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Will You Answer The Call?
October 23, 2005
Dear members and friends of my First Baptist Church family,
I’m here this morning to talk about stewardship and that’s too
bad. Now before I see too many heads nod in agreement let me
explain. It’s too bad we elevate stewardship and talk about it only
once a year. Stewardship is not an annual event. We should talk more
about stewardship throughout the year. We associate stewardship only
with our Annual Stewardship campaign, during which we ask for pledges in support of
our ministry here at First Baptist. We therefore tend to think of money or fund raising
whenever we hear the word stewardship. But that’s not really what stewardship is all
about. Stewardship is about how we live our lives, day in and day out. A good steward
is the person who takes care of whatever he or she has been entrusted, uses it well and
to good purpose. How we use our time, our talents and our financial resources tells the
story of how good a steward we are. It’s not just the money. Maybe part of being a
good steward is having a daily awareness of the many blessings we enjoy and showing
appropriate gratitude.
God has blessed me in countless ways and I’d like to mention just a couple of the
things I really like, things that I consider blessings. I really love having a close family
and friends. I like to think of myself as a people person and I like the interaction and
camaraderie of family, friends and associates. Family and friends are a true blessing.
Another blessing I really enjoy is this church. My family’s roots in this church go
back to 1913 when my grandfather, the Rev. George H. Strouse was called to the
pastorate here. This is the only church home I’ve ever known. I have fond memories
of good times as a child in Sunday School and BYF and at father & son banquets.
Another thing I really like is “Caller I.D.” I think it’s great to know who’s calling
you before you answer the phone. A call comes in, you check the caller ID and you
decide to answer it or not. When one of my wife’s friends calls, I can decide to not
answer and let the answering machine take the message. Or if one of those dreaded
“out of area” calls comes in, you know it’s someone soliciting money or trying to sell
you storm windows or the like. It’s nice to be able to let those calls go unanswered. It
puts you in control. You can decide to answer the call or not.
Over the next several weeks you should see a lot of a caller ID box for it is central
to this year’s stewardship campaign. Over the next three or four Sundays we’re going
to have members of the congregation share with us how God has blessed them and
what they like about the First Baptist Church. They’ll share why they are involved in
our various ministries and why they are committed to support the church with their
time, talents and finances. Each week, after these testimonies have been given in
church, they are going to be mailed in letter form to all church members and friends so
the message gets to those who are not able to be in church on Sunday morning.
Included in one of those mailings will be a pledge card for our commitment for 2006.
We hope to wrap the campaign up with a celebration Commitment Sunday on
November 20th, Thanksgiving Sunday.
As some of our members share their thoughts and blessings and what this church
means to them, I hope it gets you thinking about how you have been blessed and the
importance of this church in your life. Why is the caller ID box central to this year’s
campaign? Well, when you get your pledge card, think of it as a call, a call to one
aspect of stewardship. The call is coming in and you check the caller ID box to see
who’s calling and when you do, you see the name “Jesus”. You have to decide. Will
you answer the Call?
George W. Strouse
Chairman, Stewardship Committee
Dear members and friends of my First Baptist Church family,
I’m here this morning to talk about stewardship and that’s too
bad. Now before I see too many heads nod in agreement let me
explain. It’s too bad we elevate stewardship and talk about it only
once a year. Stewardship is not an annual event. We should talk more
about stewardship throughout the year. We associate stewardship only
with our Annual Stewardship campaign, during which we ask for pledges in support of
our ministry here at First Baptist. We therefore tend to think of money or fund raising
whenever we hear the word stewardship. But that’s not really what stewardship is all
about. Stewardship is about how we live our lives, day in and day out. A good steward
is the person who takes care of whatever he or she has been entrusted, uses it well and
to good purpose. How we use our time, our talents and our financial resources tells the
story of how good a steward we are. It’s not just the money. Maybe part of being a
good steward is having a daily awareness of the many blessings we enjoy and showing
appropriate gratitude.
God has blessed me in countless ways and I’d like to mention just a couple of the
things I really like, things that I consider blessings. I really love having a close family
and friends. I like to think of myself as a people person and I like the interaction and
camaraderie of family, friends and associates. Family and friends are a true blessing.
Another blessing I really enjoy is this church. My family’s roots in this church go
back to 1913 when my grandfather, the Rev. George H. Strouse was called to the
pastorate here. This is the only church home I’ve ever known. I have fond memories
of good times as a child in Sunday School and BYF and at father & son banquets.
Another thing I really like is “Caller I.D.” I think it’s great to know who’s calling
you before you answer the phone. A call comes in, you check the caller ID and you
decide to answer it or not. When one of my wife’s friends calls, I can decide to not
answer and let the answering machine take the message. Or if one of those dreaded
“out of area” calls comes in, you know it’s someone soliciting money or trying to sell
you storm windows or the like. It’s nice to be able to let those calls go unanswered. It
puts you in control. You can decide to answer the call or not.
Over the next several weeks you should see a lot of a caller ID box for it is central
to this year’s stewardship campaign. Over the next three or four Sundays we’re going
to have members of the congregation share with us how God has blessed them and
what they like about the First Baptist Church. They’ll share why they are involved in
our various ministries and why they are committed to support the church with their
time, talents and finances. Each week, after these testimonies have been given in
church, they are going to be mailed in letter form to all church members and friends so
the message gets to those who are not able to be in church on Sunday morning.
Included in one of those mailings will be a pledge card for our commitment for 2006.
We hope to wrap the campaign up with a celebration Commitment Sunday on
November 20th, Thanksgiving Sunday.
As some of our members share their thoughts and blessings and what this church
means to them, I hope it gets you thinking about how you have been blessed and the
importance of this church in your life. Why is the caller ID box central to this year’s
campaign? Well, when you get your pledge card, think of it as a call, a call to one
aspect of stewardship. The call is coming in and you check the caller ID box to see
who’s calling and when you do, you see the name “Jesus”. You have to decide. Will
you answer the Call?
George W. Strouse
Chairman, Stewardship Committee
