Gnats and Gods...

Talk about financial giving floats around in our culture much like summer gnats.  Walk through your day and you see it coming...that cloud of annoyance that hovers right in your path.  Several choices are available.

• You can walk through the cloud, suffer the annoyance, and keep your eyes, ears and mouth blocked. 
• You can avoid the cloud altogether.
• Or, I suppose gnat elimination might be an option.  Get rid of the problem altogether.  Period.  

I think we know why gnats annoy us.  But why does talking about giving annoy us?  Why do we avoid this discussion just like we avoid the gnats?  We hate to talk about money.  We hate to listen about money.  (But we do like money!)

The financial stewardship conversation in congregations often elicits the gnat response.  Many pastors actually apologize before any sermon or conversation about giving--and they preach/speak to eyes, ears, and mouths (as well as wallets) that are closed up tight.  Many congregants check the calendar and schedule fun things like root canals on stewardship Sundays.  Some churches and congregants eliminate the conversation.  No more talk about finances.  No pledging.  No challenges.  Nothing.  Period. 

But talk about giving, especially in the church, the body of Christ, should not be an annoyance at all, it should be a privilege, a call, a joy.  What has happened to us?  Imagine if baptisms were avoided like the questions of giving.  Would we be concerned?  Would be be talking about the issue?  

Why is financial giving the one place that is off the table in our spiritual lives?  Americans were thrilled to learn that stewardship involved more than just financial giving...which, of course, it does.  But instead of broadening our generous spirits, looking at the "time and talent" part seems to have allowed us to avoid the "treasure"--a perfect solution to the financial gnat problem.

It took monotheism a good while to catch on fully in Old Testament times.  People loved to worship the God of Israel; they just wanted to cover their bases...just in case the LORD couldn't be trusted, they still had their household idols.  Perhaps, instead of blocking or avoiding or eliminating this conversation, we should take a good long look at the issue, at ourselves, and perhaps at the household idol that claims our ultimate trust and loyalty, even over the God we proclaim to love and serve.