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Opinion
Act of offering still has a place in the church

October, 2000

One of the memories that I have of my childhood experience in the church was the birthday bank. Every Sunday during the opening exercises of Sunday school, those who had celebrated birthdays that week would parade forward and put pennies or larger change into the birthday bank according to their new age. This was practiced not just for the children in the primary department, but for the adults as well, and I recall with fondness Mr. Wiggle, who lived beyond 100, taking a long time to put all of his change in the bank. For the little children who met downstairs, the bank was in the shape of a birthday cake. For the older children who had advanced to join the adults, the bank was the form of a globe. After the pennies had been placed we sang the old evangelical hymn, “Count Your Blessings”.

This memory is more than a sentimental journey for me. I count the birthday bank among my earliest lessons in stewardship. Here’s what I learned:

1. God has given my life to me. This means that my birthday is important and I am important enough to be recognized in the company of believers, whatever my age.

2. As I mature, the expectation of others as to my commitment to doing God’s work increases.

3. My gifts are multiplied when combined with other gifts.

4. My gifts to God are also gifts to God’s world (remember the globe bank), and my gifts to the world are also gifts to God.

Another lesson in stewardship came at my confirmation at the age of 12. I was younger than many of the kids in my group because I felt a sense of calling and consecration and truly wanted to commit myself to God. (For this reason I never underestimate the power of spirituality among children and youth.) Besides the laying on of hands, and the blessing of the minister, I also received offering envelopes. I only got $1.00 as an allowance, but I was proud to take a quarter and later 50 cents (when my allowance increased), and place it in the envelope and then in the offering plate on Sunday morning. Again, here was the affirmation that not only was I important in the community of faith, but also that I had something to give.

Now I recognize that these are tiny sums of money, and we no longer live in a churched culture, where everyone goes on Sunday morning to their house of worship in their white gloves and spiffiest suit. But the issue of being valued in a community, of having one’s life consecrated, and being able to give something and make a difference are still universal needs. So, here I would give a cheer for the act of receiving tithes and offerings as part of the Sunday liturgy.

I was not always a faithful Christian. I left the church during my seeking years. But, it was having something to give that brought me back to the church. I would suspect that this is the case for many young adults. My gift was the gift of music, and the congregation’s openness to receive this gift and affirm it was what brought me back into the fold of the faithful. Out of my gift of music, I eventually heard a call to ordained ministry, and in my ministry have become a proportional giver. I hope someday to be able to say that I am a tither.

In spite of the problem of what to do with the offering that we now face, as our culture moves into plastic and electronic money, I believe that the act of offering still has a place in the church. The offering, if handled in a holy manner, can be a way in which we sense the consecration of our lives as workers in the church and in our work beyond the sanctuary of the church. For those for whom the check’s in the mail, or the transfer is made through some other means, perhaps we need to be creative in finding other tangible things besides money to put into the offering plate — such as prayers or tokens of some grace that we have experienced in the week. However, I would certainly pray that when it comes to the offering we would not throw out the baby with the baptismal water.

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