What will ministry at St Andrew's look like in the future?

Stewardship         Mission Statement

Stewardship at Saint Andrew's

The concept of church stewardship is expanding in the Episcopal Church - from what we do for the church, to how we live our lives, including time, talents, and monies we give to our church. As Christians, everything we do and say reflects our belief system. We are all stewards, all the time.

The stresses of life in Northern Virginia are well known. Are you able to maintain an appropriate balance between work, family, community, church, and your own needs? Few of us are. Some people obtain a useful insight by asking, "How would Christ have me balance my life?" The answer to that question can be quite challenging and very rich ground to explore spiritually.

For a number of years, our clergy and vestry have committed themselves to tithe as the standard of financial giving, and to either tithe or develop a program of proportional giving that will lead to the tithe. (The tithe is given as a free will offering to advance the Kingdom of God, and represents one-tenth of our income.) They lead by this personal example. All members of the parish are encouraged to do the same. We look toward the tithe as a spiritual commitment and not as a fund-raising mechanism.

Additionally, we work  toward the following principles in our stewardship of the blessings God has bestowed upon us: 

• Give one-half of the congregation's disposable income to advance the Kingdom of God OUTSIDE of the St. Andrew's Parish.
• Delay the final formulation of the annual budget until after the fall stewardship program each year. This ensures that our stewardship reflects the congregational commitment to advancing the ministry of the church, and is not solely a means to fund a preconceived budget.
• Limit the number of special offerings asked of the parish and capital fund efforts.

We count on our members to assist us in our ministry. Your time, talents, and financial contribution help fulfill St. Andrew's vision of what the Lord would have us do. In our giving we invite our members to join us in pledging a tithe of their income, or commit to a program of increased giving that leads to the tithe.

Mission Statement

We believe:

·          The biblical story of creation portrays humans as only temporary managers, or stewards, on this earth.  As such, God has given us all that we have and our dominion over much of creation requires a responsibility to care for it and preserve it.

·          God has given us various gifts of body, mind, and spirit as well as abundant resources, the gift of relationships, and the gospel itself.  We are trustees of all of these gifts as we endeavor to be good stewards of the Church in this place and time.

·          God has given freely and out of love for us.  We recognize we are called to be accountable as stewards and make a thankful response to  God's abundant love.  Our stewardship involves sharing our time, talents, and treasure freely by giving sacrificially each year for the service of others and the advancement of God’s work in the world.

    We commit:

·          To challenge our congregation with a vision for ministry that calls forth our best efforts of talent, time, and treasure to accomplish great things for Christ.  We recognize our ministry must be based on stewardship and not fund raising.

·          To tithe or work toward the tithe achieving it through a plan of proportionate increases in the amount we give over a period of years until we reach that goal.  The tithe is the only standard for Christian giving offered in the Scripture. It is one tenth of our income given as a free will offering to advance the coming of God’s Kingdom.  It is a direct reflection of our values and priorities in life.

·          To make gradual increases in the amount given each year in terms of outreach to work beyond our parish until one-half of the Congregation's disposable income is devoted outside of St. Andrew's Church.  The stewardship of our parish resources should likewise reflect the spirit of thankful giving to others.

    We invite:

·          You to make this statement your own by fully understanding “all that we do, with all that we have, at all times” is an act of faith and stewardship.  We invite you to make your whole life a proclamation of the Gospel of Christ and a contribution to the coming of God’s Kingdom.

You to give serious and prayerful consideration to the tithe as your personal standard for Christian giving, and commit to working toward the tithe by proportionate increases in coming years.  We invite every member of St. Andrew's Church, as a collective body focused on serving God and our community, to do the same.