ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHINGS
October 9, 2026
I can still remember my grandmother giving me a quarter before leaving my grandparents’ home on the way to church one summer. It was for the offering, but there was something new. I had been given money in the past to put in the offering tray, but this time, my grandmother knew I had some money with me. And her expectation this time was that I would match the quarter she gave me with a quarter from my own money. Suddenly, giving during the offering time wasn’t fun anymore. In fact, it hurt a little. And though I wish I could tell you that when I finally released what was in my hand and placed the two quarters in the offering tray, I felt nothing but joy. My memory isn’t great, but I’m pretty sure joy was not what I felt in that moment. If anything, I was probably already trying to figure out for future visits a way of declining my grandma’s quarter so that I did not need to give my own quarter.
Giving in support of the church and its mission, often referred to as stewardship, is something that is learned over time. In high school, I had made a pledge to the church’s budget. I gave weekly for a while, but then my giving sort of dropped off. I was working, and so I had money, but it became less of a priority. But as we got to November, and I saw how much I had promised toward my pledge, I felt a little guilty. Now guilt is never to be a motivation for giving, but I ended up giving about 50% of one of my paychecks to get caught up, and it hurt.
Over the years, Donna and I have grown significantly in our stewardship. When we got married, we were very consistent, but it was both a small amount and a relatively small percentage of our take-home pay. But we were intentional in growing our giving. We also brought that approach to our spending, choosing to be more conservative than some. Even when purchasing a home on two different occasions, we were shocked when the bank told us what we could afford. Maybe… technically. But we chose to spend significantly less, which provided us with more money. And at no point did we feel sad about not having a bigger house. In fact, we saved even more on insurance and utilities.
We did all of that, not to prop up an institution, but because we believed in a mission. In recent years, our giving to the church has exceeded 10% of our take-home pay. I’m not saying that to boast, but to share what is possible when one is intentional… and takes steps each year. Now I know people who give away more than 10% of their pre-taxed income. We’re not there. Not even close. But I applaud the generosity. And in every case, the generosity was not out of guilt or because grandma had sort of made it a requirement. The people I know have a real passion to see the mission of Jesus Christ come alive in the world, believing this world can, assuming people are intentional, move toward greater kindness, mercy, love, and justice.
Little steps! Show me, God of encouraging love, how to take a step, followed by another, and then another. I trust you to show me how. Amen.
