Living in God’s Family 360 Degrees Session Three The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod Stewardship Ministry

Titus 2: For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, 12 training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 13 waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.

God’s Family I have come so that they may have life, and may have it abundantly. John 10:10 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. Galatians 5:1

Christ’s Church “The goal of our stewardship ministry is to help God’s people grow in their relationship with Jesus through the use of the time, talents, and finances God has entrusted to them.” Charles Lane, in Ask, Thank, Tell suggests..

Congregational Culture “Every organization has it’s own culture, which is reflected in how people behave in expected ways. Those behaviors produce predictable results. So, to change the results, you change the culture.” -George Gates, “Changing Culture by Changing the Conversation”

Culture Change Technical, Adaptive or both? Technical changes are the kinds of changes we make on the outside. They are intended to “fix” something quickly. Adaptive changes are the internal changes in our attitudes, beliefs, and feelings.

Congregational Culture “An organization’s culture is defined first by the way we talk – the language, nature and quality of the dialogue we engage in. So, to change the culture, change the conversation.” -George Gates, “Changing Culture by Changing the Conversation”

Lifesaving Station

Luke 7:31-35 “To what then shall I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? 32 They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, “‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not weep.’ For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’ 34 The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ 35 Yet wisdom is justified by all her children.”

Children at Play Luke 7:30 “but the Pharisees and the lawyers rejected the purpose of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.” The children at play illustrate those who reject the purpose of God.

Key Question Whose Church is it? Ephesians 5:32

Abiding Word “Christ is the Head of the Church…but He is more than that. As the head directs the body, so Christ (directs) the church. His will guides it. He is its life. Without this Head the Church would be a lifeless body, it would not and could not exist.” It is Christ’s Church!

Martin Luther “I too am a part, a member of it. I am a copartner, participating and sharing in all its blessings. I was brought to and incorporated in this community by the Holy Spirit through my hearing and my continuing to hear the Word of God.” - Large Catechism It is my church, too!

Discussion What are some misunderstandings people can have when saying “It is my church.” What are the stewardship issues here? Why is getting this straight so important?

Key Question What is the purpose of the church? Ephesians 3:20-21

Model Constitution Example: “The purpose of this congregation shall be to give honor and glory to the Triune God, to carry out His will, to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ to all the world, to manifest the unity of our faith in Jesus Christ as God and Savior, to foster Christian fellowship and love, to extend a helping hand to human need, and to achieve its objectives by the preaching of the Word of God, by the administration of the sacraments, and by the religious instruction of all its members according to the confessional standard of the Evangelical Lutheran Church.”

Discussion What is the difference between rejecting the purpose of God and forgetting or ignoring it? What are the stewardship implications of this question? Why is this important?

Levels of Conversation Higher Level Mission Higher LevelIdentity Lower LevelAdministration/Finances Lower LevelPersonal Preference

Rev. William O. Avery The place to begin meaningful stewardship conversation is with the concept of FREEDOM

Lutheran Pastor This is at the heart of this whole stewardship conversation…the issue of TRUST

R. Scott Rodin We must focus on the whole discussion of what it means to be a… STEWARD

Finally… Stewardship is primarily a… SPIRITUAL ISSUE

Conversations What are some concrete steps your church can take to change the stewardship conversation?

Rev. J. E. Herrmann “What about our stewardship of the Gospel as individuals, congregations, and as a church body? Have we the missionary zeal of Paul? Are we deeply concerned about the world’s perishing millions? Do we agonize for them in frequent and fervent prayers? Do we flood the Lord’s altars with our generous mission offerings? Are we on fire for missions? Are we training our children, our youth, and our adults to have a big heart and a generous hand for missions?

Good Stewards Or Not? J. E. Herrmann’s view: 1.We lack conviction as far as fulfilling our stewardship of the Gospel is concerned. 2.Most of our congregations treat missions as a project, something extra, something not directly related to their God given purpose. 3.Those who give little or nothing to missions are not personally admonished and encouraged.

Herrmann (cont.) 4. Too many of our congregations look upon the growth of their own missionary outreach into all the world as a liability rather than rejoicing with the angels over the many sinners who come to repentance. 5.The average congregation has no planned program of missionary education and information for year-round implementation in the pulpit, the educational agencies, and in the organizations within the congregation. -From “A Trust, O Lord, From Thee”

Mission and Stewardship Mission without stewardship is impossible; Stewardship without mission is unnecessary.

Luther How does a Christian “speak and act” for God in the area of mission? How does a Christian “work and fight” for God in the area of mission? How does a Christian “tear down and rebuild” for God in the area of mission?

The Church At Large “Congregations withdraw and withhold mission support (from district and synod) for any of a variety of reasons. When this happens it puts the whole church at risk, offers the poorest of stewardship models for their membership, even poisons the vital relationship with the congregation and the regional judicatory and church wide expression.” - ELCA Bishop

Case Study “We have learned at our congregation that we simply get more evangelism ‘bang for the buck’ when we support missions directly rather than through synodical efforts. The latter has too much overhead, and wastes precious resources on inconsequential or even downright silly things rather than funding real ministry. Through our direct efforts, for example, our congregation has built a church in Siberia, given vital support to a seminary in Sudan…”

Culture Behavior refers to action patterns. Ideas indicate a certain view of life and relationships. Products are the physical artifacts created by a culture. Activity One

False Starts “For too long, attempts to under gird Christian tithing and fundraising with some sort of theology have employed the term stewardship. The problem that should be immediately apparent is that this focus indicates a classic false start.” -R. Scott Rodin Activity Two

Stewardship Conversations

Rev. Wayne J. Knolhoff Director of Stewardship Ministry The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod