april 2024
april CALENDAR
April 3 UWF meeting at 1:00 PM
The Gathering at Hope UMC – 6:30 PM meal; 7:00 PM worship
April 7 Holy Communion
April 14 Native American Ministries Sunday – special offering;
Noisy Offering for Habitat
April 16 Ad Council meeting
April 17 The Gathering at Hope UMC – 6:30 PM meal; 7:00 PM worship
Missions
From the pastor
Did You File Your Taxes Yet?
So did you? Since it is tax season, I thought it prudent that we talk about MONEY. I do not want to glorify finances. God did not create finances, therefore it is not automatically “good” in the way that creation is “good.” Despite this, there are biblical concepts that may lead us down a righteous financial path.
Concept 1: Stewardship
Genesis 1:28 is a biblical charter for humanity’s stewardship of the world. The Jewish word for world, “eret”, typically means land, but it also refers to nations, territories, etc. It is not a far cry to imagine that the processes with which we organize our societies fall into this charter, therefore we are stewards of all. As stewards, we manage another’s property. We manage God’s property, but it is wider than that. We manage in the name of our children, in the name of our peers, and even in memory of those who came before us. We are bearers of a great responsibility. We should manage our finances to bring honor to all the owners whose interests we represent.
Concept 2: Justice and Love
I hope I do not have to convince you that justice and love are non-negotiable Christian practices. One cannot follow Jesus and not be engaged in love and justice. Due to how we organize society, finances are one of the ways (sometimes the only way) that we can help others access resources that will drastically change their lives for the better. Not only this, but we can clump together the financial goodwill of many individuals into a single mutual fund that exponentially increases the impact that individuals can achieve by themselves. These two concepts present finance as a means to an end: a Christian spiritual discipline and justice. Unfortunately, sin has significantly marred finance, its institutions, and individual users. Our proper use of finances helps redeem it. Either way, happy Tax Day!
Pastor Carlos