few checks that you write anymore? You can give greener by using our Online Giving Program. You can set up the amount that you would like to give on a schedule that meets your needs and you never have to worry about writing another check, forgetting your envelope, or having cash in your wallet. Our parish greatly appreciates all those who choose to give in this manner as it helps us maintain a consistent cash flow and pay all of our bills in a timely manner. Special Thanks to Our Electronic Givers St. John the Beloved would like to thank the many families who are currently giving electronically. You may not see these fellow parishioners place an envelope in the basket every week, but their consistent giving does not go unnoticed in our parish office. Each month our parish receives a steady and predictable stream of income from those donors who have made the commitment to give to God first by having a designated contribution automatically transferred to our parish through our Online Giving Program What If Your Paycheck Didn t Come Regularly? Most of our parishioners are blessed with consistent and dependable paychecks. Yet, have you ever thought about how you would manage your bills and schedule your payments if you were never sure how much money you were going to have in your bank account. This is a problem that our parish faces every month. Weekly giving can fluctuate from $13,000 to $26,000. While we are most grateful for any gift that any parishioner can give at any time, to help us maintain a more consistent cash flow, we have established an online giving program. Those parishioners who are using the program tell us it is a great help to them, too. It allows them to clearly budget the amount that they want to give back to God and helps them feel assured that their parish is receiving their gift even when they are out-of-town, too busy to remember an envelope, or attending Mass at another parish. Online Giving, it s safe and easy... If you would like to learn more about this easy, safe and secure way of giving, please visit our website: You may also download our new Online Giving App which is available through your cellular provider s app store or by visiting: OLGApp.com (organization ID# 1315) Thank you for considering using Online Giving for your offertory needs, it is greatly appreciated!

3 Each one of you has received a special grace, go like good stewards responsible for all those different graces of God, put yourselves at the service of others S tewardship is the response of each individual's call to discipleship, a lifelong way of life, whereby one responds to the mission and ministry of the local and universal Church, sharing the Gospel of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Gratitude As Christians, we believe that all we have is a gift from God. Stewardship is an attitude of gratitude for these. This is expressed in prayer, worship, giving and action by eagerly sharing these gifts out of love of God and one another. Love Our mission is living out Christ's instructions to "love one another as I have loved you." Stewardship is the process of inviting all people to see their gifts and to bring all they are into the life and mission of the Church. Conversion Stewardship is about restoring all things to Christ. It's about willingly giving of ourselves and what we have because we believe that the rewards of stewardship are eternal and we are a part of that eternal life. Ownership Stewardship is about understanding that it is not "they" who need help in ministries, work, or funds, but "we" who are working together in community. It is understanding that the needs of the whole community are OUR needs and that we are ALL responsible. What we do or give are not donations or volunteerism - it is taking ownership for being part of the community. Time Everyone has responsibilities to family and jobs. We also give time to our children's sports and school activities. Peter 4:10 Stewardship of Time is not so much how much Time you give to God, but rather have you budgeted God into your Time? Have you, instead given God the leftovers? Talent You may have gone to school to gain your skills, but who gave you the capacity to learn? Has it occurred to you that God gave you gifts, not for your benefit, but for the good of the whole community? Sharing your talents and gifts with grateful hearts is a wonderful outward sign of your gratitude of the many blessings God has given you. Treasure Stewardship of treasure again reflects your gratitude to God. It is not a matter of amount. It is a matter of praying over and planning what you will give. It is not stewardship to throw in the basket what is left in your pocket on Sunday morning. It's about willingly putting God in your budget at the top of the list, regardless of the amount, in direct gratitude for all that God has given you and in response to your call to discipleship. It's About YOU! Stewardship is most importantly about knowing in your heart that you are a part of the Body of Christ. You are not just a member of a club. Your are an actual part of the Body. You are integral, unique, and indispensable in being Christ to the world. Understanding stewardship is understanding that you cannot be a spectator, but an active, integral part of the life of the Church. Grow in your own faith as you help the parish grow by sharing your Time, Talent & Treasure!!

4 Stewardship - Mind, Body and Spirit... The master of the garden is the one who waters it, trims the branches, plants the seeds, and pulls the weeds. If you merely stroll through the garden, you are but an acolyte. Stewardship involves all of life While pastors and others usually only speak of stewardship in terms of Time, Talent and Treasure, the truth is that stewardship involves all of life body, mind and spirit, our material possessions, friendships, etc. All we are and have is a gift from our Creator for us to use wisely to build up God s kingdom here on earth. Time Time is a very precious gift. Most of us feel we don t have enough time for all the things we want to do. Everyone is given the same amount of time: 24 hours each day, 168 hours each week, 8,736 hours per year. The question is: How do we choose to use our time? Henry David Thoreau once said: It is not enough to be busy, so are ants. The question is what are we busy about? Talent All of us have been blessed with various talents, whether we are aware of it or not, or whether we have developed our talents or not. Of course, it is usually not possible to develop all of our talents. But, ideally, we can and should develop some of them and use them wisely to bless the communities we belong to. Treasure There are over 2,300 verses in the Bible about money, possessions and the right use of them. Why is this? Perhaps because God knows our propensity to misuse money or allow it to distract us from keeping our eyes on him. ~ Vera Nazarian Tithing. When it comes to financial support of our church family, the biblical ideal is a tithe or 10% of one s income. Most Catholics who tithe reach this ideal gradually. In this area of stewardship, one of the most important steps to consider is to become an intentional giver as opposed to a loose change giver. An intentional giver is one who has the willing diligence to do the math, that is, to look at his/her annual income and then prayerfully and intentionally decide what percentage should be set aside for the support of the church. God expects us to be generous even if our financial resources are not much. Remember how Jesus praised the poor widow for her generosity to the Temple (Mark 12:41-44). Stewardship Prayer Generous and loving God, You call us to be disciples of your Son Jesus and good stewards of your many gifts. Open our minds and hearts to a greater Awareness and deeper appreciation of your countless blessings. Transform us through the power of your Spirit to nurture a stewardship way of life marked by faith-filled prayer, service to our neighbor, and generous sharing. Teach us to be faithful servants of your gifts. With Mary s help, may we return ten-fold the gifts entrusted to us. We pray this, thorough Christ our Lord. Amen. ~ Bishop Robert Morneau

5 Stewardship... S tewards of God's gifts are not passive beneficiaries. We cooperate with God in our own redemption and in the redemption of others. We are also obliged to be stewards of the Church collaborators and cooperators in continuing the work of Jesus Christ, which is the Church's essential mission. It is the personal responsibility of each one of us as stewards of the Church. All members of the Church have their own roles to play in carrying out its mission. People who want to live as Christian disciples and Christian stewards face serious obstacles. At times, we can find it far too easy to ignore spiritual realities and to deny religion a role in shaping human and social values. As Catholics who have entered into the mainstream of American society and experienced its advantages, many of us also have been adversely influenced by this secular culture. We know what it is to struggle against selfishness and greed, and we realize that it is harder for many today to accept the challenge of being a Christian steward. It is essential, therefore, that we make a special effort to understand the true meaning of stewardship and live accordingly. The life of a Christian steward models the life of Jesus. It is challenging and even difficult, in many respects, yet intense joy comes to those who take the risk to live as Christian stewards. Women and men who seek to live as stewards learn that "all things work for good for those who love God" (Rom 8:28). After Jesus, we look to Mary as an ideal steward. As the Mother of Christ, she lived her ministry in a spirit of fidelity and service; she responded generously to the call. We must ask ourselves: Do we also wish to be disciples of Jesus Christ and Christian stewards of our world and our Church? Central to our human and Christian vocations, as well as to the unique vocation each one of us receives from God, is that we be good stewards of the gifts we possess. God gives us this divine-human workshop, this world and Church of ours. The Spirit shows us the way. Stewardship is a part of that journey.