“But he said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and keep it!”                ~ Luke 11:28

While I was on my way to swim class one morning, Olivia Lane, DJ on The Message on Sirius XM, said something that will not leave my brain. She said, “It is not how many people you lead. It is not how many people follow you. It is not how many people you influence, or how much power you have. What matters is how quickly you obey God when God calls you.”

I tried for decades to run from God’s call. I was in no way, shape or form, going to become a pastor. I watched what it did to my mother, and to other friends, and I wasn’t going there. Until I had no choice. And by no choice, I mean God continued to clear my path, and lay every step in my lap, to the point that I could no longer ignore God’s call. And to be completely honest, I am so grateful every single day that I finally got out of my own way, and listened to God. I might think I know what I want, or what is good for me, but God knows. God’s ways are not my ways, and God’s thoughts are not my thoughts. (Thank HEAVEN for that!)

As we continue to move through our Changemakers worship series, each Sunday we are being challenged to think about what it means to be a Change-maker, and to think about where God is calling us to make small changes to make our part of the world a better place.

In the church, part of the challenge is thinking about where our passions lie. Is there something we see that needs changes, and are our hearts set on fire for that …… fill in the blank? Is there a ministry that we can begin, or collaborate with others, to bring God’s world to our world?

The other part of the challenge is in our giving financially to the church. Giving our first fruits back to God. We call this Stewardship. But what does that mean? And how does obeying God fit into this?

First, God calls us to give back to God that which is God’s in the first place. Matthew 22:21, Mark 12:17, and Luke 20:25, read: “Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s.”

The real teaching in this verse comes with the second part. It implies that humans are made in God’s image, and we belong to God. This means we are to obey God in everything we do, with our entire being—heart, soul, mind and strength, including worship, obedience, and resources—our wealth and time.

Second, when we (the church) use the resources that are entrusted to the church, we are to use them in a way that honors God, that builds people up, and doesn’t tear them down. By doing that, we obey God.

God places God’s call on each of our hearts, and those calls are different for each one of us. But each of our calls are not given in silos. Our calls, our gifts, are meant to be used in collaboration with those gifts and skills of the people around us, in order to fully bring God’s Kingdom to fruition.

Last Sunday, we held our Annual Budget Meeting, where we approved the Proposed 2026 Budget. While there wasn’t much discussion (there rarely ever is, and that can be okay), there is concern. We unanimously approved a budget that is 4.15% increase over the 2025 budget. We also approved the transfer up to $25,000 more out of our Special Donations Fund to cover any shortfall that we have at December 31.  Our current shortfall as of 9/30 is more than $9,000.

Now, I fully understand that there may be a feeling of conflict between giving to a ministry such as Share-A-Meal, weekly sandwiches, the Little Food Pantry, Student Success Store, Hope at the Brick House, or any of the other worthy ministries we have or support,  and giving to a general budget that includes overhead costs and salaries—specifically when the salaries make up about 74% of that budget. This is where the real challenge comes in—addressing the elephant in the room—are we obeying God’s call by having this staff—including a full time pastor? Is it our call—the call of Faith First Community Church– to continue moving forward in the way that we are, or are we being called in a different direction?

This is absolutely a legitimate question that we need to ask, and we need to discuss. And we very well may be obeying God’s call (spoiler alert—I whole-heartedly believe we are—but then again, I am the full time pastor!). If this is what we discern, then the next step is to figure out how we are going to make sure we meet our budget.

This is the point where each one of us must hold conversation with God. We must listen to what God has placed on our hearts. Maybe God has placed an idea about how we can meet our budget. Maybe God has placed the call to give more—or to pledge for the first time. Whatever it is that God is calling you to do, it isn’t how much power or influence you have. It isn’t how many people follow you, or how many you lead. What matters when God calls you, is how quickly you obey.

Always Peace, 

Pastor Heidi