Stewardship is all about looking after the gifts God has given us. It’s about managing our God-given resources, and using them to advance His kingdom. Some of the things we should be stewarding are our: 1) Gifts: ‘Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms’ (1 Peter 4:10 NIV). 2) Finances: ‘Honour the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops’ (Proverbs 3:9 NIVUK). 3) Health: ‘Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? (1 Corinthians 6:19 NIV). 4) Environment: ‘Rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and over every living creature that moves on the ground’ (Genesis 1:28 NIV). 5) Time and work: ‘Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters’ (Colossians 3:23 NIV). The way we use and treat all these things is important. When we recognise that every good thing we have has been given to us by God (take a look at James 1:17), we’ll want to use them well. Jesus told a parable about a master giving his servants money, and telling them to use it well. Two of them invested the money and could bring more back to their master, while the third hid the money and brought back that money to the master. God wants us to take the gifts He gives us and use them wisely to bring Him glory and advance His kingdom. So the question is: What are we doing with the things God has given us? Will He say to us: ‘Because you were loyal with small things, I will let you care for much greater things. Come and share my joy with me’?

What Now?

Make a list of all the gifts God has given you. Then have a think about how you use those gifts. Are you being a good steward?