Pastor’s Pen | December 2022
This November, I traveled to Pinerock Camp and Retreat Center in Prescott, Arizona to attend First Call Theological Education (FCTE) with six of my first call colleagues, Bishop Deborah Hutterer of our Grand Canyon Synod, and Pastor Jacqui Pagel, Assistant to the Bishop for Candidacy and Faith Formation. For a few days, we gathered among the pine trees and brisk fall air and talked about money. Yes, you read that correctly: we talked about money.
I am still processing much of what I learned at FCTE, but I thought I would share three takeaways from this educational experience as a way of sharing my learnings and reflections and to perhaps provoke your own reflections on money:
“People would rather talk about their sex life than share how they spend their money.” This somewhat scandalous [and true?] statement framed much of our discussion at FCTE. It has led me to wonder why we are tight-lipped when it comes to talking about our faith and finances? We clearly have questions and the Bible isn’t shy about sharing guidance about money, and yet we struggle to talk about money. Even with the most trusted people in our lives. Why do you suppose this is?
“We can’t talk with others about money until we understand our own relationship to money.” As an exercise for our conversations, we all wrote a “money autobiography” from a long list of questions that invites reflection on memories of money as a child, adolescent, adult, parent, and a range of other money-related matters. Writing my own “money autobiography” helped me be honest about the role of money and wealth in my own life. It asked questions I hadn’t considered before including how my faith drives how I manage money. If you wish to see the “money autobiography” prompts, contact me and I will happily share it.
“We need to dispel the myth that we are not rich…[We] can’t get off the hook. [We] are wealthy.” This is a paraphrase from Charles R. Lane’s book, Reflections on Faith and Finances and his words seem to rattle people’s cages. Including mine. We resist the idea that we are wealthy. In fact, I resisted this idea so much that I went to Pew Research Center’s website, popped our annual household income into their global wealth calculator, and guess what? The results put me in the wealthy category. I invite you to visit this calculator and do the same.
The Spirit is moving in me to reflect on faith and money, and while I don’t have it all figured out, I am committed to learning how to be generous in this life. I am committed to this because God has been generous with me throughout my life. God has been generous in calling me to serve you, the people of New Journey Lutheran Church in Fountain Hills, Arizona. And you are some of the most generous people I know. In many ways, you reveal to me just how generous our God is.
My hope is that this final Pastor’s Pen of 2022 will inspire you, no, provoke you to continue reflecting upon your journey with faith and money in this next year. As we turn our attention towards developing the 2023 Mission Spending Plan and returning our Commitment Cards, it is my prayer that God would spur you to deeper reflection and greater openness to giving of yourself, your time, your talent, and your money.
God will bless your gifts. God will make of your time an abundance. God will, as he did with the loaves and fishes, multiply your offerings and make of it a banquet to share with a hungry world.
So, keep the faith, beloveds, trusting that it is faith which keeps you.
With gratitude and love,
Pastor Beth