By Melissa Pavlicek, Father Ed Popish, SSCC, and Paul Pancho
Special to the Herald
In Psalm 24:1, David acclaimed: “The world is the Lord’s and all it contains, the world and those who dwell in it.” Through his psalms, David sang out with joy and thanksgiving for all the goodness that God bestowed on mankind. It was, one might say, “music to God’s ears.” The same rang true as Jesus proclaimed unequivocally, in all his teachings and actions, the absolute and unwavering generosity of His (Our) Father.
Now, more than 2,000 years hence, as Catholics we acknowledge that all we have comes directly from God. For many of us, we do this by attending Mass, engaging in the liturgy and sharing our monetary offering each week — and we feel content with this. Others step further and volunteer their time and talents in their parish ministries. Yet, does it truly satisfy what David sang out through his Psalms, and Jesus through his teachings and lifestyle? They truly challenge us to live a daily life of stewardship.
Granted, with our ever-evolving technology and daily busy-ness, this is easier said than done. Rather than seeing “living a daily life of stewardship” as a duty and obligation, let’s take a step back, reflect and simply ask ourselves, “Am I totally grateful for all that I have? How can I show my appreciation to God for all he has given me?”
This may help to open our minds and hearts to truly live our daily lives of stewardship with genuine gratitude. In doing so, let us be guided and encouraged by these three tenets:
Stewardship: God has blessed us physically, mentally, emotionally, materially and spiritually — unconditionally — just as parents do for their children. Let us steward, not squander, these sacred gifts. We do so by sharing with those around us — in our personal relationships, at church, at the workplace or at school, in business or social settings. We share our time, talents and resources. As grand as a large donation to a church or school. Or volunteering our time and talent at church or an organization. It may be a simple gesture of helping an elder cross the street, or buying a homeless person a cup of coffee. Or it may be our motivation for increasing our weekly offertory or tithe to God. Whatever the sharing, let us give it freely and with gladness in our hearts. Simply, all that we have is God’s, we are merely the managers while here on earth.
Evangelization: “Give praise to the Lord, proclaim His name; make known among the nations what He has done! (Psalm 105:1) This is what David excelled in. And where Jesus was unsurpassed, the master. As followers of Jesus, we have been blessed with the knowledge and belief that God is almighty and our way to salvation. He has equipped us with the freedom and the fire to spread the good news. To those who will listen, we can freely speak out and share our faith. To those who are hesitant, a subtle approach of “actions speak better than words” may be the order of the day — through simple acts of politeness, kindness, appreciation.
Discipleship: “A disciple is not greater than his teacher, but everyone when fully trained is like his teacher.” (Luke 6:40) Jesus was the greatest teacher, bar none. And, he has commissioned us to learn and share his Scripture — not just through words, but by example. For those curious about our faith, invite them to Mass or a special church event. For those experiencing a trial or tribulation, listen and empathize, then offer an appropriate prayer or Scripture. Invite someone to a Bible study or to a ministry project. The opportunities for teaching, educating and motivating are endless, and now await our action.
Stewardship. Evangelization. Discipleship. By fully espousing to follow all three, inseparably, we can live a daily life of stewardship, and proclaim mahalo ke Akua and hallelujah to our forever giving and forgiving Almighty Father. Now, that — like David’s psalms of acclamations — would be “music to God’s ears!”
