Stewardship
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Stewardship PrayerO Lord, giver of life and source of freedom, I know that all I have received is from your hand. Gracious and loving God, You call us to be stewards of Your abundance, the caretakers of all you have entrusted to us. Help us to always use Your gifts wisely and teach us to share them generously. Amen.
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The Raising of LazarusOur Church commemorates the raising of Lazarus from the grave on the day before Palm Sunday.
This last and greatest of Jesus' signs is presented to the world so that the Will of God may be made known through His life-giving power. We see through Christ Himself, the resurrection and the life!
This miracle of the Raising of Lazarus is greater than all the previous miracles of Jesus. Lazarus has been dead four days; Jesus prays to the Father and with a loud voice cries out: "Lazarus come forth!" This single command of the Lord fills Lazarus once again with the "breath of life." It is in the Name of the Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, that Lazarus is raised from the dead!
One of the many lessons learned from this Gospel story is that of Martha's confession of faith in her friend: "Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world." Raising Lazarus from the dead was a miracle and a clear display of God's power. It was also an unmistakable sign that Jesus was the Christ. Good stewards of their faith see signs of Christ's presence all around them and are eager to respond in faith. The stewardship question for us is: Who or what will be the Lord of our lives? Will it be Christ Jesus? And if so, how will we respond to him? Are we willing to walk in his footsteps and follow in his example?
Jesus had great love for Lazarus and his sisters, Martha and Mary. It is the same love that we receive when we call Him Lord and obediently follow His ways. Life is give3n to us through Christ. Our commitment to the STEWARDSHIP ministry reveals how we live our faith in the Resurrected Lord. It is in Jesus' Resurrection that we receive eternal life, and we express our hope in the life to come by our response as stewards.
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Healing Our BlindnessThe value of stewardship living is difficult to see unless we are experiencing that way of life for ourselves. You can read 100 Everyday Stewardship reflections and go to church every Sunday, but unless you are actively growing in faith and trying to live a life of generous stewardship, you cannot see the power of such a lifestyle. Like most things, we need direct, purposeful experiences to really understand. Only after we start treating all we have as God's and began to actively offer all we are to Him for His glory, that we will really understand the stewardship message. We don't need to be perfect. Far from it! However, the stress and anxiety that comes with life has greatly diminished because all is in God's hands. Choose to act more generously than before, which might provide you with a sense of fulfillment and joy.
It would be a shame to be blind to the important things for an entire life. Today, consider taking a path of life-changing stewardship. Give it all to God. In the midst of all you have been given, you just might find God in a profound way. You may even find the real person God created you to be.
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Stewardship & WorshipThe impact of a personal encounter with God always leads to worship. While worship is a personal response of the believer's heart to God for who He is, it is never practiced nor expressed in a vacuum or in isolation from other created beings or community of people.
Worship, like stewardship, is personal and communal. While worship is a person response of the believer's heart to God for who He is, it is never practiced nor expressed in a vacuum or in isolation from other created being or community of people.
Worship and Witness - Two Sides of Discipleship
The Samaritan woman was seeking for the Messiah, and Jesus acknowledges her sincerity by commending her. "But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth" John 4:23-24. Worship for the woman was initiated in her in a personal journey of discovery with Jesus at the well, but one that she became willing to share with her village people. While the discovery was made in a private encounter with Christ, for her this new experience belonged to the public domain of the village life thus she became committed to make it known to all who would listen to her. "Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be Christ?" John 4:29. This excitement and joy in meeting the Messiah in person, and her personal testimony to the community were part and parcels of her new life as a disciple. More importantly for us, this story clearly demonstrates the personal impact of worship (being found in the presence of Jesus) in the life of a community. "And many of the Samaritans of that city believed in Him because of the word of the woman who testified, He told me all that I ever did. So, when the Samaritans had come to Him, they urged Him to stay with them; and He stayed there two days. And many more believed because of His own word" Jn 4:39-41. This account of worship, conversion, and personal witness suggests that as Christians, we could not experience the God of community personally without making positive ripples around us in the lives of people that we live with and meet daily. Thus, leading to stewardship with our time, our talents, and treasure.
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The Lenten season prepares us for the celebration of Easter. It is a time for Christians to embrace prayer, fasting, and almsgiving in a more concerted way. For some it is a time of healing, an opportunity to repair their spiritual brokenness. For others, it is simply a time to cultivate their spiritual lives in a more disciplined manner. The goal of Lenten practices: to prepare ourselves to enter into the paschal mystery of Holy Week with a more humble spirit and determination to follow Jesus Christ. This ancient triad of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving offers wonderful spiritual benefits.
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Be a Good Steward of the Lenten SeasonBeing a good steward of these gifts by planning ahead and following through is essential to having a fruitful Lenten experience.
- Prayer: What greater gift could we give ourselves during Lent than the gift of prayer? The fruits of developing a disciplined time of prayer are bountiful. Make plans for a prayer time each day. Do not wait until you "find time" but make a time of prayer your priority. This will involve sacrifice on your part - perhaps giving up some television viewing time, using part of your lunch hour, or getting up in the morning earlier than usual. Along the way, spend some time in extra prayer with the community: a weekday Mass, Stations of the Cross. Whatever you decide, resolve to spend more time with the Lord.
- Fasting: Christian stewards understand that all they receive, including the bountiful food and drink that is often taken for granted, ultimately comes from the Lord. By denying ourselves food for a time, we are reminded in physical and emotional ways of the Lord's generosity. As we fast, thoughtlessness is replaced by gratitude and mindfulness of the needs of others. The ancient practice of fasting also conditions us for greater spiritual practices. Incorporate some aspect of fasting from food or drink into your Lenten practice, something in addition to the sacrifices we make on Ash Wednesday and the Fridays of Lent.
- Almsgiving: The spiritual discipline heightens our sense of generosity. Just as an increase in prayer and fasting leads us to be more grateful of the gifts we've received, and promotes a greater awareness of others, almsgiving helps us to reach out to others in gratitude. Just as we don't "squeeze in" time to pray during Lent, we also don't scrutinize our checkbook when being generous with others. Again, make a plan and let a meaningful sense of sacrifice be your guide.
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Stewardship & the Ten CommandmentsStewardship and the Ten Commandments are deeply linked, as the commandments provide the ethical framework for managing God's creation and resources. They call for stewardship over time, talent, and treasure, highlighting that God owns all things, while humans are caretakers responsible for using them to glorify Him and serve others. Key connections between stewardship and the Ten Commandments include:
- Recognition of Ownership (First 4 Commandments): The first four commandments (e.g., no other gods, honoring the Sabbath) emphasize that God is the Creator and owner of all things, establishing the foundational principle of stewardship: that we are managers of His resources.
- Responsible Management (The 5th - 10th Commandments): The remaining commandments, particularly the Eighth ("You shall not steal"), are directly related to stewardship. They require respecting others' property, being honest with resources, and not misusing or wasting what God has entrusted to us.
- Stewardship as Obedience: Disobeying God's commands, such as coveting or stealing, is considered thievery of God's resources, whereas obedience is the practice of faithful stewardship.
- Do I live as if I own my possessions, or as a steward of God's property?
- How am I using my limited time to serve God and others?
- Am I using my unique skills to contribute the community?
- Am I generous with my finances, or am I hoarding?
- Do I treat my body and health as a gift from God?
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"You are the salt of the earth... You are the light of the world."
- Matthew 5:13-14
In today's Gospel, Jesus uses two powerful images - salt and light - to describe our mission as disciples. Salt preserves, enhances, and purifies. Light reveals, guides, and brings comfort. Both are essential in the world, and both only fulfill their purpose when they are used, not hidden or forgotten. Jesus challenges us: don't lose your flavor. Don't hide your light. Instead, live your faith so boldly and authentically that others are drawn not to you, but to God through your good deeds.
What does this mean for us as stewards?
True stewardship is not just about offering our time, talent and treasure - it's about how we offer them: generously, joyfully, and with intention. It's recognizing that all we have is a gift from God, and then choosing to use those gifts to bless others. To be "salt of the earth" is to preserve goodness and bring out the best in our families, communities, and parishes. To be "light of the world" is to live in a way that reflects Christ's love - illuminating hope where there is darkness, and inviting others into God's presences through our service and example. May we be bold stewards - salty and shining - so that through our faithful witness others may glorify our Heavenly Father.
Reflection Questions:- Where am I being called to season the world with God's love?
- How can I let my light shine more intentionally in my family, parish, or workplace?
- Am I actively using my gifts to build up the Body of Christ?
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