Discover what problem you are here to solve. What would go undone if your church wasn’t there? What problems are you solving? Your church or ministry should be a solution to something.

Be a reader. You have to continue to read, grow, and learn.

Develop a thick skin. “Hurting people hurt people.” Remember pastors – sometimes sheep bite.

Prepare yourself for cultural transitions. If you are planning on entering a mainline denomination, you will probably have to change the culture of that congregation. This is a challenging task. You will feel like a stranger in a strange land. It is almost like being a missionary. It is difficult to transition a congregation and it takes time. Don’t get too frustrated.

“Get some change in your pocket.” Don’t make a withdrawal if you do not money in the bank. If you love people and they trust you in your small decisions, then ultimately you can begin to lead towards making larger decisions that require some built in time and trust. Often, we try to cash checks we don’t have the money for. Your good ideas won’t mean anything if you don’t have any change in your pocket.

Look past next weekend. Begin to place into your life the concept of strategic planning and planning ahead. Most pastors or churches cannot see past next weekend. Visionaries are able to see not only past next weekend, but even further down the road.

Love God and love people. Don’t overcomplicate the ministry. If you love them, you can lead them.

The New Oxford American Dictionary has three ways of expressing the definition of a steward or stewardship:

1. A person who looks after the passengers on a ship, aircraft, or train…
2. An official appointed to supervise arrangements or keep order at a large public event…
3. A person employed to manage another’s property, especially a large house or estate…

All three definitions reference the concept of looking after or supervising something that does not belong to the individual steward. They are, as the third definition states, called to manage another’s property. To be a good steward is to be a good manager. So when the King James Bible was being translated in feudal England, this was a concept that would have been understood by the readers. God is the giver of all good gifts; we do not own anything, so we are the stewards of God’s resources. Fast forward to today… we do not own anything, but we are God’s managers. God owns it all, so we should be good managers for God’s glory and purpose.

For example, the parable of the talents expresses several truths, but one of the most forthright is the concept that the servants were called to manage the talents that were given to them by the owner. They did not own the talent, but were given talents according to their ability. The owner’s approval or disapproval was not based on their worth as individuals, but the judgment is based on what each servant did with their talents. The one who earned five more is not necessarily a better steward than the one who earned two. This is not the message from Jesus. The point is made in the one servant who buried the talent and earned nothing. This individual in the parable is supposed to be for us a clear example of what not to do. If we do not get the point, then Jesus has some hard-to-hear statements about the servant being cast out. But let us not be so hard on this one servant.

We are all created in the image of God. As part of being created in that image is the understanding that we can share God’s character. God is a tremendous giver. You remember one of the most popular verses you learned as a child, “For God so loved the world that he gave His one and only son…” We are created to give, and tempted to keep. Rev. Adam Hamilton says that there are two voices that tempt us away from our God-created purpose of giving- the voice of fear and the voice of self-gratification.

The voice of fear is something inside of us that causes us to worry or doubt our source of security. It is a voice that says, “What will happen to you if you give this money?” We begin to hold and hoard the resources that God has given to us. But like that servant, our hoarding does not truly provide us with any true security. The voice of self-gratification is a recapitulation of the voice from our culture that tells us that we are defined not by who we are but by what we have. It says, “If you give, there will not be left for you to get this or that.” It is a voice that drives us toward obtaining the treasures on earth, while the voice of truth speaks for us to obtain treasures in heaven. Both of these voices impact our lives in different ways. We hear them throughout the day and in different places. The big game is coming up and even though we have a decent TV, it would look so much better if we had a larger screen. The voice begins to whisper. We are out shopping and the voice of self-gratification begins to work its magic as we convince ourselves that this item that we want quickly turns into an item we so desperately need. We are living in fearful times.

The financial consequences to our actions are coming to fruition. The house we couldn’t afford, the car, (with payments) we just had to have, the items we put on credit have caught up to us now with high interest payments. We are afraid because for many of us, there is, “too much month left at the end of the money.” We hear the voice of fear every time we may watch the news or read the newspaper.

The only way these voices can be silenced in our lives is through trust. When you give your life to Christ, and put your life in God’s hands, you begin a journey of trust. You live your life in a different way. Your life is no longer lived for yourself, but you begin to lead a life that is pleasing to God. Your life is an act of worship. You begin to put into perspective what you truly value and what your priorities are. So when the voice of fear begins to pop back up, (and it will), you are exercising faith when you trust in God. You align your life with God’s word and finally realize that God has some interesting things to say about how we handle our resources.

When the voice of self-gratification begins to whisper again, you can remember that you are seeking things that are above and you have learned how to live a generous and self-giving life. This is a life that is Christ-like. If Christ was a giver, then we ought to be givers. The true joy found in giving occurs when we make a difference in the life of someone else. Wesley further encouraged us to:

“Render unto God, not a tenth, not a third, not half, but all that is God’s, be it more or less; by employing all, on yourself, your household, the household of faith, and all mankind, in such a manner that you may give a good account of your stewardship… Brethren, can we be either wise or faithful stewards unless we thus manage our Lord’s goods?”

Today let us become good managers of all that God has entrusted to us. Let us love God by how we give. Can you continue to trust God as you give to the ministry of Delanco Camp? We are anticipating and expecting another great summer of ministry out at camp and we encourage you to become financial partners with us. As you give, would you prayerfully remember Delanco Camp?

Go to delanco.org/support for more information about how you can support the camp with your gifts, offerings and talents.

Here is the reality as Morpheus stated in The Matrix… “There is a difference between knowing the path, and walking the path.” Solomon says it like this…

“The wise see danger and take refuge, the foolish keep going and suffer for it.” Proverbs 27:12

What seperates the wise and the foolish, and ultimately us as we include ourselves into this story, is not that one saw the danger and one didn’t. It is what they did in response to it. It is what you do when you see danger that determines whether or not you are a biblical fool. Both saw the danger – the wise changed their direction. The foolish kept going, they didn’t change their path, and Solomon gives us this promise – they suffer for it.

Have you ever been lost? It is a scary feeling when you realize that you have no idea where you are and are possibly headed in the wrong direction. Funny thing about being lost… rarely do you ever keep going in the same direction. You turn around, exit, change your direction.

I think if we are honest with ourselves, we all have good intentions. We all want to be headed in the right direction. But the principle of the path teaches us that it is not about how we feel or what we would want. It is about whether or not we are headed in the right direction or on the right path. This principle can apply in so many areas of your life if you would let it.

Do you want to grow in your faith? Are you on the right path to get you there? Do you want to excel in school? There is a path for that – be on it. Do you want to be financially secure? You may have to change your behavior in order to be on the right path. This may not be easy and you may not see
results right away.

The difference between you and everyone else is going to be found in whether or not you can look past next weekend. Most people can’t. But if you can see how choices today affect tomorrow, and you know that there are consequences to your actions, then you can be on a path- the right path. The direction of that path will determine your destination- the end result. Have a fun journey.

Michael Smith is a pastor, former permanent staff member and chair of the camp’s leadership committee. He blogs at thesmithgroupnj.blogspot.com.