Stewardship

During the celebration of new ministry in September, 2009 when Rev Eric Bond joined the St. John’s community, Bishop Michel reminded us,

"It is God's church and God's work that we are about and God will give the increase and bless us as we show Christ forth to all the world."

Faced with the daunting financial challenges of maintaining church properties constructed by a much larger congregation, we might do well to hear again this assurance that it is God who gives the increase. There is no doubt that St. John's new season of life and ministry together will continue strong strains of generosity, and of sharing the gifts and blessings we have received, not only in the form of treasure, but also time, talent, compassion and love for all - “… showing Christ forth to all the world.” St. John’s, as a parish, has been in existence for almost 90 years, but the new St. John’s has been around only since 2001. Our community has inherited extraordinary gifts from our congregational predecessors in the form of a large and beautiful church campus and endowment funds. We give thanks to God for the generous stewardship of the first generations of St. John's community. As a new and small (if growing!) congregation, we struggle financially as a community of dozens works to maintain facilities once supported by hundreds. We face negative annual budgets, and must depend on withdrawals from the endowment funds to continue to operate. We need to reach annual financial sustainability, a necessity within the next few years. While our church finances have been significantly impacted by these times of economic hardship, the people of St. John's have shown their commitment to our community by an increase this year in the number of pledges and the average pledge amount. Of course, we continue to face a substantial budgetary shortfall for 2010, so we are always accepting both donations to support our mission and ministry, as well as prayers for our continued growth, sustainability, and gospel witness over the years ahead. Pledge cards can be obtained from the Parish Office. A convenient way of giving is to set up an automatic payment through your bank. This way a weekly or monthly donation can be made without the bother of writing a check. Through generous giving and an abiding commitment to claim our mission of abundant hospitality, the people of St. John's continue to faithfully steward the blessings of this lively community. It is imperative that we continue to focus our prayers and loving labors on growth and giving, inviting and welcoming neighbors and newcomers, and practicing not only faithful stewardship, but the ongoing education of parishioners regarding our needs.