My dog Harpo can not do many tricks.  But if you say “Gimme 5!” he’ll lift up his paw and give you ‘5’.  As we head through Stewardship season, I am not going to be doing any tricks, but I do want to ‘Give you 5’- five pointers on how to be faithful in the matter of stewardship before God.

As I do so I want to hang my thoughts on a text that appears in 1 Corinthians 4:2 - "It is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy."

The position of steward in biblical days was an honored position.  It was a term used for the house manager, a position of trust and responsibility.  Stewardship is a lot more than bringing our tithes and offerings on a Sunday.  It's about putting God first in every area of our lives.

God entrusts us with a great deal.  We have to be careful how we handle it.  As Christian people, we don’t have a choice as to whether or not we are stewards.  The choice we have is whether we will be good stewards or poor ones.

1. We can give God the first hour of the day.

To begin the day with an attitude of trust and faith is to give God the first hour.  By saying the "First Hour', I don't mean the first actual hour we are awake or even a literal hour.  I mean that every day we live we should make a conscious choice to spend some of that time exclusively with our God to make Him number one in our priorities.  Making time for God should be number one amongst the things we have to do in a day.

We do that for each other.  If we don't make time for each other, communication breaks down and relationships become strained.  Why don't we treat God with the same respect? 

Some people find that a ‘first thing in the morning’ quiet time is the way to give God the best of the day.  Others prefer talking things over with Him at the end of the day.  Others need to be more flexible because no two days for them ever turn out to be the same.  Our faith needs nurturing daily if it is going to be of any use.  Otherwise we lose our way.

2. We can give God the first day of the Week.

To properly worship God on a Sunday, people need each other.  What's the point of maintaining a church and a minister and a staff and all the rest, if on the one hour in the week people can be together, they decide to be somewhere else?  Christians need to be worshipping and praying and fellowshipping together. 

The fourth Commandment is plain enough.  "Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it Holy."  I know that sometimes life's commitments, work and family, and all of that make it impossible for every member to be in church every Sunday.  The best advice I heard was "Be there when you can, be elsewhere when you must."  To be a faithful steward means taking God up on His invitation and giving God the first day of the week for worship and for re-creation.

3. We can give God the first portion of our paycheck.

God doesn't need our money.  The church sure does, but God doesn't.  All our tithes and offerings can not enrich one iota the God who is King and Lord and Creator of all things.  God doesn't desire dollars.  God has all the wealth of all Creation at His disposal.  What can our two penny’s worth add to that?  So why do we have a time in our service of worship to bring to God our tithes and offerings and occasions like stewardship dinners? 

Because unless we learn the discipline of giving, we can never fully express our humanity.  The gifts we bring do not add to the glory of God.  Rather, the service of giving helps us to be more complete as people.  ‘To give’ is to remind ourselves that life is not just about our selves.  It points us to the often forgotten truth that we can only fully become ourselves when we are in community with others.

More than that, we give because Christ gave His life for us.  He is the example.  He is the pattern.  His love is the motivation for giving God the first portion of our paycheck.  "Let giving be cheerful" instructs the scriptures.  Give graciously.  Give generously.  Give because there is a need to be met and you can meet it.  Give because that is the pattern of life Christ lays before you and calls you to follow.

When the offering plate comes around, or as you consider making a pledge, do it in such a way as to demonstrate that your relationship with God really means something.  If you give your loved one a gift you don't hold back.  A willingness to dip into your wallet is an indication of your intention to follow the will of God.

4. We can give God the first claim on our talents.

I was once sitting playing guitar at a youth retreat when one of the participants, a gifted auto mechanic, came up to me and said, “I wish I could do something musical like that, I envy you."  I said, "Boy, if you've ever seen me struggling on a cold morning when my car won't start, looking under the hood and pretending like I knew something about all the stuff in there, I'd tell you which one of us should be envied.”  "But it's just an engine," he said.  "Right," I said, "And this is just a guitar."

Some of us have talents in one sphere.  To others our gifting is in a different area.  We all have things we can do that we can offer to God, simple things and not so simple things. What's most needed is a willing spirit.  The ability to never say, "Someone should do something about that" and the spirit that says, "How can I help do something about this.”

The parable of the talents that Jesus told leaves us with a simple message. Use the gifts you've been given, or you lose them.  It doesn't matter if you feel your talent is a one talent thing or a ten thousand talented thing.  It's how you use your gifting that matters.

The fifth finger of this ‘Gimme 5’ stewardship is the most important.  It is the one on which our time, tithes, and talents must be focused and from where they should flow.

5. We can give God first place in our hearts.

The first great commandment is to love God with all our hearts, all our soul, and all our mind.  The way we are called to face challenges, whether they be stewardship challenges in the life of our church or personal things that affect our lives, is much the same. 

We've got to have active faith.  To love God implies that we also trust God.  Faith and love go together.  We should throw hope in there too, as Paul says in that great passage about love in 1 Corinthians 13, "And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love."

And the greatest incentive behind any stewardship campaign has to be the same thing – Love.  Love for the things of God.  Love for the people of God, particularly those who make up this little piece of ‘Wild, Wonderful, almost heaven West Virginia’ we call Beckley Presbyterian Church.

Love for this building and what it stands for within this community.  Love for the many programs that take place here amongst the people, young and old, and beyond these walls in the larger community.  Love for the gospel and the one who gave us the Good News, Our Lord Jesus Christ.  Love for the action of the Holy Spirit who renews and changes and saves.

Here’s your ‘big 5’:

1. Give God the first hour of the day.

2. Give God the first day of the Week.

3. Give God the first portion of your paycheck.

4. Give God the first claim on your talents.

5. Give God first place in your hearts.

Be a people who pray.

Exercise faith in your giving and working.

Decide in what tangible ways you are going to face up to the challenge

 of being faithful stewards.

Stewardship, it's not just about money. It's about everything that God has given us and how we relate to God in all areas of our lives. "Seek ye first," said Jesus, "The Kingdom of God."  Do that, and Jesus promises everything else will fall into place.   

Rev. Adrian Pratt