One of the strangest and most difficult things about my sabbatical was not worshipping at Bethany Presbyterian Church every Sunday! But since we were mostly out of town, we did have the rare opportunity to experience worship in many different church communities. From London to Whidbey Island to Ballard to Lower Queen Anne, our family was blessed to hear the gospel proclaimed and feel the welcome of many churches. We learned something in every setting.

One rainy September Sunday morning, Anne and I journeyed to a small multi-ethnic church in South Seattle. We had a delightful time. On that particular morning, there was something less than 50 people in worship, though those in attendance were so enthusiastic in their singing and prayer you might have thought it was a much larger group. The band was fabulous, and the worship leader very experienced in inviting everyone into God’s presence.

After a long stretch of standing and singing we plopped down in our chairs and the worship leader said, with obvious pleasure, “Now it’s time for us to worship God by bringing our offering to Him.” Immediately, the entire congregation broke out in spontaneous applause and “Hallelujahs!”

I looked around, startled. Had I missed something? Had a celebrity walked in, or the pastor told a joke I couldn’t hear? Actually I hadn’t missed a thing. Or maybe I had missed everything. People were enthusiastically applauding the fact that they now had the opportunity to give financially to the Lord’s work.

If you are anything like me, you have attended a large number of fundraising banquets where someone eventually asks for money. I have talked, taught and written many times about stewardship and tithing as both a discipline and a part of worship. I also feel like I might have heard or used every conceivable variation of a worship leader’s invitation for the ushers to come forward to collect the offering at church, including several dozen using the story of the widow with the two coins (Luke 21). But I don’t think I’ve ever heard spontaneous applause at offering time! It reminded me that it is truly both a privilege and a pleasure to give.

Generosity in financial giving is one way we follow after Christ. At Bethany, November is not the only time we talk about money, but it is a key time. Right now our elders and staff are working on the 2006 budget, to be completed in December. With prayerful and pencil-sharpening care, a budget will emerge.

That budget will be nothing more than a story. It will reflect our commitments to ministry both inside and outside of Bethany. The budget will tell a story of partnerships to fight AIDS in Kenya and help farmers in Honduras. It will guide us in partnering with others in reaching out to kids in Seattle in the name of Jesus. Children’s ministry, youth groups, worship and pastoral ministry will be a part of that story as well, along with the Wednesday Night Dinner and many other things. This is a story with multiple sub-plots.

You will receive more information in the mail soon with specific details. Please begin to pray and consider now how God will lead you and/or your family to financially support the ministries of our community in 2006. You will also receive a pledge card to fill out that will affirm your financial stewardship and help our session construct the budget.

Then at all services on Sunday November 20, we will sing and pray and bring our cards forward as an act of worship. And who knows? Maybe the sound of applause will break out.