A good time for reflection…

November is a good time for reflection. Schools are in full swing, and the Christmas season is fast approaching. Once the holiday rush hits there will be no time to think about anything until January. Thanksgiving is in November and there is a lot here at Resurrection we need to be thankful for. This is a good beginning for our reflection.
One thing to be thankful about is the strong core of prayer that is present here at Resurrection. Our congregation has many needs that must be taken to the Lord in prayer and thanks to our strong core of intercessors they are. We have prayed for healing and our prayers have been answered. We have prayed for guidance and God has put tremendous opportunities in our path and we have risen to the challenge. Not the least of these is having Pastor Linda join our staff. We also need to reflect on the fifteen years of ministry that Kathy Westly has given us. Her love and care have surrounded and sustained us for almost half the life of this congregation. Her spirituality and close relationship with Jesus has been one of the formative elements contributing to our identity as a Resurrection people. Her going leaves a large gap in our hearts. Even as she goes though she leaves behind a legacy. The council has voted to bring Pastor Linda up to ¾ time, which was one of Kathy's visions for the future of our church as she resigned. She is indeed a blessing to us as a people of God and will continue to be so.

We also need to be thankful about the solid foundation for the future that we are building right now. There is a sense of excitement and purpose here at Resurrection that is tangible. AS we put together the long range planning team that we all voted for at the congregational meeting everyone who was asked said yes. It is with this spirit of willingness and concern that we are looking toward our future here together. The Spirit of God is truly with us.

In November we will also be reflecting together on what it truly means to be the Body of Christ. The stewardship committee is holding a group of cottage meetings that will help us focus on our individual calling as members of RLC. Paul in the New Testament tells us that we are servants of Christ and stewards of God's mysteries. (1 Corinthians 4:1) This is our calling. Just as Jesus came saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news." (Mark 1:15)

We too are called to proclaim God's grace and presence. As Christians everything that we are and everything we have focuses on this service.

Reflecting on this makes us realize how inadequate our concept of stewardship is. To be a steward, is to serve the calling we have been given. To define it in terms - terms of time talent and treasure is to miss the point.

The true measure of a steward is measured by how passionate the person is for the calling they serve. The heart is what counts. Jesus tells us "I know your works; you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were either cold or hot. So, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I am about to spit you out of my mouth. (Revelation 3:15 - 16)

If we are passionate about our church and the calling we have together in Christ time, talent and treasure are not the measures we use. This is because if our passion is engaged whatever it takes to make things happen we will do. Love, caring and commitment are the true marks of a steward. We are called to love even as God has first loved us and to live out that love through acts of caring. God's love encompassed the whole world. That is why we are called to reach out to those who do not yet know Jesus. As stewards we must be passionate about this God's love and do everything we can to make sure our community reflects this truth. To truly be a steward is to have passion. Passion for God, passion for the people God is seeking to reach through us, and passion for one another as we grow together in Christ. Stewardship is our calling as Christians. Our very way of life is to be yoked together with Christ in ministry.
Stewardship is not a matter of our giving our money of our time to God. Instead rightly understood it is God giving eternal purpose to our lives by allowing us to play a part in God's plan for the redemption of the world. This is something that we truly can be passionate about for it means that we are the instruments of God's love and peace. This is a high calling indeed and something we can be passionate about.
As we reflect this November, individually and as a congregation in our cottage meetings Let's engage our passions and put our hearts into our calling together to be a Resurrection people. Let's think about how we can engage together to grow this already vital ministry and share our ideas and passions as we gather together in our cottage meetings.