Stewardship Question: How Much is Enough?

Philippians 4:12
"I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want."

How much is enough? This is one of the really hard questions for people (me included) to answer.

You might say, "Why should we ask the question; aren't we just trying to help people become generous toward God?" I would say yes and I would also say that we can help people see how God has already providing for them so they can see how they can give more today.

Just this week I had the conversation with someone I am close to and we were able to step through a "poor man's" financial needs worksheet. We talked about:

• Getting debt free


• Retirement cash flow


• What he wanted to allow his children's remaining education, transportation, wedding and even a down payment on a house


• Health care and long-term living

After this brief analysis we concluded and agreed that he had plenty for every foreseeable and unforeseeable event.

Ready to give now? No, not really. "There might be something else", he declared.

That's the way it is with our work. We are the Holy Spirit's messenger of the Good News that Christ is all we need. How our friends respond to this and other biblical truth is a function of spiritual maturity.

We should still ask the questions and provoke people to think more deeply. From my experience, we stewardship officers may be the only people asking these questions. Praise the Lord that there are some Christian financial advisors who will do so, too.

Working together, while allowing the Spirit to do the heart work, we may be able to help our fiends get relief from the burden of wealth.

Multiplying the Stewardship Army

Even the best fundraiser or development officer cannot, and should not, try to marshall all of the resources by himself or herself.

The key to spreading and sharing the story is through multiplying ourselves through staff and other friends of the school.

Our Lord Jesus started with a small band of 12, taught them through intense and regular fellowship and ministry, and they (the disciples) grew and became teachers and multipliers themselves.

What can we learn from the Master Teacher as to how to extend and expand our ministry?

1. Close contact - Jesus didn't pontificate from afar and expect his disciples to get it; He was in close regular relationship with them
2. Full-orbed relationship - Jesus was always concerned about the whole person
3. Repeating the message - None of us get the message the first time; we need to have repeated and taught in many ways
4. On-the-job training - Jesus took His disciples with Him as he ministered so they could learn by doing when they were ready

For us, we should always look for those who we can "bring along" in our work so that more relationships can be fostered.

Another advantage of multiplication is that there are supporters of the school or ministry who will connect with someone else better than they will with us. This is natural and we should not be so haughty to think that we are best for every communication.

If we employ this multiplication approach think of how many additional "evangelists" we could have trained!

Stewardship training begins with the Young

Deuteronomy 6: 6-7

These commandments (love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength) that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.

I would admit that these instructions are primarily written for parents and home life, but since many parents partner with us (Christian schools), the admonition is for schools folks as well.

We can and should teach stewardship to our children. As parents we teach by example the joy of obedience to give our tithe to the local church. We teach giving generously when we contribute or volunteer to other worthwhile causes.

In the school, we can also teach stewardship. We can (as is done in my school) have the upper school students participate in keeping the building clean and neat. The activities of collecting trash and vacuuming remind our young people that stewardship is the "care of" of what God has entrusted to us. The cleaning is not punishment, but training in the basics that we all need.

This platform allows us to move into the stewardship of time, talent and treasure God has given. It is where we can teach money management and generosity from a Biblical perspective. That way, our children become generous young people, people who understand that everything we have has been given by God for His glory and our good.

Learning stewardship before we have so much money - that's a concept worth considering!

The Refiner's Fire

Malachi 3:1-4

"See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come," says the LORD Almighty.

But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner's fire or a launderer's soap.

He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness,

and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the Lord, as in days gone by, as in former years."

Sometimes we get frustrated when our plans don't work out. We make a presentation to a donor and it doesn't connect with them and their plans. We plan an event and there are not enough volunteers, or the attendance is lower than we had hoped.

What do we do with disappointments or, dare I say, failures? We could attribute them to our arch nemesis, Satan. He's always to good to blame.

How about the donor who just could not or would agree with our wonderful plans to extend the Kingdom through the school? Are they at fault?

Maybe the pastors that we try to bring into the school's sphere are just not grabbing the idea with gusto.

I believe these "sub-optimal" results are from the Lord's hand who loves us and wants our offerings to be acceptable; "offerings in righteousness".

Our work and our very lives are the crucible (remember high school science?) that is used for driving off our impurities in the approaches and motivations we use to raise funds.

These are not comfortable or easy times, but the loving God who gives us our call insures that we are refined and not destroyed; such is the nature of silver and gold.

"Teacher, be teachable"

Proverbs 11:2 "When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom."

Ph. 2:3 "Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves."

One of the problems that I have observed is that many of us operate as Lone Rangers in the fund raising world. We reason that:

"I'm paid to do this, so it's my job"

"No one else knows how the development function works (in my unique situation), so there is no one who can really help."

"I have volunteers who help with mailings and things - isn't this asking?"

It seems that we administrators have a strange sense of pride when it comes to asking for real help and wisdom. Some of us have the need to "go it alone" in our work believing this is our calling or burden. Or, maybe we are already overloaded. I have been told that "I don't have time for advice; I can't get everything done as it is!"

The foolish person does not know what they do not know and, hence, plunges ahead without the benefit of wisdom from others.

The wise person knows what they don't know and and he or she has great respect for the wisdom and insight of others.

Are you known for being teachable? Do you seek advice from others? A wise friend once reminded me that Jesus taught in parables or stories and that our communications should include stories of how God has blessed families through our school. That was great advice; ever since we try to tell stories of the consequences of a Christian education and to dwell less on our particular need. Our donors, like us, relate to stories.

Whether you seek advice from someone within the school, or a donor, or a peer, make sure you are doing so with a humble heart and that you are earnestly seeking advice, not just using the conversation as a pretense for some other objective. God knows and sees the condition of our hearts.

As we teach others about stewardship we need to be seeking the Lord's wisdom in every aspect of our work. It may mean putting down the mailing and picking up the phone.