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Ren Amor's Stewardship Talk on Sunday 4 October 2026
Steward: Called to Serve
(Introduction & Part I – Identity)
Good morning [or afternoon], everyone. Whenever we pause to ask ourselves the big questions of faith, we almost always end up at the baseline of identity: Who are we?
Scripture tells us that first and foremost, we are the People of God—the God who created all things. In our worship, we often sing or pray those familiar words: “All things come of thee, O Lord, and of thine own have we given thee.”
If we truly believe that God is the Creator, then a follow-up question naturally arises: Do I love what God loves?
We are commanded to love our neighbour as ourselves. But if we love God, and God loves the world, then we are also called to love God’s creation.
So, who am I? Who is humanity in this grand design? We are not the Creator, so we cannot claim absolute ownership over anything. Yet, we are not slaves stripped of agency. Instead, we find ourselves in a unique role: we are servants. We are empowered by the authority of God, entrusted with responsibility, and held accountable for how we handle what has been given to us.
In a word, we are Stewards. Every single one of us is called to be a steward of God’s creation.
(Part II – Purpose)
This brings us to our purpose: What are we actually called to do in Creation? Our purpose is to bring about a restored state of wholeness between God, humanity, and all of creation. In the Jewish tradition, this state of complete, flourishing harmony is known as Shalom.
We are called to be active agents of justice—striving in everything we do to heal brokenness and restore that wholeness. That means we cannot retreat into an insulated spiritual bubble, ignoring the physical world around us. As the theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer famously wrote, “The world must not be abandoned.”
Stewardship is not a temporary campaign or a means to an end. It is a fundamental way of living.
(Part III – Mission)
To understand how to live this out, we look to Jesus Christ, who embodied the ultimate Servant-Steward.
Our mission is directed by Jesus’ own mission statement in Luke’s Gospel:
- To proclaim good news to the poor,
- To proclaim release for prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind,
- To free those who are held in bondage, and
- To proclaim that this and every year is the Lord’s.
When we take this mission seriously, stewardship will inevitably bring us into tension or even confrontation with the patterns of this world.
(Part IV – Principles of Stewardship)
There are five key principles that guide us as stewards in the modern world:
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Globalization: Ours is a global village. Our responsibilities don't stop at our municipal or provincial borders. Stewardship calls us to look beyond narrow nationalism and recognize our interconnectedness with every living soul across the planet.
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Community: We must reject the radical individualism that pervades our society. Are we isolated “survivors” fighting for ourselves, or are we together on “our island home”? By our Baptism, we are called to respect the dignity of every person. God has blessed us with memory, reason, and skill—not for self-aggrandizement, but to serve the community alongside others whom God loves just as much as us.
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Ecology: We are called to manage all of creation—to tend and care for it, never to exploit or destroy it. Having technical knowledge or understanding nature does not mean having license to subdue or dominate it destructively.
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Politics: Politics, at its root, is simply how we organize and run our shared society. As baptized believers, we are called to bring our values into the public square: speaking out against unjust systems, standing up for the oppressed, and refusing to cooperate with evil. We draw inspiration from leaders like Archbishop Desmond Tutu in South Africa or Tommy Douglas here in Canada, who showed us what faithful public action looks like.
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The Future: Stewardship requires us to look ahead—to think in terms of the third and fourth generations, of our children’s children. We are answerable to God for the future we leave behind.
(Part V – Implications of Being a Steward)
Living as a steward comes with real implications.
It requires sacrifice, and at times, it may even involve suffering or discomfort. It may require us to feel far more at home alongside the poor and marginalized than in the corridors of wealth and privilege.
In other words, to be a steward simply means to be the Church.
We are a people who believe in miracles. We believe that God is actively working out His grand plan of Shalom through us, right here on earth. There is a vital need for the Church today to reclaim this symbol of the Steward—to step up, to step forward, and to responsibly manage all the financial and material resources entrusted to our care.
Remember the words of Scripture: From the one to whom much has been given, much will be expected.
(Part VI – What is Our Response?)
So, how do we respond today? Our response spans three interconnected areas: the stewardship of our time, our abilities, and our financial resources (both income and assets).
When we talk about the stewardship of income, it’s important to clarify one thing: stewardship is not primarily about the parish’s expense budget. Managing expenses is simply good operational management on the part of leadership.
True stewardship of income is an intentional, personal decision about how you and I respond to Creator God for the life, time, income, and abilities He has entrusted to us. Our response should always be grounded in two concepts: proportion and sacrifice.
God has blessed each of us with unique gifts, and we are invited to return a proportionate share back to God’s work.
To offer a practical framework for this, I often think of one of my personal heroes, Sir John Templeton. Sir John approached finance through what he called the 10-10-80 rule:
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The first 10% of gross income is given away—plowed straight back into God's work and the society that enabled you to earn it.
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The second 10% goes toward long-term savings and investments—building security for the future through tools like TFSAs or RRSPs.
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The remaining 80% is what you live on to fund everyday life: food, shelter, taxes, and recreation.
Over the years, this principle has served as a grounded, faithful tool in my own financial toolbox.
(Conclusion)
Stewardship is not a burden; it is our calling and our privilege. As we go about our lives this week, let us ask ourselves: How is God calling me to use my time, my talents, and my treasures to restore wholeness and build God's Kingdom today?
Thank you.
Ren Amor
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