It was pretty much exactly this time last year— the first Sunday in November-- that I joined all of you at here Park Church for my first official Sunday as your new settled pastor. And so I was reflecting on that this week, and remembering how on that first Sunday, I felt slightly overwhelmed and nervous, and maybe a little unsure of myself, but also excited and hopeful about what was to come. At that point I had been able to talk with a few of you about your hopes and dreams for Park Church, your love of this church and this community, and I felt so humbled and honored that you had invited me to be a part of it, and I still feel that way. I also remember, however, that coming in at the beginning of November felt particularly intimidating to me because here at Park church—as many of you know-- November also happens to be Stewardship month. Which meant that before I even had time to learn any of your names I had to stand up here and ask you for your money. And I have to admit, it felt a little awkward. But we made it through, and you all responded with incredible generosity, and I thank you for that. Now, here we are-- having come full circle. It’s stewardship Sunday once again, and I stand here before you once more, asking for your contributions to help nurture and support this community of faith. And this time, I know all of your names. But it’s still a little bit awkward, because as we are all aware, no one really likes to talk about money. Especially not in the church. Which is kind of odd, really, when you consider the fact that Jesus actually talked about money all the time! Throughout all of the gospels, Jesus talks about money, possessions, and wealth more than he talks about almost any other topic— including prayer, his death and resurrection, even topics such as compassion or forgiveness. So many of the stories in the gospels revolve around money or possessions in one way or another. And this morning’s story from the Gospel of Mark is no exception.
Mark tells us that Jesus and his disciples are hanging out by the temple, and they were watching people put money into the temple treasury. According to the story, there were many wealthy people putting in large sums of money that day. But that’s not what catches Jesus’ attention. What catches Jesus’ attention is the poor widow who comes forward and puts in two small copper coins-- basically the equivalent of two pennies today. I imagine that no one else noticed this woman, except for maybe to cast one or two pitying glances in her direction. But Jesus noticed her. For some reason, she caught Jesus’ attention that day. And he found her action important enough to call his disciples over to make an example of her. Why? Why was this so important?
I imagine it might have been because even though the amount this woman gave was practically nothing compared to the donations of the more wealthy givers, her gift cost a whole lot more. I imagine this woman caught Jesus’ attention that day because in the act of giving all she had, she became a walking illustration of one of Jesus’ other teachings about money— “where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Now, one could question if it’s really such a good thing that Jesus is praising this woman for giving her last two cents to a corrupt religious institution. One could question if that’s really such a good model for Jesus to be giving us. What about the poor widows of today— one might counter-- who give their savings over to corrupt televangelists or religious scam artists? Is that really something to be admired? But I think that question takes the story a bit too literally, and therefore misses the point. In this story, it’s not the amount of the woman’s gift that matters, or even so much the fact that she is poor. What matters in this story is the woman’s ability to give without counting the cost, and the level of sacrifice, devotion, and trust that goes along with that. Whether one is rich or poor, or more likely-- somewhere in between, we can all learn from what the poor widow does in this story. In giving all has, she places her treasure, and therefore her heart, squarely before God-- regardless of the cost. In this day and age I think we can recognize this as a truly remarkable thing. We live in a culture where everything revolves around and comes down to the bottom line. We calculate everything. We count the cost of everything we give in order to be practical and frugal— and sometimes that’s good. But I think this story also challenges us to let go of some of that. It reminds us that there are times in life when it’s important for us to be able to give without counting the cost. To free ourselves from the tyranny of bottom line thinking in order to put our full faith and trust in God, and God’s kingdom, rather than in wealth.
And so when it comes to stewardship, I think part of what this story teaches us is that what matters most in our giving is not so much the dollar amount attached to your gift, but rather the amount of faith and trust that you are willing to put behind it. And so that’s the first part of the challenge that this story offers us this morning. The challenge for us to give without counting the cost in order to place our hearts more squarely before God.
But you know, as is the case with most of Jesus’ teachings on money and wealth, while this story is about money, it’s also about much more than money. Regardless of what you are able to give monetarily, that’s not the most important thing. Yes, we need money to help pay the electric bill and keep the heat on. Yes, we need money to buy Sunday School materials and fund community outreach efforts. But even more than we need money for all those things, we need you. We need the gift of your whole self, and all that you have to offer. We need you to place your whole heart— not just your checkbook— squarely before God. I sometimes wonder if there was a deeper reason why the poor widow caught Jesus’ attention that day at the temple. If in her small act of sacrifice he saw his own future played out in front of him. A future that would require him to give everything he had— indeed his very life. And that maybe he made an example of her that day because he knew that what he would ask from us in return for his sacrifice would be nothing less than our whole selves, our whole hearts, and our full devotion.
Those of you who got your stewardship letters in the mail already received two cards with it. You got a card that says this is how much money my family will pledge to the church this year. But you also got a card saying this is how I want to participate in the life of the church. This is how I pledge my self--my time and my talent. And this is so much more important than money, because we could have all the money in the world, but if we didn’t also have active, vibrant community, that money wouldn’t matter one bit. And while community is something that no amount of money can buy, it does cost us something. It does require us to give of ourselves-- to give our time and our energy to build up the Body of Christ. And so that’s the second part of our challenge this morning. The challenge to give of ourselves and of our lives without counting the cost.
But even that’s not all of it. There’s a third thing here that’s even more important than your money, or your time, or your talents. And that’s your faith. Yes we need money, and yes we need volunteers, but more than any of that, we need you to pledge your faith. Your faith in this church, your faith in this community, your faith in these people sitting around you. Because ultimately, that’s what makes the Body of Christ alive in the world. That’s what truly makes us a church. And that’s not something that can be written on a card, or quantified in a line item on a spreadsheet. But it’s the most important thing. And so this year, I stand before you and I ask for your pledge. Your financial pledge, yes. The pledge of your time, yes. But also the pledge of your deep faith and commitment, and the pledge of your sincere prayers for this community. That’s giving your whole self, that’s placing your whole heart and soul squarely before God. And that— brothers and sisters— is true stewardship.
Follow the progress of our stewardship campaign at www.parkchurchnorwich.org/churchblog.html
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