It has seemed to me for some time that stewardship and Commitment Sunday are reflective of something deeply personal and deeply spiritual. I find the Sunday when we bring our pledges to the church to be one of the most important Sundays of the year.
Some may want to do a comparison between this year and last year to see if we have advanced; assuming if the pledge total does not exceed the previous year we have retreated. I begin with the assumption that we are getting positive responses each time we receive a pledge and the amount doesn't matter at all. Each pledge is a vote that we continue for another year; all we have to decide is how much we get to do with what we have.
The congregation is very generous. The level of giving is remarkable when considering the state of the economy. We increased last year's budget from the previous year. In fact the budgets for the past five years tell a remarkable story. This is what I mean:
2007 $893,783
2008 $957,226
2009 $962,321
2010 $938,976
2011 $1,062,200
The budget proposed for 2012 is $1,352,609.
We are...First Church.
We see our task as making a difference in the world and moving our church forward by reaching beyond our doors. In a very tight economy we have increased our budgets because we believe in the future of the church. We have ended most of the years with surpluses.
How do you see Commitment Sunday?
Is it a time of heavy pressure to pledge or is it a privilege?
What do you think about that?
If you have thoughts you'd like to share write me at charlesschuster@fcfumc.net. If you are willing to have the readers of the blog see your response click on the "comments" box below.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Charles Schuster
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