Parish Council August 24th 2014 ~ Waking the Heart

In 1 Timothy 6:17-19 Paul writes: “As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, not to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but rather on God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is truly life.”As Clive Brans reminded us on the day of the Annual Meeting of Enrolled Parishioners, everything that we have - our possessions, our money, our homes and the gifts and skills which give us an ability to make an income – everything comes from God.  But more than that, our possessions, money and gifts actually belong to God and our job is to use them for His glory.  God wants us to give generously - just like He does - not because we want something back from the ‘investment’, but simply because we are grateful for all that He has done for us and has given us.So giving back to God needs to be an act of the heart. In other words, it is an act of intentional worship.  The amount is not prescribed – it is something that each of us must prayerfully work out with God. We all need to review what we give regularly and ask the question:  Am I giving freely back to Him and His mission?  Can I give more?If we’re comfortable with what we’re giving, then maybe God is lifting the bar and asking us to be more generous?C.S. Lewis puts it this way:  “I do not believe one can settle how much we ought to give. I am afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare. In other words, if our expenditure on comforts, luxuries, amusements, etc, is up to the standard common among those with the same income as our own, we are probably giving away too little. If our charities do not at all pinch or hamper us, I should say they are too small. There ought to be things we should like to do and cannot do because our charitable expenditure excludes them.”Challenging, isn’t it?  What C.S. Lewis describes is a very different thing to giving what you think you can afford, or what’s left over in your purse on Sunday morning, or out of a sense of obligation, or because your kids attend Kids Church and you feel you should pay for their attendance and participation.It’s never about the amount that we give; it’s always about the heart.As a Parish Council we have gone through an amazing process, both corporately and individually, in the weeks since the Annual Meeting of Enrolled Parishioners, which we are excited to share with you today.  We know as a leadership group here at St Philips that God has invited the six of us into deeper relationship with Him.  And each one of us on the Council has in turn been challenged to give more generously and more freely of our resources as He directs.Our prayer is that each member of St Philips will go home today and prayerfully ask God: “More?”Blessings,Donna, Andy, Brenda, Jason, Pauland Goffy.