The Community of Christ

We have approached stewardship in a very different manner this year, partly because our stewardship focus lasted for the entire year, and partly because we viewed how we "fit" into God's creation. We are both individuals and in community, which makes us both personal and collective stewards.

As stewards in God's creation:

• We are called and BAPTIZED children of God. We know whose we are, and we know we are never alone.

• We have our identity in this family. We have purpose.

• We come together in WORSHIP where we gather, confess, sing, pray, and hear the Word.

• We share COMMUNION together as the body of Christ. With Christ within us and with all the saints who have gone before us, we become a special community bound by the love of God.

• We are COMMUNITY and we are SENT out into the world to share the love of Christ with others. We don't have to do it alone because we have each other. We share a special joy together as a sign of the Spirit and we pass it on in many different ways.

What an amazing gift we have been given—to be in the community of Christ. Each of us is gifted with our own tailor-made spiritual gifts as part of our uniqueness. God blessed each of us differently to benefit not just ourselves, but our community and his creation. Our God-given diversity is our collective strength. Together, we can solve problems that arise, create new ways to approach the future, share joys and sorrows, work, play, and share the love of Christ in ways that help and welcome others as Jesus would want us to do. Community is our blessing, and each of us is called to be a good steward to help our community thrive and to embrace the opportunities we have been given to share Jesus and the love of God.

Clione Schneider, SAM