Stewardship Talk October 20-21, 2007
by Kurt Vetters
A mother invited some people to dinner. At the table, she turned to their six-year-old daughter and said, "Would you like to say the blessing?"
"I wouldn't know what to say," the girl replied.
"Just say what you hear Mommy say," she said.
The daughter bowed her head and said, "Lord, why on earth did I invite all these people to dinner?"
Well folks, we’ve invited a lot of people to dinner here at St. Michaels!
Our Parish is alive and vibrant and growing and doing great things!
My name is Kurt Vetters, and I am your Parish Stewardship representative. So I’m the guy who gets to stand up here at each Mass this weekend and do a little bragging on what we are doing, congratulate our many volunteers, and ask you to keep up the momentum to build our Parish in faith, in reverence, in missions, and in commitment.
I’m not much of a numbers guy, but look at where we have come in the last ten years! We have major renovations to our buildings and grounds, our Masses are standing room only, our special events like the Parish Festival, Reverse Raffle, and Auction are always successful, our CYO and Youth Ministry programs are flourishing. Our biggest problem with volunteers is how to communicate and organize all the help we are offered. We run a BLUE RIBBON School that produces the finest kids in Indiana, who go on to become wonderful citizens and parishioners. We’ve produced a deacon, and one young man among us (maybe more) has expressed a desire to enter the priesthood.
I’ve also seen us respond to crisis. The last time I stood at this lectern was in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Jim Besinger and I ran a load of medical supplies and donated items from our Parish to Plaquemine, Louisiana. When we rolled in and introduced ourselves at the little Catholic Church there, the Sister who was running the shelter said in a weary voice, “Welcome, where ya’ll from?”
“We’re from St Michaels in Greenfield, Indiana,” we said.
Tears welled up in her eyes. She burst into tears and as she hugged us she said “I prayed to St. Michael all night that he would send us help from another Catholic Church, and here you are from St. Michaels first thing this morning!”
I wish I could bottle that spirit of appreciation and share it all with you, because you all deserve it. We were just the messengers. It is a living example of what the spirit of giving can do! We may not always know it, but God is always answering our prayers, too.
Many of our prayers for our Parish right now are for more places to sit! Almost every Mass we have, the walls are filled with people standing. So we are working hard to raise the $900,000 or so it will take to add a couple of hundred more seats to our sanctuary. In the new design Long Range Planning has commissioned, 220 additional seats and a 1700 square foot Narthex are the hallmarks. If you’ve ever tried to sell tickets to a fundraiser outside in the rain, you know why we need that Narthex!
We have about $350,000 in the fund for this now, and another $140,000 in pledges from our Legacy for Our Mission campaign to be collected by December 2008. So if you have funds remaining to pay in that last campaign, know that it will soon be working for us! At the conclusion of the Legacy campaign, we will be able to launch our own campaign to raise the rest of the money. The Archdiocese requires us to have half the money in hand and half in pledges to begin construction and receive a loan.
Sharing your Treasure is just one of the responsibilities that come with a growing parish. Another opportunity to serve God is with our time.
Please take a few seconds, close your eyes, and think about how much time you have donated to St. Michaels this year. Did you give an hour a month? Two? Ten?
If it’s a lot, thank you so much for all you do! If it’s a little, hey, tomorrow is a new day! We still need you! And we’ll help you find a fun, fulfilling mission that fits your talents and time! I guarantee that very little in life can bring more joy to you than giving of yourself.
We have 62 ministries that are run by volunteers here at the St Michaels. Each of those Ministries has from two to twenty volunteers that serve on them. And I am not even including school volunteer opportunities in this list. Linda Newett at the Parish office keeps a master list of places where we need volunteers, so she is a great point of contact should you wish to become more involved.
This week, you will be receiving in the mail a Stewardship Card from the Parish. Please pay particular attention to the back side. This is an excellent tool for you to add your name to the rolls of volunteers.
This Intention Card includes opportunities for commitments of prayer and service, and financial gifts to our parish and archdiocesan communities.
Everyone is important and everyone has something to give back to our Parish and Archdiocese communities, whether it be visiting the sick or reading at Mass. St. Michaels belongs to you!
Here’s what you need to do: Review the Parish Time and Talent portion of the card and find your niche. Complete the gifts of prayer, time, talent and treasure portion of your intention card and return it, either by mail, to the Parish office, or in the collection plate. Even if you are currently involved in a ministry, renew that commitment by completing the card.
The intention card is confidential and is not legally binding. It’s just there to help us plan for the future, and to guide you in your choice of ways to give your time, talent and treasure. Also remember that our parish does not expect every penny of your charitable dollar. The top portion of the card is for your commitment to our parish and the bottom portion is for your commitment to the archdiocese. And don’t forget, folks, our Archdiocese does great work with the dollars we give them, and without them, there is no St. Michaels Parish.
In our Archdiocese we are an example of a well-run parish. They look to us to lead the way. You all know the story, success leads to responsibility and good fortune means you have to give back accordingly. Paul said “God is able to make every grace abundant for you, so that in all things, always having all that you need, you may have an abundance for every good work. (2 Cor 9:8)
Thank you to all who have gone before us to build this beautiful church. Thank you to all of you who make this Parish a living, vibrant community. Thank you to all of you who will build the next portion of our legacy to our children and grandchildren, who one day will live with their families in this Parish and marvel at the things you have done.
A pastor stood before his congregation and said "I have bad news, I have good news, and I have more bad news." The congregation got quiet.
"The bad news is: the church needs a new roof!" the pastor said. The congregation groaned.
"The good news is: we have enough money for the new roof." A sigh of relief was heard rippling through the gathered group.
"The bad new is: it's still in your pockets"
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