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| The Spirit of Giving The laughter of children, the beauty of a sunset, the warmth of love, and the thrill of accomplishment are just a few of the wonderful gifts God gifts us all every day. God also gives us our parish community -- a place we can go for comfort and solice, people we can share our joys with and who care about what happens to us, a calling to give to those need and a group of people willing to share that call. These are all gifts from God. One of the greatest gifts we are given is God's call to giving. God calls us to give our time and energy, as well as our money. If we are to make a difference in the world, giving must be a part of it. Giving means their is money for food shelves, homeless shelters, medical care, education, and thousands of other worthwhile causes. Giving also means there is calling, an opportunity, to support our church financially. Your money means we can maintain a beautiful place to worship, the tools to give our children and youth quality faith education and motivated and experienced staff to lead and support us. Your gifts to the church enables our parish to serve the community and make a difference in the world. So how much should you give? The traditional standard of giving is the tithe: 10% of your income, given as an offering of "first fruits" to the God who gives us everything. Some people prefer the "modern tithe," which divides the 10% tithe between the local church and various ministries and agencies in the larger world, such as Episcopal Relief and Development, Church World Service, or the United Way. Many people strive to reach the tithe, giving 6% or 7% or 8% of their income and increasing the percentage as they are able. Some tithe to their church and give extra offerings, above and beyond the 10%, to other ministries. How much should you give? The best answer is to ask yourself how much is the Holy Spirit calling you to give. If you listen to the Holy Spirit, and give what you are being called to give, you can't miss. If you would like to talk more about what is appropriate to give, please contact our rector at 952-926-1646.
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| Welcome
:: Children
:: Youth
:: Music
:: Adults
:: Giving
:: Serving
:: Theology |
