God's Promise of Enough: Prayer, Presence, and Imagining the Possibilities
God’s promises are at the core of Scripture, but often we live in liminal (in-between) space – as we see what is, while we wonder about what might be. God calls us to live in trust even when the world operates under scarcity, competition, and a seemingly endless grind toward perfection. It can all feel so overwhelming. And yet, God’s promise is that there is always, always enough.
During the 2024 stewardship campaign in October and November, we explored together – in worship and in learning – how God challenges our ideas of scarcity and abundance. Each week, there were different themes that folks would speak to, beginning with a reflection on generosity and gratitude. I shared how deeply grateful I am to each and every one of you for your generosity and how you have impacted others and touched their lives with your diverse gifts.
Stewardship – as we talk about often – is more than our financial offerings to support the operations and ministry budgets. We use the phrase “time, talent, and treasure,” because stewardship is also how we share in the ministry God has called us to, at Grace and in our daily lives.
God has given each of us time and talents, abilities and curiosity. From those, we each have different capacities to share. We also have different financial resources and commitments. At various times and stages in our lives, we might have more or less of one or the other to share, and sometimes not a whole lot of anything.
As we finish this stewardship campaign for 2024 and look ahead to 2025, I am grateful for all the ways in which you share your time, your talents, and your treasures with Grace.
It’s also important to remember that stewardship doesn’t begin or end with those, nor does it begin or end during a campaign. Stewardship begins with who God is and what God has done for us in Christ out of God’s infinite love for us.
And so, even if we think we have little or nothing to give, there are two things we can always share with each other: our prayers and our presence.
Begin with prayer. Lift up your hearts and needs and hurts and hopes to God. Share your joys and your sorrows with Jesus. Pray for this congregation and for the beloved people of Grace. Pray for our community. Pray for people who are hurting and in need. The funny thing about prayer – the more you pray, the more prayers bubble up out of you. God shows up in our prayers.
Share your presence. Show up to things – worship, education, fellowship, fun events where Grace folks might be, and especially to things when it’s challenging. Your presence may be the balm for someone else’s heart that day. And, your spirit might be lifted too! God shows up in our gathering together.
Imagine the possibilities when we share our prayers for each other and our presence with one another! God promises that there will be enough.
