Stewardship

By Rev. Robert Herald St. Joseph Catholic Church, Rockdale, Texas

Christian stewards recognize the truth in the words of St. Teresa of Avila ³Christ has no body now on earth, but yours. No hands but yours, no feet but yours. Yours are the eyes through which the compassion of Christ must look out on the world. Yours are the feet with which He is to go about doing good. Yours are the hands with which He is to bless His people.² And they strive to live that truth in their everyday lives. Christian stewards live in a life of gratitude, and because they want to express thanks to God for all that God has given to them, they give the first portion of their time, talents, and material treasure to further the mission of bringing the good news, the healing, the love and generosity of God to others. Christian stewards make the time to carefully discern how it is that God wants them to use their gifts of time, talent, and treasure to further the mission of Christ.

A Christian steward is one who knows how fulfilling it is, how good it feels, to give to others. A Christian steward is one who acknowledges that when his or her gifts of time, talent, and treasure are combined with the gifts of other Christian disciples, the church and the world are enriched, the good news of the Gospel message is shared with those who¹ve not yet heard it, and people come to know first hand the free and generous gifts of God.

Christian stewards trust in God¹s love, mercy and providence. They are not afraid to keep less for themselvesŠ realizing that the less ³stuff² there is in their lives, the more room there is for God. Christian stewards recall the sacrifices God had made for us; know the difference between needs and wants; and are willing to sacrifice a portion of their wants to meet the needs of others.

What I have learned about stewardship has caused me to think differently about what it means to be a good disciple of Jesus, and about what it is that God is asking me to do with the life, the time, the abilities and the monetary wealth given to me. It¹s caused me to pray daily about how can I better use these gifts to demonstrate that I am one who follows Jesus and has accepted His invitation to share in His mission. I hope that you will join me in prayerfully reflecting on and responding to God¹s call to grow in Christian discipleship through stewardship of all that God has given us. I look forward to growing with you; and to doing all that we can do to further the mission of God to transform the world, with love, that is generous, accepting and sacrificing.