Friday’s thoughts
It’s a New Day
There are many ways to motivate people to give and pledge to the church that are not worthy of the church. Often we experience fear when we are told that we must give to the church because the church is of God. Whenever God is thrown into the equation there is the idea that if we don’t support the church God will get us. I’ve heard preachers suggest that giving to the church is a fulfillment of the “Will of God”.Another way in which we are encouraged to give to the church is through guilt. We are told we had better support the church or the church will die. We are reminded how the church has been there for us and how we are obligated to support the church to be there for other people. I find attempts to motive people through fear or guilt are inappropriate. We support the church not for the sake of the church because the church is a vehicle and not an end in itself. We support the church not for the sake of God because God’s concern is a whole lot larger than the mere survival of the institutional church.The only reason I can feel good about inviting support of the church is for our sake. We support the church because we have a basic belief in the church, and because we are connected in our faith in God to live out our faith journey through the church. Collectively we can do so much more, and our involvement in the church is a part of our growth in faith. Support of the church is not about how much is taken in but about how much is allowed to spill over. We give because we believe in the church and have found that church to be a place where we can express ourselves and our faith in many, many ways. That’s how I see it. What do you think? If you have thoughts to share publicly, please leave a comment with this post as indicated where it says “comments”. For personal thoughts intended only for me write me at charlesschuster@fcfumc.net I look forward to hearing from you. Charles
There are many ways to motivate people to give and pledge to the church that are not worthy of the church. Often we experience fear when we are told that we must give to the church because the church is of God. Whenever God is thrown into the equation there is the idea that if we don’t support the church God will get us. I’ve heard preachers suggest that giving to the church is a fulfillment of the “Will of God”.Another way in which we are encouraged to give to the church is through guilt. We are told we had better support the church or the church will die. We are reminded how the church has been there for us and how we are obligated to support the church to be there for other people. I find attempts to motive people through fear or guilt are inappropriate. We support the church not for the sake of the church because the church is a vehicle and not an end in itself. We support the church not for the sake of God because God’s concern is a whole lot larger than the mere survival of the institutional church.The only reason I can feel good about inviting support of the church is for our sake. We support the church because we have a basic belief in the church, and because we are connected in our faith in God to live out our faith journey through the church. Collectively we can do so much more, and our involvement in the church is a part of our growth in faith. Support of the church is not about how much is taken in but about how much is allowed to spill over. We give because we believe in the church and have found that church to be a place where we can express ourselves and our faith in many, many ways. That’s how I see it. What do you think? If you have thoughts to share publicly, please leave a comment with this post as indicated where it says “comments”. For personal thoughts intended only for me write me at charlesschuster@fcfumc.net I look forward to hearing from you. Charles
Posted by
at
23:07:58
