by Lesle Knop
After weeks of dreary winter, our houseplants burst into life with blooms in bright shades of white, gold, pink and red!
I had very little to do with the transformation of the cacti and violets — just a little water and letting them bask in their pots in warm southern light. That’s about it. I tend to them regularly, but they are God’s handiwork.
Stewardship is like that. Stewardship begins because God loves us. We know this because of Jesus Christ, and through all we experience in daily life.
We see God’s love in all things that are good in our lives. It is the Holy Spirit who then moves us to act charitably toward others.
Stewardship doesn’t begin with love for our neighbor. Nor does it begin with gratitude for the gifts that we receive. It begins with God.
Without much effort on my part, plants bloomed. Without any effort on my part, God has given me our beautiful mother, the church, and all of you, dear brothers and sisters in Christ. We are stewards because of all that God has given to us.
Pope Benedict XVI wrote: “Love of God leads to participation in the justice and generosity of God towards others.”
Every day, the people with whom I work are witnesses of the generosity of Catholics in northeast Kansas who, through the grace of the Holy Spirit, participate in some way in the mission of the church.
We witness your love for God blooming brightly through your charity. A retired business owner starts a family Donor Advised Fund.
A widow names her parish in her will and becomes a member of the Catholic Legacy Society. A family pledges support to help build our priest retirement community, provide for the care of our elderly, expand our ability to welcome guests at Savior Pastoral Center and other causes supported by the archdiocese’s One Faith, One Family, One Future in Christ capital campaign.
A young couple makes their first commitment to help in the mission of the church through the ministries funded through the Archbishop’s Call to Share.
Not all gifts are financial. On March 1, the Catholic Fine Arts Council opened the sixth annual monthlong Archbishop’s Invitational High School Art Exhibit at Savior Pastoral Center with awards to the artists who used their talents to teach others about discipleship. God not only blesses us, but makes us a blessing to others.
Look around and you will see glorious, colorful, sunlit signs of God’s goodness and the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Thank you for all you do to brighten our often frustrating world and, lately, a very long and gloomy winter.
May God bless you with a holy season of Lent.
