From the Pastor’s Pen,

“Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in my house, and thus put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts; see if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you an overflowing blessing.” Malachi 3:10

“…and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile.”

Matthew 5:41

Recently, I was reading the latest issue of The United Methodist Reporter and there was an article entitled “Despite economy, churches launch giving campaigns”. The article explained how several UM churches were launching major capital campaigns despite the current economic difficulties. For example, University Park UMC in Dallas launched a major capital campaign on Sept. 21^st, just 2 days after Wall Street wrapped up one of the worst weeks in its history. The timing seemed bad, but church leaders urged members to consider “God’s timing”. They reminded them of the church’s first building campaign launched in 1941, just days after Pearl Harbor. It seemed a terrible time to build; the country was at war, the economy was bad and gas prices were high. But at a meeting in 1941, leaders decided that a church was needed more than ever, and by March 1942, the cornerstone for the first building was laid.

Despite the warnings of economic disaster heard on the news, “churches that chose to proceed with fundraising efforts say the decision came down to faith, not finances,” quotes the article. That was true for Hamline UMC in Minnesota which chose to proceed with a $650,000 capital campaign with volunteers delivering pledge card to members’ homes on Sept. 21^st. Senior Pastor Patricia Hinker said, “In a time of uncertainty, it’s more important than ever for us to be a safe haven. There was no sense that we shouldn’t have gone ahead this week.”

According to the Rev. Melvin Amerson, stewardship consultant for the Texas Methodist Foundation, “times of financial stress can become a ‘teachable moment’. When times are tight, that’s when we need to look at our priorities. It’s a matter of gratitude. All that we have comes out of God’s grace.”

Sometimes uncertainty can even serve as a spur for generosity. That’s been true for the Bear Creek UMC in Houston. The church emerged from Hurricane Ike, unharmed, but many members’ homes and businesses had sustained damage. The power went out. And church members hosted more than 100 evacuees sheltered at the church, relying on generators loaned by church members and cooking meals on butane grills. The fifth day after the hurricane they decided to go ahead with a planning meeting for their capital campaign anyway. Sitting in a circle in the dark, with flashlights in their hands, the committee members made the decision to press on with their campaign. The experience of seeing the evacuees reminded the Bear Creek members of their blessings. After scrambling to gather supplies and care for the evacuees, church members felt empowered. Pastor Burt Palmer said, “We got a tiny glimpse of what we really could do. As followers of Christ, we’ve always had the power, but it took losing the electricity to discover it again.”

Friends, just like the churches mentioned in this Reporter article, our church went forward with a capital funds campaign for our roof despite the fact that giving has been down to the general fund. The result was we were able to raise over $19,000 in less than a year and we’ve been able to complete the first phase of the roof repair. Praise God and thank-you to all of you for contributing! Now as we move forward with our Stewardship Emphasis and pledge drive for next year’s church budget, we are asking everyone to think carefully about their financial priorities. We are hoping the giving to our general fund will increase next year and we need your help to make that happen.

I think it’s important for us to remember that the biblical standard for giving is a tithe, or a tenth part of your income. In the book of Malachi chapter 3, the prophet warns the Israelites that they were robbing God by not bringing their full tithes and offerings when they came to worship. Because of that there were going to be consequences for them. But he promised them that if they would bring their full tithe into God’s storehouse that there would be plenty, that God would open the windows of heaven and pour down an overflowing blessing.

I can testify to the fact that this has always been true for me in my personal giving. There were times in the past, in my younger years, when I forgot to tithe and my finances suffered for it. But ever since I determined to be a consistent tither, I have felt the blessing of God. There’s always been enough to take care of our necessary expenses, as well as a bit left-over for some fun activities. As a matter of fact, I have also found the joy of “second-mile giving”, by giving beyond my tithe to special projects like our roof fund, to support missionaries and to sponsor needy children through Compassion International and World Vision. In Matthew 5 Jesus talks about going “the second mile.” Back in those days a Roman soldier could force an Israelite to carry his equipment a mile down the road for him. This was an irritating, inconvenient thing for a person to have to do for an alien conqueror. But Jesus knew that carrying the equipment a 2^nd mile would change the attitude of the forced carrier into an attitude of helpful generosity, rather than resentful obedience. And at the same time, the Roman soldier’s attitude toward the Israelite might change as well. Second mile giving reminds me of the saying, “Don’t give until it hurts; give until it feels good.”

On Sunday November 16^th during our “Thanks-for-Giving Potluck”, we’ll be asking everyone to turn in pledge cards for their 2009 planned giving to the church’s general fund. I hope you will take some time to pray and think through your financial priorities before you fill out your card. There is always a blessing for you in giving to the Lord’s work. May God bless you all!

Pastor Judy Robbins