Terry O'Brien
When I think of Stewardship the scripture passage, "How shall I make a return to the Lord for the good he has done for me?", comes to mind. I think that Stewardship is reflecting on and responding to this question. I know that I have been blessed abundantly. Given that, how do I extend out of myself? Certainly our regular pledging here at St. David's, fulfilling our pledge to Lifting Up Our Sacred Spaces, involvement in committees and activities in our parish and local community. I also feel a responsibility to help supply food for the Springfield Garden food pantry. Getting into the habit of picking up food for Springfield as I shop weekly at Wegman’s has not become a onsistent habit. I need to work on this. The Samaritan Center and St. David's Court are other areas of outreach that seem to beckon a response. I hope you will ponder the above scriptural passage and follow your heart in listening to how God may be calling you to respond.

Beck Abraham
Stewardship allows me to be powerfully part of God’s blessings, to remember my thank yous, and to recall my responsibilities to give. I choose St. David’s Episcopal Church and I choose to work for our community of faith.

Jim Shultz
This summer, a notice went up on the bulletin board outside the sanctuary seeking contributions for a phrase which could sum up St. David's Church and what it means to its parishioners.  I came up with one, but decided that it did not seem as serious or as descriptive as the phrases already posted, so I never wrote it down.  I thought long and hard about what made St. David's so invaluable to me, and I realize that it is not just one thing.  Of course it is the music; we have excellent music every Sunday of the year.  It's also the people, although I look forward to seeing our parishioners every Sunday.  And it certainly is the combination of free and open expression of faith and a respect for liturgical traditions going back for more centuries than we can intellectually fathom.  It is all of these, and somehow they all come together in a way I have never found anywhere else.  So my phrase, trivial as it may be, does apply.  St. David's:  because everyplace else is just Church.

Dorothy Hemphill
When I think of stewardship I am challenged by an incident recorded in Mark 12:41-44. Jesus is standing near the temple observing people as they approach the alms boxes. Some rich people drop in many coins that produce a loud clang as they hit the metal box. Then a poor widow drops in two of the tiniest coins which only tinkle softly as they hit the metal. Jesus tells his disciples that hers is the the greatest gift of all because "she has given all that she had to live on". I can imagine that she must have reasoned, "How can I give these two coins which I need to live on? Besides they are too little to make any difference. Let those who have much do the giving." Instead she was apparently moved by the commandment "You shall love the Lord you God with al your heart,soul and mind and your neighbor as yourself". In our day we as Christian stewaerds we are likewise challenged to be led by that commandment as we commit ourselves to give of our money, time and talents.

Tina Nancollas
Probably my first experience of stewardship, although I didn't realize it at the time, was trying not to waste my art supplies as a child to have some left to make a card or gift for someone in my extended family. Now Saint David's is my extended family and I still try to be careful with what I have been given (by God), to be able to give something to my family.

David Tyler
Stewardship implies an obligation on the part of every individual to do his/her part to try to make the world a better place. This obligation extends well beyond family and friends. It includes our fellow citizens, our places of work and worship, and our environment. Whenever possible, we should be willing to provide our time, our financial support and our talent to the betterment of all.

At St.David's, stewardship means taking care of our church: its people the physical plant and the outreach programs. We truly are blessed to be part of this very special place, but it needs our constant nurturing and support to continue its mission of caring and compassion.

Cynthia Barnett
One thing that I have recently learned about stewardship is that it is not just defined by giving money or doing traditional acts thereby defined. Additionally, it is simply becoming aware of the ways of God has gifted us, and allowing Him/Her to work through us in those ways, consistently and freely, for the enrichment of the world and the people within it. In thinking of this, I am reminded of "the little way" of Teresa of Avila, knowing that the little ways are never unnoticed or insignificant to our Lord.

Matt Ryan
I was born in northern Canada to an Irish Canadian father (RC), and an English Canadian immigrant , Anglican. Talk about a divided family! And I have lived a long time - longer than all but a few parishioners at St. David's. What I have learned over the years is that religiosity has no real place in modern society - no seat at the table as they say. I was driven away from the Roman Church by its insistence on infallibility, but found a good home in the Episcopal church, in its permissive attitude to the details of belief. And to the artistic and musical flavor of St. David', in particular.

So, here I am - the oldest of four siblings, and the only survivor, as well as the only non-smoker. The impulse to believe in something seems to be innate, and I have found that my life at St. David's permits me to celebrate that belief.

Also, the friendsome and nurturing people at St. D.'s have been a godsend .

PS I chose the non-word " friendsome " on purpose because it more nearly means what I wanted to express than any other.

Miggs Coleman
I believe that stewardship is trying to make a radical difference in the world, sometimes personally, sometimes through institutions. There are many institutions which are doing good work in teaching, caring and healing and I am glad to support them with my time and money, but the institution which claims my heart is The Church. I have been blessed with love and the good things of life and I need to give back to God the fruits of what I have been given. I am proud of the Episcopal church and therefore I support it enthusiastically with my thinking, my emotions and my money. And I want to bloom where I have been planted - in St. David's parish.

Milt Coleman
Stewardship, for a member of Christ's body, is simply commitment. We are members of God's creation and, thus, responsible for one another. The degree we accept that responsibility is the level of our commitment to the community of our faith, to the church, to one another. And that is our personal stewardship.

Mary Lou Crowley
I'm grateful that we turn attention to stewardship annually because it reminds me what stewardship is - according to the dictionary "the administration of another's property, finances or affairs".  During the year I tend to forget that it is not my property and affairs I am dealing with, and that it is not for my benefit and pleasure alone that I have been blessed. I'm thankful for a renewed awareness of those truths.

Jeff Bastable
We all grow and live our lives largely from what others have done that have affected us--our parents, our children, St. David's, our friends, and even our enemies....in showing the way, and our learning from all of those "others". 

The human condition emerges from that bond that comes from a community of life. For that which we have gained and grown, we are grateful and have been imparted with a strong value to give back to replace that which we have received and provide added value on top of that to our world...be it an individual family member, a friend with needs, or a population deprived of food in the center of any one of our cities, or even those with needs for shelter in an African country. 

Regardless of the forum or form of that act of "giving back," stewardship to me is that very commitment to self and others to improve on the lives of our world--starting at home and broadening out from there… The needs are many and frankly we are not gaining on all those needs-we are falling back in my view--so there is much to do -- and each of us needs to commit and recommit to helping make the lives of others better…no matter how small, no matter the form--one person or one issue at a time....and completing whatever we set out to do or commit to. Doesn't this define the Judeo-Christian life?

Values and often common values that are understood by each other, serve to drive these actions mentioned above...one value being stewardship in our world. Our time and support of a lonely parent...or a parishioner with personal needs is the highest form of stewardship...giving to others of oneself.....And those who do give of self to others...live more wholesome lives and receive the self actualization and knowledge that a better world has been created--even in tiny ways—That is our reward, A collective better world.....It really is very simple isn't it? I believe this to be so...lend a hand...

Bishop Skip Adams
Stewardship is everything one does after one says "I believe..."  It is not merely about money.  Although stewardship includes financial matters and the faithful use of money, it is only one part of stewardship.  The word "stewardship" comes from two words - "stye warden" - or "keeper of the stye."  in essence stewardship is an attitude about life that leads us to action.  In that sense, stewardship is a response.

Specifically and from a Christian perspective, stewardship is a manifestation of the depth of our relationship to Jesus Christ.  We begin with the understanding that life is a gift, not an achievement.  Furthermore, Jesus gave us his life as a gift, and our life of stewardship as in how we live the life God gives us is a response to the Cross.  Stewardship is never our goal, it is a response to our Lord who gave his life for us.  In the end, of course, stewardship is an attitude of joyful thanksgiving.  It is an act of worship.

Stewardship is then not only about money.  It is about our purpose in life, the earth, our relationships, use of time, and then also of course the use of the material resources entrusted to us.  It is a trust and privilege from God as we make our life an act of self-offering.

When it comes to the use of money, some would say that stewardship is a remedy for a spiritual disease.  It is the disease of the rich young ruler in Mark 10:17,21 when he asks of Jesus, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?"  His affliction it seems is a possessive heart which is an obsession to get, keep, gain and acquire more.  Jesus knew this and is why he talks in the Bible about possessions and money more than anything else other than the Kingdom of God.  Why?  Because Jesus knew that money is God's chief competitor.  He wants to set us free from being possessed by our possessions.

Blessings to you, Bishop Skip