CONTRAST IN CHURCHES (STEWARDSHIP)
Herbert Mather reports that last October a special offering was received for flood relief. A middle-sized congregation in New Delhi, India, gave 150 rupees. A few of the members could be considered “middle class,” and most of the families had regular incomes. They had been long-time Christians. On the same day, a tiny church in the slums also collected an offering for flood relief. Members gave 180 rupees. That congregation was only three years old, and every person in the church lived on the edge of extreme poverty. In equivalent U.S. dollars, neither offering was large. But why did the poorer church give more than the congregation with greater resources? When the larger church was established many years ago, the people were not expected to give. They were receivers, not givers. They still do not see giving as part of their response to a gracious God. The congregation in the slums, from its beginning, has indicated that giving is part…
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