On Saturday, May 7, I travelled to Neenah to attend a stewardship conference that was put together for the stewardship committees of the First Presbyterian Churches of Neenah and Green Bay. Rev. Richard Moore and I had met earlier with Don Schultz from the James Company to explore the idea of a joint workshop. We shared some of our experiences and expectations with Don and he put together an agenda for a half-day retreat on current approaches to stewardship. Seven of us from Green Bay loaded into a van and spent a beautiful morning with our counterparts from the church in Neenah.
At the conclusion of the event, before I offered the closing prayer, I mentioned that I would write a blog and share some of my reflections. I encouraged the participants to reply and share their own thoughts and impressions with others. Hopefully, the conversation we began that Saturday will continue.
Don divided the morning into two presentations: “Financial Stewardship: The Basics and Beyond” and “Gifts that Last a Lifetime . . . And Beyond.” Along the way, he stopped to answer many of our questions. In this blog, I want to comment on the first presentation.
The Basics and Beyond
In terms of the basics, Don said, “Begin with a biblical understanding of financial stewardship.” As he talked about this, I was struck again by the power of a biblical vision. Our cultural assumptions run directly counter to this vision. What our culture teaches us is: you earned it, you deserve it, you can do with it what you want. But the biblical vision is that “The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it” (Psalm 24). A huge part of stewardship is conveying this basic truth. All that we possess and all that we acquire is a gift and a trust from the Lord.
Near the end of this presentation, when he was taking us “Beyond” the Basics, Don said that we needed to address consumerism head-on. The average credit card debt in America is more than $8,000 per person. This puts many church members in a dilemma. They may want to give more to the church but cannot afford it. The money issue for such individuals is not what more can I give but how can I pay it all off? The church should provide opportunities for church members to come to grips with their finances. If we were to hold a workshop (Don suggested “Good $ense” or “Financial Peace University”) and only three people showed up, it would still be a success.
If we are going to GROW GIVERS, we have to impart the biblical vision and help people get their financial houses in order. This puts them in a position to respond to our stewardship efforts. Still, the bottom line is that giving is truly an act of faith. When we give back to God, we do not have that money for tomorrow. We are trusting that God will take care of us.
One of the other points that stuck with me in Don’s first presentation was the idea that we all have a “money script.” He summarized the book, The Financial Wisdom of Ebenezer Scrooge—Five Principles to Transform Your Relationship with Money. We all know the character of Scrooge from The Christmas Story by Charles Dickens. Scrooge had a money script that needed to be re-written. It read like this:
- You can’t trust anyone with your money
- People only want you for your money
- You can never have enough money
- The more money you have, the happier you will be
- Giving to the poor encourages laziness
Thankfully, Scrooge underwent a transformation. The Ghost of Christmas Past helped him face the negative money scripts he learned in early childhood. The Ghost of Christmas Present enabled him to face his spiritual and emotional poverty. The Ghost of Christmas Future allowed him to see his future without change. The good news is that Scrooge did change from greed to generosity.
We all have “money scripts,” that is, some early experiences with money that have shaped our attitudes about money. Some of this may involve what we learned about money from our parents. The more we are aware of our money scripts, the better position we are in to make wise decisions and to control our money, rather than having our money control us! Don asked each of us to think about one of our early experiences with money and how that might still influence us today. It was a helpful exercise.
Next time, I offer some thoughts on the second presentation which was specifically about endowments. Please check back in a few days!
May 12, 2011 at 12:10 pm |
The “money script” aspect of Don’s presentation struck me, too. My husband will be the first to tell you that I often react in knee-jerk ways to conversations about money. Changing my habits so that I address the reality at hand instead of just “following the script” is a big challenge.
On the subject of debt and giving, some months ago I clipped a column by Marc Gellman. In it, he responded to a letter from a man whose former girlfriend was hounding him to repay the thousands of dollars he owed her. The man, who had recently found God and begun tithing, contended that his tithe, rather than the debt, should be his top priority. Gellman, of course, said he was wrong and that getting his house in order should come first. So clearly financial literacy classes can be helpful to the faithful!