By Roger Barbee

Since my wife Mary Ann had an entry for the annual Chili-Cookoff, we arrived early  at the Family Life Center in order to set up the crockpot of her sure-fire winner. But when I entered the FLC before 5:30 for an event scheduled to begin at 6 P.M., I was surprised to see 10-12 round tables, each fully decorated and set with napkins and spoons, gracing the center of the room. Over to one side another table was loaded with condiments to enhance each bowel of chili. In short, long before the big event, the room had been prepared in style and substance. All we participants would need to do was sample from the 16 entries, listen to the music–alas, no Willie Nelson or Trisha Yearwood– talk with table mates, and combine with them to give answers for the trivia quiz. (By the way, did you know that grapes are the most produced fruit in America?)

As I talked with others at our table, tried to answer Pastor Vern’s trivia questions, and sampled bowls of chili, I kept thinking of stewardship, the incredible first gift that God gives us in Genesis 1:28. And somewhere between the Cowboy Chili and the No Gas Chili, I realized that what was on display in the FLC was stewardship at its best.

When the topic of stewardship comes up, we tend to think: Money. However, in the era of Genesis 1:28, there was no currency, so God must have had a view of being good stewards that did not include dollars and cents. Yes, later in the Bible the topic of a tithe is mentioned, but that is only one dime out of every dollar, and it is an undeniable need in today’s world. But being good stewards entails more than monies, and the work that took place in order for the chili cook-off to happen so well, is a great example of stewardship: Time, perhaps each person’s most precious possession, was given by some folks so that we all could enjoy the event —time to purchase goods, time to plan the room, time to set up the room, time to clean up, and more time.

There are many needs at St. Mark’s but fortunately many talents. Please examine your gifts and find a way(s) in which you can be a good steward of our church. As my Granny Susie was fond of saying, “If you want to get, you have to give.”