Why do I feel so strongly about Stewardship? Maybe it is in my genes. The following is one of a collection from the writings (she called them sketches and meditations) of my grandmother, Viola Merritt Lyle. Viola was a minister’s wife (Presbyterian), but after my Grandfather passed away, she spent a great deal of time writing for assorted religious publications and for her own church membership. I hope some of what she had to say will find a receptive audience here at Pohick.

OUR RETURN
“How can I repay the Lord for all his goodness to me?” (Psalm 116:12)

This is a question that is difficult to answer particularly if we are uncertain as to what goodness we have received from the Lord. Boundless love, his Son for our redemption, His work and spirit for our guidance, every day He provides for us.

We talk sometimes as if stewardship were just the giving of money. It includes this, but money is not enough. How much money would we need to make adequate return for God’s love - for His tender care of us every day? Anyway, the money is His! Long ago Moses said “but remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth.” (Deut. 8:18) He has entrusted money to us to use for our own comfort because He cares for our needs, but it is also for the advancement of His Kingdom. Money is only part of our stewardship.

No one can tell you how much you should give, or what your gift should be. If He reigns forever in our hearts we will use our bodies, our minds, our personalities, and a portion of our money - all of His gifts, for Him.

Have you heard the story of the banquet where everyone at the table was a notable man?

The toastmaster asked each one in turn to tell what the greatest honor he had ever received was. One man had been honored in so many ways that all were eager to hear what he would say. He told a simple story.

He had been hours late on a snowbound train. There was a lame newsboy selling fruit. When the train finally reached the terminal some one, in the rush to reach the warm station, jostled the boy, spilling his fruit into the snow.

This man saw the mishap. He retrieved the boy’s crutch, wiped the fruit dry on a clean handkerchief, handed him his basket and hurried toward the station. He heard the thump of the crutch, felt a tug at his sleeve and looked into the little lad’s admiring eyes.

“Say, Mister, I wanted to tell you - you’re the first person I ever met that made me think of Jesus.”

“That,” said the speaker huskily, “was the greatest honor ever conferred upon me.”

Jesus came to lead men to God. God has put us here, each in our place, to be like him. Stewardship is not just a duty; it is an incredible privilege, a precious gift from God.

What can you do to make someone else “think of Jesus?”

Viola Merritt Lyle (1952)