Our stewardship campaign theme this year is Grace in Action! Over the course of six weeks, we will invite you to pray and reflect on how God’s grace and our own Grace Church inspire you to action in your own life. We will also invite you to consider pledging to make a financial contribution to Grace for the coming year.
Each week we will have a parishioner share how grace has been in action in their lives and why they are inspired to support this church. We will also engage in a short activity each week , led by our stewardship team of Deacon Bryan and Madie Redfern, where we will ask you to think about the ways we are already taking action here at Grace and how we can grow and dream together over the next year.
On November 23rd, we will invite you to bring back your filled out pledge cards to our ingathering Sunday celebration, where we will do one of the actions Grace does best, a celebration potluck! We will tally up the totals, celebrate our collective generosity, and look forward to another wonderful year of Grace in Action!
Check out the resources below to learn more about our campaign, read why others at Grace have been moved to give, or explore a giving chart to help discern how much you are able to pledge in the coming year.
What does it mean to tithe or to make a pledge?
Tithing is the Biblical standard of giving 10% of one’s income to God. This practice stems from the story of Abraham giving a tenth of his possessions to Melchizedek after being blessed by him. We at Grace understand that not everyone is able to give 10% of their income to our church and we don’t expect everyone to.
What we do ask is that, as we all continue to grow in faith and discernment of what it means to be a part of a faith community that puts God’s grace in action, we should all be working towards a practice of pledging and, over time increasing that pledge.
What does that mean? In a practical sense, to pledge is to commit to giving a certain amount to the church in the coming year. Pledges are vital to the function of our church because they allow us to plan ahead and create a budget that funds all of the important work of this church, including worship, music, outreach, and education opportunities for adults and children alike. Spiritually speaking, your pledge is your response to God’s abundance in our lives. It is both a statement of thanksgiving and an outward and visible sign of a commitment to grow in faith and trust– in God and in this place as we celebrate joyful occasions and support one another in times of trial.
We invite you to use the chart above as you consider your pledge to Grace.