“Christian tradition has assumed, given that we are creatures who live in a good creation, that whatever is ‘ours’ is so only as gift, grace. Therefore goods are rightly seen as first of all goods that are in common.” (Hauerwas and Willimon)
So, what is ours and what is not?
That seems to be the underlying question surrounding giving. And as much as we may say we believe that all that we have is truly God’s and not ours, our behavior typically says otherwise.
Yet, giving is central in worship. Giving is a way we claim that we are not formed as the world, but instead we are formed by the people of God.
As Marva Dawn so eloquently wrote in "An Unfettered Hope," we are formed by the one “who at his birth was laid in a manger, in his adult life had nowhere to lay his head, and at his death was laid in a borrowed tomb.”
How you see your personal giving and our corporate giving as an act of worship?
Monday, October 15, 2007
The Whole World in our Hands
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4 comments:
We give in several ways in worship, but often think the "offering" is the only time we give. And then, the offering might be thought of as an intermission from worship -- like halftime -- instead of actual worship. For those of us who bundle our financial contributions once a month or quarter, or through a stock gift, giving can easily feel detached from worship. Giving that way may be prudent and practical, but feel less worshipful.
I believe that giving one's monetary gifts to God and God's church is essential for the ongoing work of God's kingdom. But I agree that there are many other ways that we give in worship, which are also important. We give our attention to the Holy Spirit's presence, we give our voices in praise, we give our hearts in prayer, we give our minds to the Scriptures and the spoken message - all in an attempt to give our best in worship to the God who gave us all these gifts, and so many more!
Giving is more than money. As a single parent with one income, although I know that God provides, my lack of faith causes me to be afraid of not having money for the basics. I believe giving involves time, energy, prayer, support, and
encouragement. We should be there for someone no matter what. If we cannot give financial help, we can help in other ways...prayer, a kind word, etc. Worship is another example of giving...offering, songs, prayer, fellowship, a smile, a handshake to a visitor, a hug. We give to God and we give to each other.
A pastor wrote an interesting church newsletter article about giving a few years ago.
He acknowledged that colleges have development staff and alumni who generate funds for their institution. Non-profit groups conduct giving campaigns to financially assist their mission. For profit enterprises have widgets to sell or services to bill. Churches, however, are dependant upon their active members to give in support of the church’s mission. After all, church alumni seldom give back to their former churches.
Giving is a personal thing, but it’s a spiritual thing. Every time we pass the offering plates, we hold the church’s future in our hands for a few brief moments.
Maybe that is why we pass the offering plates to each other as fast as we can. It is almost like we fear we are holding hot potatoes.
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