Whole Life Stewardship

Pastors and lay leaders are often ill at ease when it comes to stewardship. How do you start? What do you say? Won’t it all seem artificial and self-serving? The resources listed below will put you on much firmer footing and give you a Biblical road map for teaching stewardship in a natural, enjoyable, and Lutheran manner.

The key to presenting stewardship in a Biblical manner is to first place stewardship where it belongs: as one aspect of the doctrine of vocation. God has called (Latin: vocat → vocation) each of us to certain offices and duties within the home, church, and society. In each of our callings, God calls us to grow by daily contrition and repentance to conform our lives more and more to the image of His Son. This uniquely Lutheran approach to stewardship ensures that the entire Biblical message is presented in a manner that supports the Gospel.

Index

Resources Available

More Information

See Also

Resources Available

A-Z Stewardship Guide, Bible Studies, tips, etc.

The LCMS Stewardship Ministry A-Z resource collection includes some items that are important for every pastor and stewardship committee to consider, and it includes items that are tailored to specific settings.

Stewardship Under the Cross – How to Guide

Stewardship Under the Cross: Stewardship for the Confessional Lutheran Parish was written by the Rev. Heath Curtis, the coordinator of LCMS Stewardship Ministry. “What you’ll get in this book is the experience and advice of one pastor struggling to remain faithful to God’s Word while leading his parish through a rough financial patch,” Curtis writes.

Financial Peace University Preview and Review for Lutheran Congregations

Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University (FPU) has helped 4.5 million people get the financial education that so many Americans desperately need. Ramsey is a devout evangelical Christian, and many churches from many denominations have hosted the FPU nine-week course.

Many Lutheran congregations realize their people need the kind of solid, practical financial wisdom that Ramsey dispenses in FPU … yet some have been reluctant to host it since Ramsey’s theological perspective is different from confessional Lutheranism. Of course, a wise Lutheran teacher can sift the chaff from the wheat in resources that come from outside our fellowship. But pastors and lay leaders are pressed for time, and it’s certainly a commitment of time and energy to sift through a nine-week course!

This “Preview and Review of Financial Peace University” from the Rev. Jonathan Conner is intended for use by Lutheran congregations. Rev. Conner’s work faithfully, but kindly, points out where Ramsey’s theology departs from our own and presents helpful suggestions for Lutheran pastors and lay leaders who would like to use FPU in their congregations.

Weekly Bulletin Blurbs and Monthly Newsletter Articles

LCMS Stewardship Ministry provides bulletin blurbs and newsletter articles to use in church publications.

Stewardship Basics 8-part Bible Study

“Stewardship Basics,” a new eight-part Bible study from LCMS Stewardship Ministry, is available at no charge to help congregations start a discussion of whole-life stewardship. This study was the central piece to the Major Applied Project for the Rev. Dr. Nathan Meador’s Doctor of Ministry degree. It is presented to help congregations find the correct starting point for a renewed discussion of who God has created and redeemed His stewards to be for Him.

Live Stewardship Workshop in Your Congregation/Circuit

Email LCMS Stewardship Ministry at stewardship@lcms.org to request information about a live stewardship workshop in your congregation or circuit.

LCMS Rural & Small-TownMission Stewardship Webinars

Stewardship

Planning for Faithful Stewardship

Active Stewardship in the Rural and Small-Town Parish

Stewardship Strategies

More Information

LCMS Stewardship Website

See Also

Funding the Mission

Assimilation & Incorporation

Personal Finances

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