SHARING WITH OTHERS
Almighty Father, we praise Your wisdom in giving each person unique talents to
build up the Church! You have made everything that is good; through the Holy
Spirit grant us a deeper sense of gratitude for our personal gifts, the desire
to give ourselves more fully to Christ Your son, and the grace of Christian
Stewardship, that in giving up a part of ourselves, we may draw closer to You.
Amen
TIME, TALENT AND TREASURE
The Christian Stewardship concept holds that all of our gifts are from God and
that we have been truly blessed by Him. The concept of Christian Stewardship
suggests that we are given three gifts which can be symbolic of the three gifts
presented by the Magi at Christ's birth.
 THE FIRST GIFT: THE GIFT OF OUR TIME
Service to one's Church and community consists of offering one's Time to serve
the poor, volunteer at school or religious education, lector, be a Eucharistic
Minister, bring Communion to those less ambulatory, but most importantly the
gift of Time is allowance for prayer.
THE SECOND GIFT: THE GIFT OF OUR UNIQUE TALENTS
We have all been blessed by God with unique, individual Talents to serve our
Church and community. Through an offering of our unique God given talents we can
serve God through service to the parish and one another.
THE THIRD GIFT: THE GIFT OF OUR TREASURE
The gift of our Treasure is probably the most challenging to each of us as well
as being a test of our faith. Our secular culture holds wealth and possessions
as symbols of our independence, power and personal success.
But what of our spiritual efforts? We must prayerfully consider "moving forward
in faith" in an unconventional way - without guarantees of a return of
gratification from our financial gifts. We are not "buying" anything with our
gifts but rather making a return to the Lord for the many gifts He has bestowed
on us.
Our blessings are only ours through the grace of God and those blessings can
help to do God's work by supporting our parish's mission and its many
ministries. We are called to serve others with our gifts.
A SACRIFICIAL GIFT AT THE SACRIFICE OF THE MASS
The Sacrifice of the Mass is the moment when gifts are brought forth - most
notably the bread and the wine to be transformed into the Body and Blood of
Christ. Tradition holds that the bread and wine also symbolized the first fruits
of one's labor.
Through Christian Stewardship of our financial gifts, we offer at Mass the first
fruits of our week's labor. The priest offers a blessing over the bread and wine
as well as over our financial gifts.
A truly "Sacrificial Gift" comes from our substance, not from our surplus or
what is left over. When we give to God first we are changed and made holier in
the process. These gifts also symbolize our gratitude to God for the many
blessings we have. These Sacrificial Gifts represent our support for others by
sharing our gifts and allowing the parish to serve others in need. Sacrificial
Giving is really a response to the generosity God has shown us.
WRAPPING YOUR GIFT
If indeed, our participation at Mass includes a gift, it is an appropriate
gesture to use our regular, weekly envelope as a "gift wrapper." Using your
envelope allows you to place your gift in the collection basket in a consistent
manner.
Sacrificial Giving and the use of your envelope as a gift wrapper should be a
decision that is reflected in regular, consistent giving. That consistency is
also a part of the practice of our faith, a part of the celebration of the
liturgy each and every week and allows the parish the latitude to budget
effectively. |
