The following are excerpts from a recent Pastoral letter from Pastor Paulette Stahlke ofSt. John Lutheran Church, Elwood, Indiana, where Pastor Thompson served from 1968-1977.
"October 12th has been set aside as Commitment Sunday - a day when we will fill out our estimate of giving cards and place them on the altar during the worship service.
Commitment Sunday is not a day when the congregation begs for money, nor is it a day when the "needs of the church" are thrown in
our faces. Commitment Sunday is based on a need that all of us have, the "need of the giver to give" for our own spiritual development, rather than on the "need of the church to receive." Filling out an estimate of giving card is not equivalent to membership dues to some organization. We are followers of Jesus Christ, who want to give unselfishly, as an act of discipleship, as our response to the Lord's blessings.
I hope you will give prayerful and careful consideration to the question: "how has the Lord blessed me?"
Our commitment to our Lord is not linked to "meeting the budget" but is an act of worship, an act of thanksgiving for what the Lord has first given us - our selves, our time, our talents, and our possessions.
Economically, these are tough times for many of us, but that should not be an excuse to short-change the Lord. After all, the Lord did not short-change us; he gave everything, including his life, for you and me. The least we can do is acknowledge how blessed we are that the Lord loves us that much."
(Note --"I guess we Pastors all tend to think alike!!).
Pastor Thompson