Stewardship:  the job of supervising or taking care of something, such as an organization or property.

I looked this word up because I want to be a good steward of the resources and gifts that God entrusts and blesses to me.  The more He gives, the more responsibility we have to use and take care for His good intentions.  What an honor!

In 1999, we inherited my Mother-In-Law’s 1992 Toyota Corolla.  I drove that car around town for another 15 years and it had about 120,000 miles on it when we finally sold it and bought a two year old Kia Soul.  I took care of the Toyota with regular maintenance and it probably will last for thousands more miles for its new owner even though it was twenty-two years old!

So why did I want a new car?  Simply, I was tired of driving around an old car. I was ready for something a little more up to date and hopefully, just as dependable.  Vanity!

I baby my Soul.  I keep her clean and tidy.  She gets regular maintenance and has upgraded tires to prevent flats.  I hand wax her once a year and I paint any little scratches and dings with paint made especially for that purpose.  For Christmas, I asked for fleece seat covers that only cover the bottom of the seat since that is the area that shows the most wear and dirt.  And I indulgently spent a little extra to get personalized license plates.  My car wasn’t new but she was new to me and I wanted her to look nice as long as possible.  She’s almost seven years old now and only has 39,000 miles.  Needless to say, the dealership would love to have her back to sell a third time!

The point is when we take care of the things and people God gives to us, we often get immeasurable benefits and blessings as a result of our effort.   Misuse or abuse often brings heartache and confusion.  I’ve been there.  In those times when I was so eager to please and make what I thought would be an impression on God, I misused his gifts, my  earnings, to try and bless someone else when that money should have gone to provide for the needs of my own family. It didn’t dawn on me until much later that only when I started taking care of my own family would my territory increase to bless others.  There is no honor in going into great debt just to look good.  That is how pride works and it’s sinful.

I’m a firm believer in good stewardship of all God gives us, and that includes people, money, things, animals, and the good old earth on which we live.  May I live responsibly.