The Church, more than any other organization, save perhaps environmentalist groups, dwells on the concept of stewardship.
Sometimes we use the word interchangeably with offerings and donations, but we know it is more than that.
Stewardship is the conscious and wise use of resources. Too often we view only the property and financial assets in our thinking.
Measuring stewardship is a problem, especially when you don’t know what to measure.
Measuring stewardship leads to harsh judgments — often by people who are, themselves, stewardship-challenged. We are tempted to assume that we somehow have a right to judge who is the best determiner of when, where, and how resources are put to best use.
This can be tricky even for Christians without a horse in the race! Is the same $50,000 better used by a small congregation with 100 members or would it be better used to the Glory of God if a corporate church managed that money—or take the resources entirely out of the hands of the people who donated the resources. Let your regional body make the decisions.
Any organization of any size can use resources wisely or foolishly. Perhaps this is why the founders of the ELCA placed the determination of the use of resources in the hands of the congregations from whom the gifts were collected.
But let’s shift gears.
What if we stopped thinking of stewardship as the use of tangible resources?
What if we started thinking in terms of the intellectual property of the Church?
Let’s call it the Stewardship of Possibilities.
The concept is biblical. Jesus turned the attention of the disciples away from the pursuit of riches or status at every turn. Time after time, he directed them to possibilities. Unheard of possibilities. Away from “safe” investments. There is even a parable about it!
With the Stewardship of Possibilities, lame people could walk again. The blind could see. The hungry could be fed. Tax collectors could be honest. Fishermen could lead. People living in sin could turn their lives around. Children, women, foreigners mattered!
Instead of looking at our small churches with a message of impossibility, help them determine what is possible with the resources they have — all the resources—not just the endowment and offering plate.
Other things to consider:
- The location of the property
- The talents of the members
- The creativity and ingenuity present in the congregation
- Special skills in the congregation
- The congregation’s spiritual life
- The reputation of the congregation in the community. (Business calls it good will and puts a price on it!)
- The relationships with civic and service organizations fostered over time
- The stamina of the congregation (Can they weather a storm and work together?)
- The potential
- The faith and belief that all things are possible
These are things you can’t put in the bank. But you can bank on them.
