From the Pastor&
      "   One ought, every day at least, to hear a little song, read a good poem, see a fine picture, and if possible,
            to speak a few reasonable words.  -- Goethe
       "   God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline. -- Paul (2 Timothy)
       "   For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain.--Paul (Philippians)
     
      We are all going to die.  Many of us in America are living as if we are immortal.  Many people are not only afraid of growing old, but of looking old.  It's a big business trying to keep looking young, but we are all going to die.  That's part of this exciting life.  What are we going to leave behind when we die?
     The industrialist Andrew Carnegie's dream was to die broke!  Carnegie made it into a maxim that "the man who dies& rich, dies disgraced."  He himself practiced this maxim, leaving nothing behind.  He slept all his life on a poor boy's metal cot; he never wanted to forget where he came from.  Carnegie expressed his wealth ethic in terms of trusteeship:
  This, then, is held to be the duty of the man of wealth:
  to set an example of modest, unostentatious living,
  shunning display or extravagance; to provide
  moderately for the legitimate wants of those
  dependent on him; and, after doing so, to consider
  all surplus revenues which come to him simply
  as trust funds, which he is called upon to administer&
  to produce the most beneficial results for the community.
     All of us work hard for our money& or most of us do.  Maybe some were born into wealth.  When it comes to money, what are your values?  If we have a lot of money on our death beds, it's up to others to declare our values!  Most of the time, though not always, people who receive a lot of money make a stand for themselves, not for the deceased.  So what do we do with money as disciples of the Risen Christ?
     I love what David Whyte, a Welsh poet, wrote:  "I don't want to have written on my tombstone, when finally people struggle through the weeds, pull back the moss, and read the inscription there, 'He made his car payments.'"
     As disciples of Christ, we need to remember that we are simply trustees& it's not ours to give to God.  Everything we have in this life is a TRUST from God.  Absolutely everything!  Stewardship is about giving to God a portion of what is yours.  But as trustess, we receive everything from God and take care of what God has given to each one of us.  Maybe, some people need more from God, and some people need less from God.  Do you ever think about wealth that way?  Maybe the "greatest generation" needed a lot less during the Great Depression and World War II years.  God gives everything.  You and I own nothing.  Not even ourselves.  I believe, and I hope, that God owns me!
     When I die, I won't take anything with me because it doesn't belong to me!  Everything belongs to God.  Remember when the rich young man came to Jesus?  Jesus told him to give it all away and follow him.  Those same words--give it all away--are addressed to each one of us.  We leave this life the same way we arrived& with nothing.
     Trustees own nothing but are legally accountable for everything.  If we are truly ethical Christians, we act as trustees who have received and then give it away.  When we receive an inheritance, how much do we need to receive so that the money might do good?  Erma Bombeck was often asked if she saved her best ideas for the next column, or how she parceled out and dribbled out her best ideas.  Before she died, she answered those questions in a column called, "What's Saved Is Often Lost."
     How do we decide to use or spend money?  How much do I need to spend on myself?  What do these words of Jesus mean to us:  "The gift you have received, give as a gift "(Matthew 10:8)?
     God give to each one of us what we need.  Proverbs 30:8 says, "Give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with the food I need."  St. Clement compared a person's possessions to a person's shoe size.  Possessions must fit the person--they will be uncomfortable if too large, painful if too small.  What size is your soul?
     What do you want to do with God's gifts before you die?  Giving away everything gives everything significance.  As Christians in the 21st century we need to be accountable, compassionate and loving when it comes to money--ah, God's gifts to us.
     Use God's gifts to you while you are still standing and decide to use these gifts for the common good.  Your "heirs" have their own gifts from God.  Would they have a good laugh after you are gone when they discover that your last check "bounced"?  Leave them laughing instead of fighting over God's money.
     Should we start a "bouncing our last check" group?
 
    Fr. Bill