STEWARDSHIP 2011: Covenant Sunday at Good Shepherd is November 14, 2011. There are several important events that weekend. The first event is a 24-hour prayer vigil beginning at 8:00 AM on Saturday, November 13, and concluding with at 8:00 AM on Sunday November 14. At both celebrations of the Holy Eucharist that Sunday, signed 2011 pledge cards are brought to the altar and blessed. Finally, after the 10:00 AM service the Stewardship Committee will offer a festive brunch. Covenant Sunday begins the 2011 Stewardship Campaign at Good Shepherd, and it is a celebration of the wonderful and amazing growth experienced in the last year.
Last year was a fabulous success in many tangible and intangible ways. Two of the most important metrics of growth that can be measured are regular involvement and giving. Last year, we grew a miraculous 31% in Sunday worship attendance and also 31% in financial pledging. These numbers are nothing short of astounding and on November 14, we can look back with pride and celebrate. We will also look ahead as stewards of the Church of the Good Shepherd. 2011 holds similar challenges to 2010, but they are challenges that we have already met head on, and we will meet them again with the knowledge that our faith in this church is built on the rock solid foundation of Jesus Christ and the experience of knowing what fruit can be born when we have trust and take the leap of faith needed to be a Christian Steward.
I believe that there are two aspects to Christian Stewardship. I refer to the first is what I refer to as “cold, hard facts”. I think that the second is faith.
I think it is important to know some of the “cold, hard, facts”. Details may be boring, but I always want to know where my money is going and I want to know specifically what is being asked of me; so I will try to share with you briefly what it takes to make Good Shepherd go for a year. In order for Good Shepherd to do what it does, to look as beautiful as it does, to be staffed as it is, and to have a priest with a family as its rector, the parish needs to support itself financially by balancing a budget in 2011 of about $168,000. Diocesan assessment, office and program supplies, utilities, capital repairs and improvements, staff salaries, and the expenses of a full time rector account for most of our expenses, and there is very little fat that can be trimmed without letting go of staff.
Unfortunately, there isn’t a magical money tree on the front lawn or in the woods somewhere that we can pick dollars from to pay bills or salaries. Realistically, there are four sources of money that allow us to remain open and operational.
The first, and smallest, is the annual interest and dividends from our modest endowment (the entire endowment is about $275,000): we currently budget about $15,000 each year which happily ensures that the endowment is not depleted but also ensures that it never really grows or even retains its value when compared to inflation.
The second source of real income is from the outside groups who use our space: AA, Bright Beginnings Nursery School, local elections, etc. We count on about $20,000 each year from these groups, but realistically, our commitment to any outside group is less a financial benefit than it is a form of community outreach; we do not rent out church space to anyone and everyone because at the start, middle, and end of each day we are a church and not a commercial property.
The third real source of income is the offerings and gifts from members and friends in the form of loose cash in the collection plate (commonly called loose plate) from every service of the year, and Christmas and Easter offerings. We estimate those occasional gifts for the budget at about $6,000.
The final source of income, from which the bulk of our annual expenses are paid, is pledged donations. The portion of our total $168,000 budget for 2011 that needs to be supported directly by pledges is $125,000. If we don’t make up the difference in 2011 the only way to keep the lights on, maintain the tree limbs on the property and pay staff salaries is once again to draw down on the endowment (in early 2010 we drew down $15,000 from the endowment to cover outstanding bills) or to undergo severe retrenchment in staff and activities. I am quite confident that we will increase our pledges in 2011 to $125,000. That increase would be a 15% increase, which is far more manageable than the increase we experienced in 2010. What that means in the most basic terms is that our average pledge increases from $36 a week to $41 a week.
I mentioned that I though there were two aspects of Christian Stewardship. The second is faith, and I hope to illustrate how faith enters into Stewardship by way of an example. It doesn’t take faith to buy a cup or two of coffee each morning. For about $3 each day, or about $20 each week, I can get my morning coffee. I know that I can afford a cup of coffee and so it doesn’t take a leap of faith to make the decision to grab that daily a cup of coffee. A pledge is different from a cup of coffee because it involves making a leap of faith to support something above and beyond the simple things of daily life. My personal pledge is $100 a week, which is a lot more coffee than I could ever hope to drink in a week, and in all honesty, I grind my own beans and make coffee at home 95% of the time, so $100 of coffee is probably an entire year’s worth for me. My pledge is a budget line item that looks quite similar to my student loans from college and seminary or to my car loan payments.
The faith behind making a pledge, whatever the amount, is faith in the church and its mission to spread the Good News of Christ to others. My pledge does not pay to keep the church open or staffed. It does not pay for the mission and outreach efforts done throughout the year. It doesn’t even pay for the regular maintenance done to the church and grounds each year. No, it doesn’t pay for any of those, but it does pay for a small part of each of those, and I have faith that my money isn’t being poured down the drain because I know that the love that I have for Jesus Christ is shared by the people that I see and worship with at Good Shepherd every week. That group of worshippers averaged nearly 60 people in 2009. In 2010 that group has grown to 90 people. When the Gospel is being spread with joy and enthusiasm, it is obvious. That joy and enthusiasm makes it easy to see the outward signs of faith, they are tangible, and they present themselves in myriad ways in the daily life of the parish.
One outward sign of faith is time. The involvement of people is directly proportional to their Sunday attendance. I want to be in church on Sunday because I can see and feel the presence of the risen Lord all around me and it is awesome! Any of us could use our time in other ways, but I have faith that my time is being spent doing the Lord’s work by being in church on Sunday whether I am the preacher or whether I am on vacation, spreading the Gospel to someone else.
Another sign of faith is treasure. I want to support the church because I have faith that my dollars are not alone, and that they are a fraction of the whole that it takes to make a church go. Think about that for a second. My contribution is essential to making sure this wonderful place hums and thrives and grows. That is incredible! My God, when you consider it, it really is an amazing thing.
I know it takes faith to give time and treasure to the church. The amount doesn’t matter, as long as the commitment is honest. I invite you this year to join me and every member of the vestry and every parish officer, and take a leap of faith by making a pledge to support the Church of the Good Shepherd. It’s a scary thing to make a leap of faith, but once you have jumped… its awesome!
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