Being Good Stewards

By Lynette Ecord

From the beginning, God planned for mankind to be stewards of the world He’d just made. What an honor! Even in a perfect world, God blessed Adam and Eve with essential stewardship responsibilities.

We love God and cherish the gifts He has given us. We recognize Him as the source of every good thing. It’s not about what we manage or how much we have. The principle of stewardship covers our whole lives, and the last “crowning” act of stewardship is done through our estate plan.

In the Texas Conference, three pastors currently serve as trust officers and stewardship coordinators, each caring for a specific region within the conference. They serve constituents by speaking at churches, Adventist Youth (AY) meetings, prayer meetings and special events, providing information about stewardship and estate planning.

During the past quadrennium, churches, schools and ministries within the Texas Conference received more than $3.7 million in gifts through the estates of our faithful members. In the same period, the Trust Services team wrote 516 estate plans, established three Charitable Gift Annuities and made updates to 312 existing estate plans.

Stewardship is a total lifestyle. It involves our temple, time, talents, trust, truth, testimony and treasure.

We are so grateful to have faithful stewards in the Texas Conference, such as church members Cheryl and David in East Texas. After they married, they found employment in Marshall, Texas. When it was time to buy a home, they found few options, so they prayed to God. They asked Him to expand their family and provide a home where they could serve Him.

First, God helped them find land that was just the right size. David shared, “We felt the Lord placed us right here.” Then, God helped them find more land across the street. When Cheryl’s widowed aunt needed to move away from the cold and snow of her home in Maine to be closer to family, God answered her prayer through Cheryl and David. They helped move a one-bedroom home onto the property. After she passed away, they continued to use this “mission home” as a temporary shelter for Hurricane Katrina victims and a residence for family, friends, gospel workers and others.

In 2021 the Marshall, Linden, Marietta-New Hope, Atlanta and other Seventh-day Adventist churches met for a district church camp. On Sabbath afternoon, two young men were baptized, and one of them worked with the

Literature Ministries program to help pay his academy tuition. David shared, “We never imagined we would see baptisms on this property. Praise God that we get to serve in this capacity.”

The beauty of stewardship is that it helps us live a better life today and displays our trust in God tomorrow. God takes what we are willing to trust Him with and does incredible things! Stewards of God, let us experience the joy of giving and advance the Lord’s work. Let us continue to trust Him today and tomorrow.