Dearest St. Mark’s Family,

This week, we are continuing to focus our collective efforts on the formation and learning that comes from our annual commitment to giving and generosity. In the life of the church, we pay special attention to financial giving as a huge part of our overall stewardship. Stewardship harkens back to the notion that we are entrusted with the care of God’s work in the world, and supporting the mission of our local church family is a piece of that. We are stewards of peace and justice, healthy spiritual lives, and the children that make up our community of faith.

Being a steward calls us to deepen our relationship with the gifts that God has given us, and to find ways to use these gifts in the world around us. I am so grateful for leadership from the vestry, stewardship team, and people like you in returning our thoughts to this aspect of our life together. This has been a challenging year for everyone, but I’m inspired by the gratitude and appreciation we express in our generosity as a parish.

Not only have we continued to support a preschool, pivoted to online resources for worship and learning, AND kept outreach efforts going in the midst of a pandemic… but we have also managed to support all the staff, maintained our campus, and even enlarged our community presence! As the rector, I couldn’t be more proud to serve with such fine people, and keep our focus on love of God and love of neighbor. All of this is the fruit of intentional conversations around stewardship, radical generosity, and careful leadership from our folks.

This week, you’ll see a video in this email from my friend and brother Tim Swan. Tim, Suzy and the girls are absolute gifts to this parish family, and I am so grateful for their friendship and love to St. Mark’s. I hope you’ll hear some of your story in the Swan story… I know I do!

The vestry continues to focus on what is most important to us at St. Mark’s. That is, the practice of seeing Christ in, and being Christ to others as we are led and empowered by Grace. It has been our mission statement for the past decade, and it is just as true in these unusual times as it ever has been. What I love about the collective stewardship of this community is that, through thick and thin, we keep the focus on the very basic task of loving God and loving neighbor through our work, our worship, and our spiritual growth. Think about it… although our methods may have changed, our mission has not.  

In our adult formation, we seek Christ. In our outreach through actions like School Fuel and the Little Lions’ Diaper Pantry we serve Christ. In the preschool we see Christ in three and four year olds. In our online worship we share in the spiritual communion of this extended family. As we enter into the next little bit of our life together, one day at a time, my prayer is that we will keep on keepin’ on with loving God and loving neighbor through our important stewardship of the mission we share.

Thank you for your continued support of this parish, through prayer and pledge. Thank you for being you, and thank you for contributing to the story of our life together! You are a blessing!

Never forget, you are loved!
Peace,
Ben+


P.S. If you missed last week’s email, don’t miss your chance to commit to giving online through the online pledge card. You can find a link to it HERE or..


O Lord, giver of life and source of freedom. We know that all we have is received from your hand. Gracious and loving God, you call us to be stewards of your abundance, the caretakers of all you have entrusted to us. Help us always to use your gifts wisely and teach us to share them generously. Send the Holy Spirit to work through us, bringing your message to those we serve. May our faithful stewardship be a witness to the love of Jesus Christ in our lives. We pray with grateful hearts in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.