Dedication Sunday: November 6th
Each year on Dedication Sunday we present together as an act of worship our monetary pledges and our offerings of Time and Talent in support of our church’s ministries for the coming year.
Why do we go about pledging as we do? Where do you find such a practice in the Bible?
In Biblical times human economies were vastly different from those of today. Few personal or family economies today are quite so tied to the land as they were then. What was clearly a spiritual discipline for believers in biblical times was the offering of the first and very best fruits of their labors. In their giving believers were intentional, purposeful and generous in their response to God’s providence. In our day most of our labors typically generate far more in terms of monetary results than they generate in terms of grains, fruits and/or livestock. As a result, the giving of our substance is typically done monetarily. The practice of pledging is a self-discipline that helps us to be no less intentional, purposeful and generous than our spiritual forbearers were in their response to God’s grace and goodness. In that respect it is very much a continuation of a deep-seated and time-honored practice of faithful stewardship that glorifies God and leads us toward ever greater faithfulness.
Wouldn’t it be better for us spiritually just to “operate on faith” than to go through this process of budgeting and pledging every year?
The last time I checked, the person who prayerfully placed a generous heartfelt pledge on the Lord’s Table or mailed into the church office what represented a significant portion of his or her anticipated yield for the coming year was operating on faith, was motivated by hope and trust, was acting in faith in a way that was leading them on to an even higher dimension of faithfulness. By budgeting our resources and by pledging, we are not being less faithful but are rather engaged in a process that is calling for us repeatedly to re-examine our relationship to God and our priorities based on that relationship. We are seeking to be responsible as well as generous. We are very much acting in faith when our annual pledge in support of the work of Christ’s Church is at a level appropriate to the measure of God’s benevolence toward us.
Be among the folks of First Pres on Nov. 6th as we joyously and gratefully dedicate our pledges as well as our offerings of “Time and Talent” to the work that is ours together in Christ in 2006.
Best to you,
Why do we go about pledging as we do? Where do you find such a practice in the Bible?
In Biblical times human economies were vastly different from those of today. Few personal or family economies today are quite so tied to the land as they were then. What was clearly a spiritual discipline for believers in biblical times was the offering of the first and very best fruits of their labors. In their giving believers were intentional, purposeful and generous in their response to God’s providence. In our day most of our labors typically generate far more in terms of monetary results than they generate in terms of grains, fruits and/or livestock. As a result, the giving of our substance is typically done monetarily. The practice of pledging is a self-discipline that helps us to be no less intentional, purposeful and generous than our spiritual forbearers were in their response to God’s grace and goodness. In that respect it is very much a continuation of a deep-seated and time-honored practice of faithful stewardship that glorifies God and leads us toward ever greater faithfulness.
Wouldn’t it be better for us spiritually just to “operate on faith” than to go through this process of budgeting and pledging every year?
The last time I checked, the person who prayerfully placed a generous heartfelt pledge on the Lord’s Table or mailed into the church office what represented a significant portion of his or her anticipated yield for the coming year was operating on faith, was motivated by hope and trust, was acting in faith in a way that was leading them on to an even higher dimension of faithfulness. By budgeting our resources and by pledging, we are not being less faithful but are rather engaged in a process that is calling for us repeatedly to re-examine our relationship to God and our priorities based on that relationship. We are seeking to be responsible as well as generous. We are very much acting in faith when our annual pledge in support of the work of Christ’s Church is at a level appropriate to the measure of God’s benevolence toward us.
Be among the folks of First Pres on Nov. 6th as we joyously and gratefully dedicate our pledges as well as our offerings of “Time and Talent” to the work that is ours together in Christ in 2006.
Best to you,
