Recently for work, my colleagues and I read an article by Key Herr Gillespie called "Rumination: The Concept of Stewardship Applied to Higher Education." Remember, I work at a university, running a residence hall and all.
Now of course, as the name implies, the article dealt with the concept of stewardship in higher education. The using of resources, the caring for students, the working with constituents.
But the more I read the article, the more and more I started thinking about stewardship as applied to the Lord.
According to Gillespie: "To be a steward is not to have ownership of something. It is rather to
have the responsibility of taking care of something on behalf of another."
And right there, reading those two lines I saw the world and my body and my life come into focus. All of those things in the palm of the Lord's hand, outstretched to me, with Him saying "now take good care of the things I've given you."
Have you ever really thought about our lives? Our bodies? Our possessions? Our loved ones?
They have never belonged to us. Not really anyway.
They are on loan.
They belong to the Lord
We have been given the responsibility of taking care of them on behalf of another. On behalf of the Lord, until he comes again, or until we leave to live with Him.
I don't know about you, but my mind is blown!
Truly. This is big stuff.
If we really start to see our lives and every thing in them as belonging to God, where does that leave us?
How does that shape the way we live the big and small moments of our lives?
How does that change the way we view our possessions and the things that we "own?"
How does that affect the way we spend our money?
How does that impact the way we grieve and deal with loss?
"Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship."
Romans 12:1
Such a good reminder, Laura. This knowledge should drive us to thankfulness and an open hand when it comes to what we have, knowing that it belongs to God in the first place. I think it has also helped me see the people in my life as a gift from God. Thanks for sharing!
ReplyDeleteAgreed! Every time I see something I think I want...I stop and think, do I need it? Can I use it? Can someone else use the money I was going to spend for that in a better way?
ReplyDeleteSometimes I feel like it sounds boastful to talk about giving or sharing and it's difficult to explain how I feel about using what God has blessed me with to bless others. I would gladly give up something new for myself if the money could go toward someone's need. Does that make sense? As a parent, I can't always expect my children to understand my perspective. I don't always ask them to make the same sacrifices, but we do talk about why I give. And how giving is an extension of God's hand to the world around us.
Thanks for this "revelation" :)
I love this post! I know for a long time now I have looked at my daughter who is special needs/medically fragile as being on loan to us, belonging to Him and not us. I firmly believe that He entrusted her to us to care for her until such time as He calls her home. I hadn't really thought about everything else in life that way. This is really thought provoking. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteSuch a great post, and so true...we are so blessed to have all these wonderful things on loan :)
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