Whole Life Stewardship

Psalm 50:10 says, “For every beast of the forest is Mine, The cattle on a thousand hills.”

And yes, God even owns us. 1 Corinthians 6:19 reads, “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own.”

Now, even though God owns the world and everything in it, He has given it all to man to act as His stewards, to “fill the earth and subdue it.” We also find in Psalm 115:16, “The heavens are the heavens of the Lord, But the earth He has given to the sons of men.”

And in a somewhat narrower context we have Joshua 1:30, “Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses.” There God was giving all of Canaan to the Israelites.

So, God created everything, including us. He owns everything, including us, and He’s told us to subdue and have dominion over the earth, to be His stewards. Now, what exactly does that mean?

This is where the concept of “whole life stewardship” comes in. God didn’t tell us to be stewards on weekends only. Our stewardship “hours of operation” are not listed in the cultural mandate. We’re to be stewards 24/7.

We are to use ALL of the resources He entrusts to us wisely and in a way that glorifies God. As Larry Burkett liked to say, “Every spending decision is a spiritual decision.

Finally, God did not tell us to be stewards only with our time and money, but also with our skills, talents, and interests.

God created us in His image and he wired each of us in a unique way.

Whatever your skills or talents, pray about ways you can begin using those more fully for Kingdom work.

God has been incredibly generous with us, and He wants us to share in the joy that comes with being generous. He wants us to be “whole life stewards.”

• What are gift annuities and when do they make sense?
• Are there credit card accounts that accrue rewards that go to charities?
• Is it wise to use money from your 401K to pay off your mortgage?
• What is a qualified charitable distribution and how can you make use of it?
• What is the wisest way to use or invest proceeds from the sale of a home?

• Christian community credit union
• Christian credit counselors