In some churches when I say that we have come to end of our stewardship campaign, people often breathe a sigh of relief. The thought may be that we don’t have to hear money talk again for another year. If you have noticed here at Faith, the past two Sundays have not been about money. It has been about how Faith has embraced people and how we use the resources that we have been given to take care of and are shared with our neighbors.

Over the years, stewardship has gotten a bad rap. It is all how we define stewardship. I have said once or twice that the word comes from the old English and means keeper of the pig sty. To be a steward means that we take care of what has been entrusted to us.

What has been entrusted to us is time, talent and treasure. This really does include our relationships, with ourselves and others. So, stewardship is about how we take care of all of these things and people. The bottom line is that we as Christians believe that we do not own anything, God owns everything.

This way of thinking does not fly too well in our society. We all work hard to get what we have. As Christians, we are called to think about we and not I. We were created to live in community. This is what God in Jesus Christ has been trying to teach us how to do since God put human beings on this earth.

Somehow when we can focus on what we are thankful for, it is easier to have the we way of thinking. Thus, it is more than appropriate to celebrate Stewardship/Thanksgiving Sunday together. Stewardship is about living our lives in thankfulness.

I would like us to think about how often we have talked about giving back what we own, where in reality, we don’t own anything. I would like us rather to think about, how we use what we have been given to manage. Nothing is permanent, in reality everything is temporary. We are challenged to use our time, talent and treasure to the best of our ability to glorify God in thanksgiving and in consultation with God in Jesus Christ.

Worshipping here together is one way in which to express our thankfulness. When we gather in thankfulness it can refocus our way of thinking in order to navigate the week ahead. It can put our hearts in a place to think of we and not I.

Psalm 100 offers some suggestions on how we can worship together. I believe when we gather that there is a combination of individual and corporate worship. When we all focus our hearts and minds on thankfulness to God, there creates a connection that brings us to a place of peace and openness to experience Jesus together.

Psalm 100 was used as a processional by the Hebrew people into the temple. I would like to read you a different paraphrased version.

^1-2 On your feet now—applaud God! Bring a gift of laughter,
    sing yourselves into God’s presence.

³ Know this: God is God. God made us, and we belong to the creator.
    We are God’s people and God’s well-tended sheep.

⁴ Enter with the password: “Thank you!” Make yourselves at home, talking praise.
    Give thanks to God. Bless God’s name.

⁵ For God is sheer beauty, all-generous in love, loyal always and ever.

I’ve asked in a few groups that I read this in, what would happen if I asked the congregation to applaud God and they looked at me like I was crazy. We applaud human beings, but what about God. Our applause normally comes when we are overwhelmed by a performance or a talk or sometimes just showing our thankfulness.

Worship can be a place where we let it all hang out, but we usually don’t. Some of you have clapped on some songs with the beat. We applaud at the end of the postlude and sometimes after other musical pieces. Why not for God?

Then there is laughter. So, what about bringing a gift of laughter? What does laughter do, but to relax us and open us up and allow us to be freer. Laughter is a release. It is acceptable to laugh in a worship service. Most likely God laughs at some of the things that we do.

The Psalm goes on, Know this: God is God. God made us, and we belong to the creator. We are God’s people and God’s well-tended sheep. God knows us as God has created us. God desires us to be in relationship. This knowing is an intimate knowing. Have you ever been overwhelmed by God that you were brought to tears, that you wanted to raise your hand, wanted to express your thankfulness in some way, but then felt what would people say?

When we intimately love someone with our whole heart, we often do things out of our character. I often think of parents doing things with their kids that they would not normally do. There may be something that we do for our partners in life that is out of our character. Why not for God?

One of the reasons that we gather to worship is to say thank you to God with our time, talent and treasure. God invites us to worship, to be at home, talking praise, giving thanks and blessing God’s name. Thus, the password, thank you, can flow out of our hearts. It is not a password that is easily forgotten.

I would challenge us to express our thanks, maybe in ways that we have not tried and may feel a little uncomfortable. Maybe a better way to say it is that I give you permission, or better yet that God gives you permission. I’ve never turned down an amen either.

We can be healthy stewards in showing our thankfulness through our time, talent, and treasure in worship as well as in every area of our lives. When we come with an attitude and realization that everything including ourselves and relationships are given to us to care for, our approach to life is different. We are better able to think more about we than I. The good news is that even though we will always struggle with this, God’s lover never leaves us.

When we bring our pledge cards up today or return them at some time, remember that it is really a commitment of how we are going to use one part of what God has entrusted us with, to take care of. This commitment is between you and God.

The time and talent sheet will be coming out soon. In the closing prayer of the sermon, I am going to ask God for us how to use what God has entrusted to us. God can tell us how to use our time, talent and treasure that will help us to think more about we than I. It will also be then what is best for the community.

Stewardship is about thanking God for what God has entrusted to us to take care of for God. It is how we are called to live our lives as Christians.

Let us pray. Gracious God, you have given us everything that we need to live our lives for you. We have often forgotten that we are stewards and not owners. Today we ask you how you want us to use what you have given to us to take care of, our time, talent and treasure. You have blessed us as individuals in so many ways as well as us as Faith Lutheran Church. May your Holy Spirit speak to us now and every day as how to use what you have entrusted to us to take care of.

In Jesus name, Amen.

This is a special musical presentation of For the Beauty of the Earth, performed today by the Faith Lutheran Chancel Choir with Gwynne Kadrofske on flute at Faith Lutheran Church in Okemos, Michigan.

Today we are celebrating the resources that God has entrusted to us to use in the community. We have heard from three of those ministries. Our Noisy Offering that was taken today goes to support another important ministry and that is our Micro-Food Pantry. These ministries all are in obedience to the command to love our neighbor as ourselves.

 Unless we our visible in the community, it is difficult for people to see Jesus at work. I want to state that we do not do outreach to gain members. This may be a possible outcome, but not the reason we are called to be present in the community.

Throughout the Gospel of Matthew, we have been hearing the Kingdom of Heaven is like…. It is like sharing what God has entrusted to us with those who are in need. While we are waiting, this is what we have been called to do.

In today’s Gospel lesson, Jesus talks about waiting. He tells a story about 10 bridesmaids waiting for the bridegroom. Part of this waiting is being prepared. All 10 bridesmaids have lamps. But five have no oil as they did not think ahead that the bridegroom may be late. He is often late as he sometimes has to finish up the arrangements with the bride’s family.

The five with no oil asked the five with oil if they could borrow some and they said no. They suggested that they go and find some themselves. The bridegroom came and the five bridesmaids who had the oil went in, and the doors were shut. When the other five returned, they could not get in as the doors were locked.

One could easily interpret this passage to say that this is an ends time message that if you are not ready you won’t get into heaven. For us the good news is that Jesus has does the work for us to get into heaven. We are asked to acknowledge this in the way that we live our lives.

Jesus is challenging his disciples to be ready and that includes you and me. The ten bridesmaids could represent the church and being exhorted to do good works. This is only on the surface level. We could easily say that we are doing good works, thus we are ready.

I believe that we would be too easy. O Wesley Allen, Jr, in his commentary suggests that we ask the question, “In what ways are we not prepared to meet Christ ever anew?” as opposed to simply, “Are you ready?” 

This is what we are called to ask especially during this time of transition. I believe to experience Jesus anew means change. Doing the same things over and over again doesn’t challenge us to stay awake. Our leadership has looked at the system we have in place in which to do our ministry here. It is only the beginning. A report on this conversation will be in our December newsletter.

It has been said that the church is often 10 years behind the world around us. I don’t believe that is where we are. Because we choose to share the Gospel in a way that welcomes and affirms all, we think and do things differently. But we need to have a plan in which to do this on a broader basis so that people in the community know this. This is where we can meet Christ anew.

Today we can celebrate the opportunities that God gives us to share the resources entrusted to us. This is what Jesus continues to challenge us to do as part of the Kingdom of Heaven. We are also challenged in our Gospel lesson to discover other ways to do this, that others may know of Jesus’ love for them in order to meet Christ in new ways.

In order for us to do this, we are challenged to ask ourselves the question “In what ways are we not prepared to discover Christ anew over and over again?

Today we gather to remember the saints who have lived and served faithfully. This body of Christ meant something to them, and this is what kept them active here. Today we have heard from present saints who have found a home here and are active.

On this All Saints Sunday, when we come to the table, remember that we will all be together around Jesus. My mother has always said that when she takes communion she is taking it with those saints who are already at home. We are the communion of saints gathering around Jesus to be strengthened, to be reminded that we have and continue to receive forgiveness, salvation and new life.

Everyone is welcome at this table. Today In our second lesson from Revelation we hear about one of John’s visions. Picture this - There was a great multitude of people gathered before the throne. They were from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, robed in white with palm branches in their hands. What a picture of diversity and inclusion!

Gathering before the throne can be for us gathering around the altar. It reminds us that in Jesus’ eyes we are all viewed equally. It is where we remember that God’s agape, sacrificial love was poured out through Jesus for all of us. The white robes in this lesson can remind us of this. It is one of the reasons for the white pall that some churches use at funerals to remind us that Jesus sees all of us the same.

The altar is also a place where we can bring ourselves just as we are. It is where we can bring our joys and concerns. The place where we can bring it all, what we are confused about, people we are concerned about, victims of injustice. It is a place where the voices of suffering can be heard.

We can gather around the altar in solidarity with all of the saints. This is what it means to be the communion of saints, the body of Christ, the beloved community. As the people gathered before the throne, and for us the altar, we can all shout “ Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and strength be to our God forever and ever! Amen!”

Can you imagine if for just a moment, if we could recognize the beauty in the diversity of God’s creation? It is where we are centered on bringing worship to God in Jesus Christ on the throne, around the altar along with those saints who have gone before. This is what we are doing today!

So today we gather around the altar as the communion of saints. Those of us worshipping here today and those who have gone before us. Each of us, all together have come to worship Jesus. In this body of Christ, Faith Lutheran Church, we are strengthened by Jesus in the bread and wine, his body and blood, that we may go out and tell others about Jesus who offers all forgiveness, salvation and new life, to continue sharing the Gospel as our saints did who have gone home and they are now cheering us on.