FOOTMARKS June 2010:
“Everything belongs to God”
We invest a lot of energy into owning things, and chasing the material dream. But scripture tells us repeatedly that it is all an illusion, and that “the Earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world and those who live in it” (Psalm 24:1). Brought up in a culture that is very big on the concept of “private” property and taking pride in our “own” achievement it is a tough proposition to swallow.
Our relationship with what we consider to be our income and our possessions is probably the point of greatest tension in our relationship with God. Cast your mind back to a scene where you see two children fighting over a toy. 1st child: “It’s mine.” 2nd child: “No! It’s mine.” Most adults have the same tussle with God.
At the heart of the difficulty is a confusion of identity. In the Creation stories of Genesis 1 and 2 we human beings are given a clear job description. Our vocation is the noble one of the steward or trustee or caretaker. God owns everything and we take care of what has been given. What is given into our care, is gift not possession. God entrusts us with the responsibility of managing these divine gifts for the common good. Things only go wrong when we falsely believe that we are the owners rather than the stewards.
I was reading a blog on the web the other day where a pastor was reflecting that his wife often says, “It seems more special to live in God’s house than our house. To look out at God’s garden, rather than our garden.”
It takes a massive mind-shift for all of us to start saying “God’s” rather than “my” or “our’s.”
During June our focus as a parish for the whole month will be “stewardship”. In essence we will be exploring what it is of God’s that we have been given, and how might we make better use of these gifts for the sake of God’s in-breaking reign of love in the world.
In each Sunday service we will reflect on one dimension of stewardship. In turn we will reflect on the natural world we have been entrusted with here in Canterbury and consider what more we could do as stewards to care for it; then we will reflect on the time we have each been given and how well we use it for God; we will think about the talents we have been given, and explore how well we make good use of these for God’s purposes; and finally, on Sunday 27th we will take stock of what material wealth and income we have been put in charge of, and consider how faithfully we put this to use for God.
During this final service everyone at St. Marks will be asked to pledge a weekly or monthly financial offering they would like to make during the coming year. Please give prayerful thought to this matter as an individual or household. Let’s journey together through this special month in a spirit of great thanksgiving.
Mark
