Through the testing of this ministry you glorify God by your obedience to the confession of the gospel of Christ and by the generosity of your sharing with them and with all others . . . – 2 Cor. 9:13

When people become members of a local United Methodist Church, they enter a particular covenant. A covenant is not a guarantee but based on promises we make and thus is protected from failure by our vigilance and will. The covenant is meant to bind us to one another especially in times when we don’t feel like keeping the promises. As in all things we ask God to encourage and strengthen us to keep the promises we’ve made.

In our tradition, members enter this covenant as they answer two important questions with “I will!”
1. As members of Christ’s universal Church, will you be loyal to the United Methodist church, and do all in your power to strengthen its ministries?
2. As members of this congregation, will you faithfully participate in its ministries by your prayers, your presence, your gifts, your service and your witness?

This fall, our sermon series on “Church is a Verb” is asking us to rethink church. We are looking at five ways that church is a verb describing who we are and what we do rather than just identifying a place we attend. I am teaching these five practices to the people attending the Discovery Class so that they will know about our culture and what we expect of members. The covenant we enter in membership presumes that we will do certain things and live as certain kinds of people.

One of the ways that we live as though church is a verb is to communicate our financial giving plans for the following year in order that our leaders can develop a ministry budget. It is one way we practice “Extravagant Generosity.” On November 8th, you will be given the opportunity to participate in a special time of consecrating your 2010 financial plans. We tend to call such commitments “stewardship.” But the membership questions invite us to remember that our financial stewardship is only one aspect of a larger covenant of partnership and sharing.

Each time we receive new members, the whole congregation welcomes them by reaffirming their own covenant of membership – prayers, presence gifts, service and witness. Thus it seems fitting that as we prepare to receive new members on November 15th, we will be practicing one of the promises we made when we became members of this congregation by consecrating our financial plans for next year.

You should have recently received a 2010 Faith Promise Card in the mail. Please prayerfully consider how God is guiding you to give financially next year. You will have an opportunity to indicate the progress you are making in moving toward a tithe (10% of your income) or beyond. As you plan for 2010 giving, I want to address some frequently asked questions.

Do I tithe on my gross or net income? That depends. Does God bless you gross or net? If you are a beginner, start with your after-tax income. If you are ready for a greater spiritual challenge, calculate your tithe on your gross income.

When I complete the 2010 Faith Promise Card, do you want me to put all the money I plan to give for everything or only for the “general fund?” Please only put the income that is non-restricted that can be used for our ministry budget next year.

Must all of my tithe go to the local church? No. Certainly you may want to give part of your tithe directly to a Christian organization that is doing God’s work in the world such as Habitat for Humanity or The Salvation Army. While Steve and I give these kinds of gifts, most of our tithe to the local church because it is the place we are in community and accountable.

Here’s a recommended process:
• Calculate what percentage of your income you gave or will be giving in 2009.
• Estimate what your income will be next year and then pray about how God is challenging you to take the next step as you move toward a tithe or beyond it.
• Talk it over and pray with your family. Discuss ways you are being called to give sacrificially. How are you being called to grow spiritually? This is a great way to teach your children about stewardship!
• Take into account the gifts you want to give for special offerings and also gifts you may want to give to other Christian organizations. Subtract that amount from your total planned giving.
• Record your giving plan on the 2010 Faith Promise Cad that you received in the mail and bring it with you to worship on Sunday, November 8th (or drop it by the church office or mail it if you can’t join us on Sunday). We will have extra cards on Sunday if you misplaced yours.

Church leaders are in the process of writing down their hopes and dreams for next year and thinking through the impact on the operating budget. Certainly we will spend more next year just maintaining the same level of ministry we are doing this year. However, there will be no whining and pleading “to meet the budget.” No one will show up at your front door or call you on the phone to ask about your pledge. Whatever you give from a sense of faithful discipleship will define the scope of our ministry.

Walking with you as we follow Jesus,
Debra