Principles of Stewardship

This past year, Park Cities Presbyterian Church (PCPC) deacons focused on cultivating and renewing a spirit of generosity within our church. This effort, based upon PCPC’s Principles of Stewardship, was initiated by Harris McCraw with the support of Jim Sheppard, a Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) Elder based in Atlanta who has assisted other churches with similar initiatives.

If PCPC’s stated mission is to extend the transforming presence of the Kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ in Dallas and to the world, then we, the members of the church, are responsible for using our gifts and abilities to that end. In 2 Corinthians 8:1-15, Paul cites the wonderful example of the churches in Macedonia, who “overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part. For they gave…beyond their means, of their own accord.” He then notes that this is not a command to the believers in Corinth, but rather an example of other believers’ earnest love for others and desire to follow our Lord Jesus Christ.

And this strikes at the root of where we must focus. Our giving must be driven by the heart and informed to a greater degree by our faith. To paraphrase the lessons from Jim: all too often, we focus on the TO element of our giving. We think in terms of specific investments, outcomes, missions, etc. Talk of budgets too easily dominates, particularly in a culture as financially oriented as the one we inhabit today. However, these concerns, while certainly appropriate, often crowd out the FROM element of our giving. It is our faith that must be the driver of how we give and steward the resources the Lord has entrusted to us.

Helpfully, PCPC’s Principles of Stewardship were compiled by the Session several years ago to guide all of us “as stewards who are to be held accountable, we must prayerfully seek to exercise our stewardship in a manner that is consistent with and obedient to God’s Word.”

This is where the initiative has focused. It became clear, too, that this ought to start with the elders, deacons, and staff of the church, who must embrace a culture of generosity in all that we do and steward: time, treasure, and talent. We must each prayerfully consider our own hearts and giving in the context of the Principles of Stewardship, talk through where we are with our spouses and families, and then seek to draw closer to the models and examples presented in Scripture.

From there to the church as a whole, giving and generosity will need to be a discipleship conversation as we broaden from a focus on how to give to one that equally emphasizes why we give. As PCPC’s third principle says: God is concerned with the heart of the giver as opposed to the amount of the gift. God does not need our money, nor are God’s ultimate purposes contingent upon our gifts. Generous giving is a grace given by God in which He provides us the opportunity to participate in His work. As we give sacrificially, we grow in our sanctification (for scriptural support and further reading, see: Matthew 6:1-4; Matthew 23:23-26; 2 Corinthians 8:1-7; Matthew 6:19-21;
2 Corinthians 9:7; Mark 12:41-44; 1 Corinthians 13:3).

We urge all of the members of PCPC to prayerfully consider the Principles of Stewardship (see QR code) in light of their own giving and seek to continually cultivate a spirit of generosity, as well as come together as a church body to extend the Kingdom.

Principles of STewardship and online Giving

Visit pcpc.org/give and read PCPC’s biblical Principles of Stewardship