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Giving
GOD POURS OUT HIS BLESSINGS ON US We give back to God in thankfulness and obedience
None of us needs to reflect for very long to realise how abundantly God has blessed us, both individually and as a Parish. As Christians we must consider our response to God for His goodness and faithfulness to us. As both recipients and stewards of God’s gifts, we must prayerfully contemplate how we are called to give of our money, time and talents to God’s work in the coming year. Sunday 12th September is Stewardship Sunday, when we contemplate the ways in which we have used the many gifts he has given us, and think about our response to God’s gracious generosity to us as we plan what we can give back to God in the coming year. We commit to our resolutions a week later on Dedication Sunday, the 19th of September. On that day we bring our pledge forms and place them in the offertory as a formal indication of our commitment. LOOKING BACK The ongoing generosity of the St. Thomas’s parishioners has meant that our church’s finances are in a healthy state, enabling us to attend to further renovations and upgrades in the church itself, the hall, office buildings and rectory, and to also maintain our tithing donations to a number of very worthwhile causes. Our parishioners have not only been generous with their financial resources, but have been quick to give of their time and talents, and this was seen in the overwhelming success of the recent Patronal Festival. Various local charities and Christian outreach organizations have again benefited from the generosity of our parishioners, as we have donated to them as our tithing allocations out of our pledge income. In the past year we were able to donate around R130,000 as tithe offerings. We are confident that we will be able to continue to support very worthy causes through our tithes in the coming year. We are aware that the economic recession continues to affect many parishioners, and although this has definitely affected our pledge income, we do not expect to show a deficit for the year.
LOOKING AHEAD We accept that our giving goes beyond the immediate needs of the church, and allows the church to grow into the opportunities that God has planned for it. We know that as God’s people we respond in obedience to His Word. As we give generously back to God we know that he will continue to bless us. Our giving of our money, gifts and talents back to God, and in His service, is also an act of faith, and a precursor to our own spiritual revival and renewal. On the ministry front, Alpha continues to be our main evangelical outreach, and a number of exciting variations to the Alpha programmes are being rolled out. We will continue to allocate funds to run Alpha courses ourselves, and to support other churches to start and run Alpha course themselves. Our Men’s and Women’s ministry events are well supported, and we look forward to continuing these ministries as an important source of support and growth for the St. Thomas’s family. The various renovation works within the church hall, as well as the major service of the organ, are now complete. We will continue to maintain and upgrade our buildings and facilities to ensure their optimal use and enjoyment by the parish. One of the fruits of the recent Patronal Festival was the affirmation and strengthening of the bonds of friendship and fellowship amongst parishioners. Our parish can only continue to be a vibrant and dynamic community if we, the parishioners, make it one through building and nurturing our relationships with each other. Service and involvement within the parish is a wonderful way of achieving this, and we would urge parishioners to take part in and assist in the many activities within the parish. There are so many varied opportunities for involvement, such as assistance with Sunday services, children’s church and the youth groups, joining the Garden Committee, helping with church maintenance projects, and involvement in the many outreach projects that the parish undertakes (including Fikelela and Habitat for Humanity). The more people that get involved, the less work and the more enjoyment there is for everyone. The involvement of as many people as possible in the activities and tasks of the parish can only ensure a stronger parish community and an increased sense of belonging within our very special parish family. STOP, THINK & PRAY We encourage all our parishioners to prayerfully consider their own circumstances, and the blessings that God has given them, and to actively plan to give of their time, skills and money to God’s work in a spirit of love, gratitude and joy. We continue to look forward in confident anticipation to seeing the ways in which God will use us and our gifts to further His kingdom, and to help to transform the communities and society in which we live, according to His will. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 2 Cor 9:7 TAKE ACTION We have attached a Dedication and a Pledge form, in which we ask that you indicate your planned commitments to the church – in terms of your time, talents and money - for the coming year. Please commit the completion of this form to prayer, then fill it in and be sure to hand it in at our services on or before Sunday 19th September, or at the office. But do hand them in, trusting and knowing that our Lord will enable and empower you to honour your commitment, as you have honoured Him. There are always risks associated with the handling of cash. Therefore, with regard to your monetary pledges, we would prefer that your payments be made electronically where possible, e.g. by debit order or EFT. If you have any queries about this the church wardens or office staff will be happy to assist you. From your Churchwardens Elizabeth Fullard Andy Paige Geoff Burton St Thomas’s Church August 2010 |