Greetings my dear sisters and brothers. I pray God’s Grace and peace be with you from God our Father, and the Lord Jesus Christ, in the power of the blessed Holy Spirit.
I am happy to share with you some thoughts about missions as we journey together during this season of the Church year, amidst the challenges of the Coronavirus, COVID- 19 pandemic. May we first be reminded that during the month of July we focus on missions and stewardship.
Let us try to understand these two terms, missions and stewardship. First we look at missions. Christian missions is the way by which Christian missionaries go to proclaim the gospel by helping, serving, and caring for the different people in the world. In so doing, they build friendships, learn an entirely different language, and serve with a compassionate, inspired, and motivated heart.
The servant’s heart means to help people in love without expecting anything in return, serving in appreciation of the gifts God has already given them. Scripture states in this regard,
“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another” Galatians 5:13.
Missions is not primarily about money. However, our resources – monetary and human - are required for supporting and carrying out God’s kingdom activity.
Stewardship on the other hand, relates to the responsibility given to Christians in managing and utilizing intelligently the gifts that God has allotted us. The Christian steward thus, is responsible for the financial blessings provided by God as well as the spiritual gifts that are given through the Holy Spirit. God wants us to be His stewards in the work of creation, redemption, and sanctification.
According to scripture, God created the Earth for mankind and we are now stewards of His creation. This implies, we are responsible for looking after and taking care of this world. We are to accept this responsibility and appreciate God's gift of creation for being our home. Our stewardship of creation involves the care taking of the environment and animals as well as our families and communities.
Being a good steward in this world is one way of expressing our love for God and our gratitude to Him, and especially looking out for our brothers and sisters around us.
God bless you wonderfully.
Yours In The Master’s Business,
Telford D. Matthew (Rev.)
Circuit Presbyter