Category Archives: Stewardship

A One-Hundred Day Journey to Freedom: Meditation #9

A One-Hundred Day Journey to Freedom: Meditation #9
  Text “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.” Proverbs 3:5  Meditation We choose everyday where (or in whom) we will place our trust. It cannot be divided up among several recipients.  It is either solely in God or it is not. Teaching There is an old joke about the man who fell over the side of a cliff and was able to grab a .

A One-Hundred Day Journey to Freedom: Meditation #8

A One-Hundred Day Journey to Freedom: Meditation #8
  Text A certain ruler asked Jesus, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “Why do you call me good?” Jesus answered. “No one is good except God alone. You know the commandments: you shall not commit adultery, you shall not murder, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honor your father and mother.” “All these I have kept since I was a boy,” he said. When Jesus heard .

Trek #2 – From Two-Kingdom to One-Kingdom Life

Trek #2 – From Two-Kingdom to One-Kingdom Life
  The Map To navigate our way along this second trek we will be guided by the following key text, image, themes and prayer.  Key Verses for Trek #2 – Matthew 6:25-34, and 13:44 Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds .

“Be Transformed” – Death not Denial

We are looking at six aspects of transformation as part of the Christian walk with Christ.  Our sixth and final component asks ‘how do we achieve this attitude of the joyous response of the godly steward?’  The answer may surprise you.  We only achieve it through death.  It may seem odd to end this series on life-giving transformation with a discussion of death, but in the end our transformation to godly stewards is really .

“Be Transformed” – Embraced and not Imposed

We are looking at six aspects of transformation as part of the Christian walk with Christ.  Our second consideration is the motivation for our commitment to transformation. “For Christ’s love compels us.” (2 Corinthians 5:14, NIV)  Paul reminds us that discipleship is a joyous response to the grace of God in Christ.  We seek to be transformed because we are overtaken by this grace, overwhelmed by God’s love and grace.  John Frank writes, “Just .

“Be Transformed” – Holistic and not Compartmental

We are looking at six aspects of transformation as part of the Christian walk with Christ.  Our first consideration is the breadth of the work that God seeks to do in us. The transformation we are seeking requires our total and complete being or it is not transformation.  It is a process that requires heart, soul, strength and mind.  If the Holy Spirit is the transforming agent, then there will not be one miniscule .

“Be Transformed” – Rethinking an Overused Word

One of the most overused and abused words in our modern vocabulary is ‘transformation’. We use it to describe everything from weight loss to the effects of new kitchen cabinets. I fear that by our overuse of it we have robbed it of its radical meaning. To be ‘formed’ means to be given a distinctive shape with a specific function.  From there we can be re-formed, which implies we have lost the original form .

DISCIPLINE #9 – The Discipline of Death that Leads to Life

It may seem strange that the final discipline is death.  Have we journeyed all this way as a steward leader only now to be asked to die?  In a word, yes.  The life of the steward leader does not end with death, it begins with death.  Indeed, until you have died, you cannot lead or live as Christ intends. The disciplines of the steward leader are dependent upon a heart that is fully submitted .

Disciplines of the Steward Leader #8 – Daily Submitting our Time, Talents and Resources to God’s Work

As leaders we are called upon to lead our people by modeling the life of a faithful steward.  Here is a quick check list to see how you are doing. Time.  How are you modeling balance and wholeness in your use of time?  More importantly, whose time is it, really?  Can you say of every minute of every hour of every day, ‘it is not mine, Lord. It is yours.’?  Would an audit of .

Disciplines of the Steward Leader #7 – Leading a Lifestyle that Reflects a Love and Care for God’s Creation

Everything in this world emerged from the simple combination of the human being created in God’s image, and the Garden, which was created for humanity, and humanity for it. Those ingredients are the foundation for all that exists in God’s creation: a man, a woman and a garden. All of our advanced technology, our science, our music and literature, our civilization and global economy—everything grew out of the formula of man, woman and the .