Whose Is It Anyway? Thoughts on Stewardship

5/1/2015

I didn't mean to eavesdrop in on a phone conversation between my husband and the person who called, but we were sitting in the same room making me privy to him kicking his Dave Ramsey financial counselor training into gear. That and hiking are his two passion areas and he's good at both. I could tell the person on the other end was listening intently. They know Mike's been out of work since mid October and we're not behind or starving because he's practiced what he's preached over the years about the importance of having an emergency fund for true emergencies, and also having a 'sinking fund' for saving towards larger purchases (i.e. a refrigerator, living room furniture, boat, car, travel, etc.).

One of the areas they talked about was getting out of car debt. I know this is a "sacred cow" for many people. But let me tell you from experience, what a blessing it is to have 2 fairly new cars that we were able to pay CASH for...and one of them is the one he bought for himself AFTER he lost his job. What wisdom and stewardship. I'm so thankful to be doing life with this man!

Anyway, this morning I'm going through my emails and this one from Dave Ramsey appears. I just have to share this with you. I firmly believe that ALL of life is a stewardship and that includes all things God has given us - our time here on earth, the talents He's equipped us with, and the treasures He's entrusted us with.

There seems to be 2 extremes in Christianity today regarding money, and both of them are in error.
1) The prosperity gospel - God's wants to bless us and give us lots of money, so serve Him and spend, spend, spend! He didn't raise any beggars.
2) I'm going to live by faith and not save or plan for the future, He's going to take care of my needs. Now that sounds right and spiritual, but there is error in that thinking as well. Saving for the future is wise. We can live by faith and STILL save and plan for the future as a good steward should. That's biblical - read The Parable of the Talents in Matthew 25:14-30; Luke 19:12-28.

The Ultimate Question

Stewardship defines our practical obedience in the administration of everything under our control, everything entrusted to us. It is the consecration of one’s self and possessions to God's service. Stewardship acknowledges in practice that we do not have the right of control over ourselves or our property—God has that control. It means as stewards of God we are managers of that which belongs to God, and we are under His constant authority as we administer His affairs. Faithful stewardship means that we fully acknowledge we are not our own but belong to Christ, the Lord, who gave Himself for us.

The ultimate question, then, is this: Am I the lord of my life, or is Christ the Lord of my life? In essence, stewardship expresses our total obedience to God and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.