"All that we have is thine, a trust, O Lord, from thee."

Hymn: “We Give Thee But Thine Own” – William W. How (1823-1897)
Typical Tunes: SCHUMANN, ST. ANDREW

This stewardship hymnline gives us a nudge toward making our offerings with a better sense of WHO our belongings belong to. To put it in context, the whole first stanza says this:

    “We give thee but thine own, whate’er the gift may be.
    All that we have is thine alone, a trust, O Lord, from thee.”

I have to be reminded of this more and more often because in our society, we are over-encouraged to amass more and keep it. In spite of all those Hoarders Shows on cable television, we don’t seem to see ourselves in the desperate people who climb over piles of stuff and are sometimes buried even unto death beneath those collections. They are in many ways we.

If what I have is a trust from God (and that IS a biblical principle), that means he trusts me to use it wisely and to share it unbegrudgingly. I cringe when I pay the escalating bills that accrue in my to-be-paid box; I bristle every time I drive away from a gas station having paid more than ten times what I once paid for a gallon of gas. These are natural reactions.

But when it comes to writing a check to my church or other worthwhile charities (Christian and otherwise), that cringing bristle should not be part of my reaction. I have to remember that God has given me custody of this money and expects me to use it well – to not waste it, but to reinvest it in his Kingdom.

It is good to be trusted. But I find that a great responsibility always accompanies a great confidence… especially from God.

Congregational Singing of SCHUMANN tune  (Not great. Best I could find.)