Firstfruits Findings May - June 03 FIRSTFRUITS FINDINGS Vol. 8 No. 2 A NOTE FROM THE DIRECTOR "I wish I would think more about what brings God glory, but I do only occasionally." Sixty-percent of the church members we surveyed agreed with that statement. One of the ways in which we work with churches is to have members complete a survey which reflects attitudes and practices regarding their use of time, abilities and money - stewardship. Bringing God glory and honor is primary in our lives as Christian stewards. We hope that the new series we are beginning in this issue, "7 Habits of Highly Effective Stewards" will help your members to be the stewards, the people of God He wants them to be. THE 7 HABITS OF A HIGHLY EFFECTIVE STEWARD Much has been written about the habits it takes to be a highly effective person, or a highly effective family or a highly effective teen. We did some thinking on our own about what it takes to be a really good steward. This is the beginning of a seven-part series in which we will reflect on the habits of a highly effective steward. Since stewardship is a journey, we invite you to join us for this series. If you wish to contribute your thoughts, we may incorporate them into future issues of our newsletter. Habit 1: Be Thankful "In everything give thanks; for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus" (I Thess. 5:18) Talk about an attitude of gratitude! What does giving thanks in "everything" mean for daily living? Do we thank God for the blessings of life-the big things and the small things, the obvious and the not so obvious? Food and shelter are basic necessities. Family and friends provide meaning and fellowship. Good health is important to our general well being. Though we enjoy these gifts each day, it is easy to take them for granted and not express our appreciation. What about our job? Do we view it as our vocation? The word "vocation" literally means "calling". We usually think of a calling as being related to some kind of ministry. But God calls and equips all of us so that, by the quality of our work in our vocation He is honored and we reflect His image...no matter what our "work" is. Col. 3:23-24 says, "Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men.... You are serving the Lord Christ." If we could see Jesus Christ as our boss, would it change our attitude about our job? Let's face it: some of us have a kind of love/hate relationship with work. We spend roughly a third of our adult lives making a living and what is our attitude about that? Work is not just a means to a paycheck. It is a gift from God to help develop character. It is an opportunity to be a Christ-like example to those with whom we work. It motivates us to be productive and to achieve a sense of accomplishment and value. As Christians we can say, "All this, and a paycheck too"! A steward's heart is a thankful heart. Someone has said it well: "Thanksgiving, to be truly thanksgiving, is first thanks, then giving." You can give without being thankful, but you cannot be thankful without giving. When you give, you not only are acknowledging that everything you have is a gift from God, but you are expressing your gratitude to Him. TWO WORDS An elderly and somewhat deaf parishioner chided the pastor after the service. "Pastor, you kept saying that we are the Lord's two words, but you never told us what those two words are." "You misunderstood," answered the pastor, "I preached that we are the Lord's Stewards." "Oh, so that's what it was," said the parishioner. "Now I'll never know what the two words could have been." "Try God's love," advised the Pastor. Used by permission: Parish Publishing, New Canaan, CT CHILDREN'S MESSAGE IDEA Are you looking for some fresh ideas to communicate stewardship to the younger members of your congregation? If so, then perhaps you would like to try one of the children's messages sent in by David Visbeen from Cedar Hill CRC in Wyckoff, New Jersey: Bring in a treasure chest containing a clock, some cash, and something signifying a special talent (i.e. ballet slippers, a trumpet, a baseball glove). Take the items out of the treasure chest, one at a time and get the kids to guess what they represent and how they are connected. Talk about stewardship as our responsibility to God to properly use for our time, talents, and treasures. THE GOOD STEWARD WORD SEARCH STEWARD TITHE GIVE TALENT TIME MANAGE ABUNDANCE MINISTRY TRUST CONTENTMENT TREASURE WORSHIP GENEROSITY THANKSGIVING GOOD PRAYER M T H A N K S G I V I N G R S O B E T I M S I T Y I E Y L S T E W A R D E V C Y T Y R T S I N I M F T O A B K M U G B A T D P R N R A M E D O C G T R U S T P I H S R O W E U C O O E T S M E Y D F H T I M E N A B U N D A N C E N E H T P O O G P R T N E L A T M D Y T I S O R E N E G I E I S G V M I T J O R M T N F N H E S E R U S A E R T SHARE YOUR STEWARDSHIP STORY Before attending a Crown Ministry Bible Study, I'm not sure I really understood that everything in my life was a gift from God. I certainly hadn't thought about it, at least. Giving a tithe, giving my time and using my talents for my church were all part of my lifestyle. But a turning point was when I began to think that God deserved much more. He has filled my life with so many gifts that to tithe is just a beginning; to give some of my time is just a start; to give my talent is just giving back to Him what He has given me. I call this my "light bulb experience"! Karen L., Orland Park, IL If you have a stewardship story to share, please go to our website at: www.barnabasfoundation.com/firstfruits, click on 'Share Your Stewardship Story" and give us the details. We'd love to hear from you! RECOMMENDED RESOURCE FOR KIDS Veggie Tales Video - "Madame Blueberry" Why is Madame Blueberry so "blue"? Because even though she has everything she needs, some of her friends have a lot more. Sound familiar? Let your kids spend a little time with Madame Blueberry and the rest of the veggies and they'll learn that "being greedy makes you grumpy - but a thankful heart is a happy heart!" This award-winning video teaches kids why God wants us to be thankful for what we have. (Thirty minutes). Haven't heard of Veggie Tales? VeggieTales is a kids' video series that teaches timeless values like honesty, kindness, and forgiveness in a delightfully wacky way - without ever being preachy. At the heart of each video is a nugget of truth that is rooted in the Bible. These hilarious stories feature top-quality computer animation, infectious songs, and lovable characters. They are available at most Christian bookstores.