What a wonderful day we had on Sunday! Faith Promise is such an exciting time for our congregation to partner with ministries expanding the Kingdom of God (A Lamp Unto My Feet Ministries and Restoration House Ministries) as well as connecting with ministries that we support on an on-going basis (Johnson University).
It was also perfect how Faith Promise fell on the Sunday that our “Believe” Series focused on stewardship. Webster's dictionary defines stewardship as “the responsibility of managing someone else’s assets, affairs, or property.” In other words, stewardship is overseeing something that is not yours.
We function in that capacity and identity when we realize that God owns everything. God clearly declares Himself as the Owner of all things in Psalm 50:10-12. “For all the animals of the forest are mine, and I own the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird on the mountains, and all the animals of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for all the world is mine and everything in it.”
Sometimes we lose sight of that though. At times we mistake God’s identity for ours. God is the owner of all things and we are just the steward or manager of what belongs to Him.
In the late 80’s, Burt Reynolds starred in an American detective drama that briefly aired on ABC. The show was called B.L. Stryker. To shoot a specific action scene, a family living in a home in West Palm Beach, Florida told the film crew it was okay to use their front lawn. The scene involved cars crashing in the front yard... fire and several explosions.
While the front yard was being blown up, the owner of the home called from New York demanding to know what was happening to his house. The tenants were under the mistaken impression (mistaken identity) that the house belonged to them. They were not the owners. Only the true owner could make that call.
We don’t own anything... it is all God’s. When we try to trade places with God, it’s then that we start acting like the owners, as if we created the world. We start using words like my... I... mine... my life... my plans... my money… my possessions... and my time.
Who gave all that to you? Who gave us life and talents and abilities? Who made us, gifted us and sustains us? The ultimate control in any business always resides in the owner, not the manager. We get to use it, we get to manage it and we get to enjoy some of life's resources... but God owns it.
That's stewardship! That is when we begin to trust God, honor God and know who He is and find peace in knowing who we are.