This year’s stewardship theme, As Christ Loved Us, points us to the heart of the Gospel. When St. Paul wrote to an early Christian community, he summed up his message as follows:

Walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself for us, an offering and sacrifice to God (Eph 5:2).

These words are not only central to Paul’s message, they are also central to our weekly worship. Every Sunday, as we transition from the Liturgy of the Word (Scripture, Sermon, Creed, and Prayers) to the Liturgy of the Table (Holy Communion), Father Eric recites these words as an Offertory Sentence that bridges the two major sections of our worship. At this pivotal moment, we prepare to receive Christ’s love in the sacrament with a call to share that same love through our actions. Walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself for us, an offering and sacrifice to God.

At St. John, love is the foundation of our generosity. Christ’s love is the foundation of our giving, our serving, and our living. When we give, we are not merely supporting programs or maintaining buildings—we are participating in the divine work of love in action. Christ’s self-giving inspires us to give joyfully, trusting that God will use our offerings to create abundant life. Generosity allows Christ’s love to touch the lives of our members and allows Christ’s love to extend beyond the walls of our church.

St. John is blessed to have a parish family that embodies this spirit. Whether you have been part of our community for decades or have just recently joined, we invite you to consider how God can use your generosity to continue enlivening St. John as a welcoming community of worship and witness.

Loving God, we trust that our life is a gift from you. Fill us with your Spirit, so that our generosity may come to resemble more fully your perfect and self-giving love, and so that your kingdom may grow in our church and throughout the world, through Christ our Lord, Amen.

Fr. Eric Hillegas, Tom Russell, Matt Conant, Megan Dietz

Stewardship Committee