It is a great joy to welcome six new members into our church family today. Before God and this congregation, Eric, Yvonne, Anne Marie, Oliver, Joe, and Elizabeth have publicly professed their faith in Jesus Christ, and they have made vows to be Christ’s disciples, to be faithful members of Christ’s church, to participate in the life and mission of this family of God’s people, to share regularly in the worship of God, and to enlist in the work of this local church as it serves this community and the world.

In response, we have welcomed them with joy into the common life of this church, promising to them our friendship and prayers as we share the hopes and labors of the church of Jesus Christ, grow together in God’s knowledge and love, and serve as witnesses of our risen Savior.

I know that there are many different reasons why our newest members – and all of you -- come to church, and why you come to this particular church. Whether you have worshipped here all your life or walked through our doors for the first time this morning, I suspect that each one of you has a desire to know God, a hunger to be with kindred spirits, and a yearning to find meaning for your life. We sit here together in worship each week, a sanctuary full of souls quieting heart and mind, listening for the holy. Together we pray our deepest hopes and yearnings; this is where we can get back in touch with whom we are and whose we are, it is where we can connect with one another and the sacred.

And to our newest members, it is my prayer that you will find a sense of family here in this congregation; that this is the place you will come to be nurtured on your faith journey, to ask the difficult questions and to find faithful friends to share in both your joys and your sorrows.

What a gift God has given to us in this church, this family of faith. It is here we find friends and loved ones. It is here we love and are loved by others and show that love by serving and reaching out to those within and beyond these walls. It is here we learn to love God and are encouraged to grow in faith. And being part of this spiritual community means being good stewards of the gift of this church.

We are in the midst of our annual Stewardship Campaign, which has as its theme “Sharing God’s Gifts, Serving Christ’s Church.” To frame this year’s campaign, we are using these words from this morning’s scripture lesson in Paul’s letter to the Romans: “In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well… If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If it is giving, give generously.”

“Serving well, giving generously.” These words are not only the focus of this year’s Stewardship Campaign; they are at the root of a life lived in community, devoted to Christ. Throughout his epistles, Paul uses the imagery of the church as the body of Christ, and the metaphor is intended to convey both the invaluable worth of each individual, as well as the mutual dependence and indispensability of each individual to the whole. In the body of Christ—the Christian community—each person has a role to play, and that role is determined by that person’s gifts. Each of us has something essential to add to the whole, a capacity given by God for service and ministry. We can fully experience being part of a Christian community when we share our gifts — whether they be serving, teaching, singing, praying, encouraging, advocating, caring, welcoming, giving, leading humbly or following faithfully.

There is a saying – “We find Jesus in the faces – of the people – in the places – where we go to give our hearts away.” That’s the church. I hear so many of you say, “This is my spiritual home, my church family.” This is the place, and these are the people, to whom you can come, no matter what. It’s a place where we can come and experience the presence of Christ, a place where we can see Jesus in the faces of the people here. It’s the place where we can come and give our hearts away and have others extend their hearts to us. And being part of a Christian community includes committing to it both our financial and hands-on support.

Because stewardship is not a business transaction; it is not about paying the bills or balancing the budget. Stewardship is an act of faith -- the kind of faith that says, I am blessed, so I will give; the kind of faith that says, I have enough and I want to share; the kind of faith that realizes it is in giving that we truly receive. Stewardship takes root when we walk into this house of God’s love and decide that this place is our home.

Stewardship is about making choices in all aspects of our lives that enable us to live with a spirit of thanksgiving and gratitude for God’s love and generosity.

Stewardship is acknowledging that we are caretakers, but not the owners, of all the blessings that God has showered upon us.

And stewardship is about living in covenantal relationship with each other.

I hope all of you have reviewed the stewardship packet you either received in the mail or picked up in the lobby. If you don’t yet have one, there are plenty in the lobby, so please take one after worship. The packet is your invitation to invest in our communal life we treasure so much here at our beloved church.

In addition to information on our church and its budget, the packet includes a blue pledge form with an extended list of opportunities for you to become involved in our church — not just in task-oriented capacities, such as boards and committees, but also in spiritually-fulfilling groups, such as bible studies and our Prayer Shawl Ministry. In the coming week, we ask that you prayerfully consider how you will offer your gifts of time, talent, and treasure to the First Congregational Church of Stoughton.
And then next Sunday, Thanksgiving Sunday, we invite you to bring your completed pledge cards with you to worship and place them on the altar during the service in a visible act of your commitment your faith community.

Theologian John Westerhoff writes that “Stewardship is what we do after we say we believe, after we give our love, loyalty, and trust to God.”

This Stewardship season, may we again say we believe may we give our love, loyalty and trust to God. May we, along with our newest members, commit to being Christ’s disciples, to being faithful members of Christ’s church, to participating in the life and mission of this family of God’s people, to sharing regularly in the worship of God, and to enlisting in the work of this local church as it serves this community and the world. And may each of us make a pledge to be good stewards of this church by serving it well and giving to it generously. Amen.

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