The faith of Seventh-day Adventists in St. Thomas was bolstered in the Lord by strong testimonies and powerful words of encouragement at the Stewardship Festival of Praise under the theme #GodFirst, Caring Providence held at the Morant Bay SDA Church and Yallahs SDA CHurch on March 25, 2023.
Elders, treasurers and stewardship leaders from the four pastoral districts of Morant Bay, Seaforth, Port Morant and Hampton Court were cordially welcomed to the service at Morant Bay where the divine service speaker was Pastor Carl Cunningham VP and Stewardship, Planned Giving and Wills and Trust Director in East Jamaica Conference (EJC) while the pastoral districts of Yallahs and Woodbourne were ministered to by Pastor Melvin Francis , Executive Secretary, EJC at the Yallahs SDA Church.
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Speaking at the Morant Bay SDA Church for the first time since his election to the position of Stewardship director last year, Pastor Cunningham thanked God for the work of his predecessor Pastor Leonard Steele who according to him “had built a good platform to stand on and had done a tremendous job”.
“Stewardship is not going to be business as usual,”Cunningham said. “We are going to be taking it to new places,” he promised. “I am going to stand on that platform and with you, revolutionize stewardship in this Conference.” The stewardship director shared with the church that he plans to form a strong stewardship association going forward.
In his message to the Church, Cunningham presented the story found in Matthew 19:16 and Luke 18:18 of the rich young ruler. After reading the account from the Bible, Cunningham expressed the view that “there is nothing wrong with wealth, but we must be careful to get our priorities right.”
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Elder Thompson of the Morant Bay church was more than happy when he shared with the church his testimony of how God had been blessing him. “ I am overjoyed as it pays to be a good steward,” he said with a big smile on his face.”Stewardship is supposed to be a lifestyle as we move from day to day,” he continued. “Human language cannot express the goodness of God in my life. At age 22, I was baptized and I am now at age 72 and I can say by God’s help that I am trying to be a good steward.
Thompson, who is passionate about farming said, God has blessed him in the area of farming. “God has blessed my coconut trees by causing them to bear much fruit despite the fact that other coconut trees in the area are being affected by the yellow leaf disease. “The biggest coco that I ever saw in my life came from my own farm. It weighs five pounds. The largest and the sweetest corn I have eaten comes from my farm because I am a steward of God,”said Thompson.
“On my farm, two of my best growing coconut trees, I gave them to Jesus. Each year, if you see how much money I put in the treasury as a result of these coconut trees you would be surprised. God blesses you when you are a good steward. Just obey God and he will come through for you,” Thomson said emphatically.”
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Elder Waldon Wright shared a presentation entitled ‘The Theology and True Meaning of Christian Stewardship’ Wright started out by saying ‘Stewardship and money are not the same’. A lot of persons when they find out it is stewardship day they find another church to go because they are of the view that the preacher is going to be talking about money and they feel that the preacher is going to ask them to dig into their pocket and take out money,” Wright said. “There is a relationship between stewardship and money but they are not one and the same,” Wright said. “Stewardship is about loving the Lord with your ALL and honouring Him with your possessions.”
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Elder Basil Powell shared with the church during his presentation that he had a challenge with tithing when he first came into the church. “I was not born in the Adventist Church but came in pretty late,” Powell said. “My first tithing experience occurred when Elder O’Connor challenged me tactfully. He recognized that I was not returning any tithe and so he called me aside one day and spoke to me,” Powell said.
In the ensueing conversation I explained to Elder O’Connor why it was not possible for me to return a tithe but he said to me, “You are going about it the wrong way. The first money that comes out of your salary must be your tithe.”
Powell said that the argument he presented was that when he took out his rent and monthly expenses to take care of his family, nothing was left to return a tithe. It was just not possible but after being directed to Malachi 3: 10 by Elder O’Connor and reading it for himself, he decided to put God to the test.
“I decided to prove the Lord and when I got my next salary with stopped breath and stiff arms and joints, I dropped it into the receptacle, but I was broke, ” Powell said. “I didn’t know how I would manage until the next month but on the Monday after that Sabbath while at work, my wife, Joy, called to say she had just agreed to allow her aunt who she had not seen for a long while and who was returning to Jamaica, to stay at our house.” That was a bad decision based on their financial situation but he decided to go along with it.
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“We were like the typical Jamaicans who did everything to make their guests feel welcome when they visit your home,” Powell continued. “The house was clean and looking good. Nice sheets were on the bed and the room was fresh and nice but we had no money. You could say we were poor and boasy,” Powell said. That event however proved to be the turning point in their life during that critical period and out of it, God revealed himself in a remarkable way by providing for them through their unexpected visitor. Their guest brought to their home two barrels of food items which was never expected and in a show of appreciation for their hospitality, they received three hundred United States Dollars which at the time was more than their monthly salary. “When God says, ‘Prove Me’, he really means it,” Powell said.
Sis. Magdalena DeNeuze Cooper shared with the church on the topic ‘Wholistic Growth & Empowerpent of Each Member’ and was qucick to advise the church that members should familiarize themselves with the Jamaican law.”You need to have a copy of the Jamaican law because it is a very important aspect of your life,” she said to the church. “It is important that you understand the law of the land especially if you plan to share your wealth from generation to generation.”