Lutherans Assess Personal Power and Stewardship

LISLE, Ill. (ELCA) -- Patterns of giving in the church not only vary over time but may be influenced by a parishioner's faith journey and "stage of personal power." That idea was expressed as Lutheran stewardship leaders met here Feb. 28-March 3 for "At the Heart: Stewardship and Power," a conference hosted by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).
In a classroom setting, about 100 stewardship leaders, mission interpreters and staff from the ELCA's churchwide office, congregations and 65 synods learned about the relationship between personal power and stewardship. Participants completed a "Personal Power Profile," an instrument designed to measure an individual's stage of personal power as a tool for leadership development, power and management.
"The profile can also be used as an assessment tool for personal renewal, determining one's passion and calling in life," said Janet O. Hagberg, Minneapolis, a keynote presenter.
Hagberg, author of "Real Power: Stages of Personal Power in Organizations," and Robin Getman, organizational consultant and trainer, Minneapolis, identified six stages of personal power that people move through in life. They are powerlessness, power by association, power by achievement, power by reflection, power by purpose and power by wisdom.
"The stages of power are not tasks to be accomplished or a pinnacle to be achieved," Hagberg said. Movement through the stages is guided by a natural process, people or events, she said.
Individuals have a "home stage" where they function most often, Hagberg explained. "There are elements in each of the other five stages that guide one's actions in certain situations but not the majority of situations. The knowledge and experience gained at each stage are needed to progress to the next stage," she said.
Hagberg and Getman invited stewardship leaders to reflect on their faith journeys and how they have influenced their giving patterns. Considering that, the presenters applied the six stages of personal power toward stewardship in the church and for the parishioner.
"Stewardship is about receiving more than giving" in stage one, powerlessness, Hagberg said. "We enter the journey of faith usually as a result of becoming awed by God through a life of incident, or by our sad awareness of our inadequacies and great need for God," she said. "Stewardship is about giving time, energy and money to help parishioners in crisis." Faith for the individual at this stage is "recognizing God," Hagberg said.
In stage two, power by association, individuals become "oriented to community or a sense of belonging to a group of like-minded believers," Getman said.
Stewardship at stage two is "learning how to give. As a steward [the individual] participates in programs, belonging to groups within the church. The church teaches parishioners to give time, energy and money to church programs and outreach," said Hagberg.
"Stewardship is giving and serving" in stage three, power by achievement, according to Hagberg. "The steward is serving the congregation in some leadership capacity and giving generously and regularly with time, energy and money. The church in stewardship is receiving time and money from parishioners for church, community and world outreach," she said. Stage three is "the productive life" and faith is "working for God."
In stage four, power by reflection, "stewardship is reflecting on one's inner life. The steward is connecting faith with life, and faith is growing deeper in one's life," Hagberg said. The church is supporting parishioners as "they learn to incorporate faith into their lives Monday through Saturday," she said.
Between stages four and five, the steward "hits a wall," a place of "inner choices," said Hagberg. Stewardship is taking "a deep journey inward, asking questions and [experiencing] confusion regarding faith, life and stewardship," she said. The steward uses discernment to wrestle with "the meaning of it all" and works on "family or marriage at a deeper level."
Stage five is "the journey outward" or power by purpose. The steward at this stage learns to "live out of one's heart's deepest desire -- what God is calling the steward to do. The steward integrates faith into the very fabric of one's life seven days a week," Hagberg said. "The church in stewardship gives time, money and energy to train, fund and support parishioners as they are called."
Stage six, power by wisdom, the steward puts "everything on the line. All that we have we give to God -- our lives, our work, our talents, our time. We call this the stewardship of our lives," Hagberg said.
For participant Roger Smith, Trinity Lutheran Church, Camp Hill, Pa., the conference provided "some dimension on how we can talk about, describe and explain life and faith issues in the context of leadership development."
Smith said, "Stewardship is a faith issue, not a money issue. People go through a variety of stages. They have different understandings of relationships in the community of faith. This conference has given me a broader understanding of how people move in their faith life."
The topic of stewardship and power offers "a new way to look at stewardship leadership development," said Nancy Snell, director for stewardship and mission giving, ELCA Division for Congregational Ministries. "It offers a new understanding about our own leadership development and insight into our relationships with synod staff and congregations," she added.
In addition to plenary sessions and worship, participants were introduced to "Where Your Heart Is," a CD-ROM resource designed to help congregations build a stewardship program on the foundation of worship. It contains 12 Bible studies for all ages, bulletin inserts, liturgical service options, sermon outlines and more. A 32-page user's guide is included. The CD is available through Augsburg Fortress, publishing house of the ELCA, Minneapolis.
"Making Christ Known 2002: Promise for a New Day" was also introduced. The annual 20-page newspaper features stories about the mission activities of ELCA congregations based on benevolence dollars, including stories about disaster relief, global mission, outdoor and social ministries, outreach and more. -- -- --
Information about ELCA stewardship ministries is maintained at http://www.elca.org/dcm/stewardship on the Web.

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html