Dear friends,
Our Stewardship Team (Clair Ball, Fran Bogle, and Mark Whiteman) have chosen a bold approach this year. Our theme is “Give! Love! Change Lives!”
The theme reflects a triple reality for our church community. The first reality is that we face significant financial challenges. Our cell antenna contracts have ended after 25 years, leaving an income gap. We’ve lost one of our regular sanctuary renters. And we’ve had major building issues this year—flooding, elevator and sprinkler repairs, shoring up of joists in the basement of Jonathan House.
We have been working hard to ameliorate the impact of these challenges. We just signed a contract with a marketing and management company who will help us regain some of our lost antenna income. We have some new rental possibilities to explore. Our insurance company has worked with us and our contractor to minimize our costs for repairs from the flooding. And all the repairs and upgrades we are doing this year should leave us in good stead for future years.
We are not in a financial crisis, and we face a significant financial challenge. Can we increase our giving to strengthen our church’s capacity to do the work that matter so much to us? The Stewardship Team is asking us to challenge ourselves to meet this challenge. We trust everyone to reflect and pray and do the best we can. Our theme begins with that bold invitation: “Give!”
The second reality of our life as a church is reflected in the imperative: “Love!” As Ruth Heckman used to say, “It is all about love.” God is love. God calls us to love ourselves, one another, our neighbors, and people we have never met before. Love is not an abstract concept; it has meaning only as it is lived out in our actions. When we give to support this church, we help create and sustain a space for love to be lived out. “Love!”
The third reality is that, by the grace of God, our church changes lives. In our Stewardship emphasis Sundays, we will hear stories of lives being changed—the lives of our own members and also of friends, neighbors and strangers. We will be invited to reflect on how our own lives have been changed by being part of this church. Who we are as a church community and what we do matters. “Change Lives!”
I invite you to enter into this upcoming Stewardship season with bold exclamation points as we celebrate the generosity of this congregation, the love that flow through and beyond us, and the lives changed by generosity and love.
Peace, Debbie