The “S” In Steward
God is still working on me and keeps bringing me back to the idea of stewardship. No joke, it seems like everywhere I turn, someone is talking about the parable of the talents. Which, to me, is about stewardship.
I've been trying to come up with an acronym for the word STEWARD. As many of you can guess, I absolutely, positively love words. I always have. I've been writing poems and making up acronyms for as long as I can remember.
But because there are so many amazing, fitting words for each letter, I figured I'd make a declaration for each letter instead. So we're going to embark on a 7-week series, one letter per week.
If you have friends who you think would love to come along on this journey, tell them to sign up here. It'll come straight to their inbox.
Let's get started with the letter S:
I am a strategic, selective, surrendered servant of the Most High God.
So why did I pick those words?
Strategic
If we are truly going to be successful stewards with what God has given us, with the circumstances He's given us in our lives, we absolutely have to be strategic. The enemy is trying to distract and discourage us at every given moment. He does not let up when we are sleeping, and he doubles down on distraction and discouragement when we are tired or overwhelmed.
We have to have strategy. And a big chunk of a successful strategy is knowing what you are NOT doing... knowing what is NOT for you.
Think back to that post I made about setting my compass for a certain destination. That automatically EXCLUDES other destinations. Destinations that might have been really nice, but wouldn't have gotten me to where I really, really needed and wanted to be.
When you go on a trip, there are lots of places you could have chosen to go instead. Yes, you stopped for gas. Yes, you stopped to eat. And if it's a particularly long trip, yes, you spent the night in a hotel or two. But you did not get off track. You excluded literally thousands of other destinations to get to ONE.
Selective
And we have to be selective about our strategy. Where is God really leading us? Where and for whom does God really want me to invest what He's placed in me? Selective stewards don't make decisions out of fear. They make decisions based on what will make their Master happy and joyful, as seen in the parable of the talents.
Matthew 25:21: "His master replied, 'Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Enter into the joy of your master!'"
There are many, many things we CAN do. But what are we SUPPOSED to do?
Being selective means other options will automatically be excluded. When I made the deep commitment to get strong again for my grandbabies, I had to exclude a whole bunch of other options.
So many women my age set a goal to run a marathon, or even a half marathon. That would not have been a good goal for me. It would not have stabilized my joints or made them stronger. What might be a great goal for someone else could be a terrible one for you.
If you want to hear "well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your master," take some real time in prayer and in analysis of your life. What do you need to get rid of? What do you need to exclude so that you can be a selective, successful steward of your body, your time, your resources, your talents, and the unique way God has wired you?
That brings us to the next word...
Surrendered
What God has for you might not look the way you think it should. But I promise you, if you give God a chance, let Him do His thing for a little while, you will love it.
You'll think, "Wow, God, I didn't even know this is where I really wanted to be. I didn't know this is who I needed to be. I didn't know this was an option. Thank You for NOT giving me what I originally asked for, because this is so much better."
A construction site looks like an absolute disaster during building, but beautiful when it's finished.
A painting can look like a total mess halfway through... but at the end? Breathtaking.
A tapestry appears to be a tangled, thoughtless heap of threads. But when finished? So intricate and gorgeous you don't even want to walk on it.
Friends, we have to stay surrendered because for the vast majority of our lives, we are in the disastrous building phase, the unfinished painting or tapestry phase. We have to let God do His work in OUR lives so that we can do the work He has appointed us to do in OTHER people's lives.
Servant
Listen, it's really easy to get it twisted. We start thinking that everything we have is ours, and then we start acting like kings and queens instead of having a servant-steward mindset.
Your body is not yours, it's God's. He gave it to you so your spirit had a place to live while you carried out His passionate purpose for you.
Your spouse, your kids, your house, your influence, your everything, the very breath in your lungs, they are all gifts from Him. And what we do with them is our gift back to Him.
Don't let me make you think I have this right all the time, because I don't. I'm learning, just like you, every day, to be the strategic, selective, surrendered servant of the Most High God He designed me to be.
So here's my question for you this week:
What's one thing you're doing right now that isn't strategic? That isn't selective? That you haven't actually surrendered?
You don't have to fix it all today. Just notice it. Bring it to Him. That's step one of stewardship: not doing more, but seeing clearly.
Next week, we'll dig into the letter T, and I promise you, it's going to hit different once you've sat with the S for a few days.
Hit reply and let me know what you thought of this.
In passionate purpose,
Dorothy
Father,
Make me the strategic, selective, surrendered servant You designed me to be. Show me what to release and give me the courage to let it go. Where I've been striving in my own strength, meet me there and take over. I trust Your compass more than mine. In Jesus' name, Amen.