Leadership Thought: Who Says I Don't Own My Money?

Dear Friends,

Glad you are still with us after I shared some thoughts about giving in yesterday’s Leadership Thought. I want to continue discussing this subject for the next two days.

Someone said Satan loves to have the church argue about the use of  money for if he can get the church leaders spending more time talking about whether there is enough money to fix the roof, than fixing the ministry that’s under the roof, he has got you.

When it comes to giving, the bottom-line verse for me is 1 Cor 4:2 which states “that it is required of stewards to be faithful.” A steward is someone who manages someone else’s money. He is an asset manager.  He only does what the owner wants. He doesn’t own the store; he just works there. The steward manages the money that belongs to the owner. It is his responsibility to find out what the owner wants done with his assets, and then carry out his will.

John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, and one of the world’s greatest evangelist  understood this concept of ownership. When someone told Wesley that his home burned down, he said, “No, it was not his home, but the Lord’s house that burned down. This means one less responsibility for me.” His reaction was not denial but a bold affirmation that God is the owner of all things and we are simply to manage His assets.
The bible tells us that one day we will all stand before God, and we shall give an account for the way we have managed His assets (Romans 14:10). One man I read about carries in his wallet a card, and on one side is the statement “God owns every treasure. I am his investment manager." On the other side of the card is written, “God wants me to use earthly treasures to store up heavenly treasures and underneath are two bible references. They are Christ’s words in Matthew 6:1-4 and Paul’s words to Timothy in 1 Timothy 6:6. I hope you will look them up. 

Simply put, to understand stewardships is to recognize that God owns it all, and that what happens to mine (my resources) is the result of what has happened to me. Apparently not much has happened, if we consider that this past year’s church member’s average gift to the church was is $ 2.57 out of each $ 100 earned.

It is easy to sing the words of the old gospel hymns “I Surrender All” or “Take my silver and my gold, not a might would I withhold.” However, it is another thing to share the music’s message with our lives.

Tomorrow we will continue to examine this subject as we look at how and what we should give.

Yours in faith and friendship,
Tom