Steward: a person who manages another's property or financial affairs; one who administers anything as the agent of another or others. (Miriam Webster Dictionary)
We read in the Bible that we should be good stewards of all God has given us. Of course what people usually think of when stewardship is mentioned in church is money. But there is so much more to the Biblical view of stewardship than money. We all are to be good stewards of God’s creation. But when it comes to our personal lives we here at Pathfinder church believe in having a seasonal emphasis on the various areas of stewardship.
(Winter) From January through March we focus on the stewardship of our spiritual disciplines. This is one of the reasons we begin each year with a Daniel Fast. We want to dedicate the first fruits of the new year to the One Who gives us every new day as well as every new year. So we seek to practice the spiritual discipline of fasting and praying. Along with that we encourage Bible Study and a focus on one aspect of spiritual discipline. This past winter we had Dr. Mark Virkler here to teach us how to hear the voice of God.
(Spring) April through June our focus is on the stewardship of resources, our money and our stuff. We try and honor God with our giving, our sharing and even our buying habits. And so we have an annual giving emphasis which coincides with the prayerful development of our church budget. It is no accident that we challenge all of us to trust God more with a portion of our resources as a faith development opportunity.
(Summer) July through September the emphasis is on stewardship of our time and our temple (our body). Summer is a great time to get out of our ruts and spend more family time and hopefully time with God to see Him reflected in His awesome creation. It is also a good time to eat healthier and start or kick up to another level the good habits of exercise we all need.
(Fall) Finally October through December we emphasize the discovery and use of our spiritual gifts, talents and abilities. We want every member of the Pathfinder church family to find fulfillment in using those gifts, talents and abilities to make an eternal impact with God in building His Kingdom.
It is clear we take stewardship seriously at Pathfinder church. Why? The apostle Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 5:11... “It's no light thing to know that we'll all one day stand in that place of Judgment. That's why we work urgently with everyone we meet to get them ready to face God.” It is the serious business of your pastors and leadership team to prepare you to face God with joy rather than fear. That is why we teach, admonish and encourage you to take stewardship of your whole life seriously. We want you one day to hear those wonderful words from our Savior and Lord taken from Matthew 25:23 “The master said, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’ NLT