Stewardship professionals and bloggers can be a great help to a lot of folks on the front lines of ministry – not only sharing their knowledge, but also giving courage and inspiration for our daily work. Rebekah Basinger is one of those people for me, through her site, www.generousmatters.com. For example, she wrote a piece called “Red Letter Money Talk” (Oct. 18, 2016). Here is what I wrote back to her:

“Dear Rebekah, I loved this blog! As a stewardship educator and retired pastor, I agree with Dick Towner that we can come to understand stewardship in a way that transforms hearts and conforms our lives to the image of Christ. But it’s an ongoing, lifelong process! Both confidence and care are good to have in equal measure when we allow use of money to be part of our spiritual care for those we serve.

“The best part, as you say, is knowing that we are not asking for ourselves, but instead ‘present the challenge, invite, and trust God to do the rest.’ Thank you for your encouragement!”

Your partner in ministry,

Betsy Schwarzentraub