A Systematic Plan
The Bible tells us story after story reflecting about how sharing creates beauty and hope, and how obedience and sacrifice is at the core of our faith.
Giving—and systematic giving in particular—focuses our hearts and minds on what is most important in our lives. It helps us prioritize. It clarifies our values. It promotes a better understanding of the blessings in our lives.
Practically speaking, regularly scheduled giving to one’s church also allows the church to plan more effectively, leveling out cash flow so that our ministers and lay leaders can confidently implement the ministry plans of the church envisioned in the annual budget.
Ways to Give
There’s a way for every giver to give.
- In worship: Bring cash or a check to worship and place it in the offering plate.
- At your computer or tablet: Give online by transferring cash or charging a credit card.
- From your smartphone: Send a text message to (713) 999-4142 and follow the prompts.
- With recurring automatic payments: Go online and set a day each week or month to give automatically by credit card or debit card.
- Bank auto-draft: You can auto-draft a specified amount each month from your bank account. Submit your banking information securely online using the Auto-Draft Authorization form below.
- With non-cash or legacy gifts: Contact the church office to explore these options confidentially.
Stewardship Campaign
We think of our discipleship in all sorts of ways. We speak of a deepening faith. We speak of our faith as a journey. We talk of a maturing faith. We might think of climbing a mountain or gaining a more focused vision with respect to our lives and devotion to God. This October, we’re using the metaphor of a staircase to consider the advancement of our faith, and more particularly of the stewardship of our resources. The idea of scaling a staircase captures the notion that developing the virtue of generosity, aspiring to become more like Christ in our giving, and simply staying on track, moving ever-forward in our discipleship takes some real care, some real thought, some contextual awareness, even some real bravery and boldness sometimes. What we’re asking each South Mainer to do during our October Stewardship emphasis is to take stock of your giving to South Main in the past year or past few years, and to think what it might require—wherever you are on this metaphorical staircase of giving, of generosity, of discipleship—to then take the next upward step. Our Scripture this year—the words that will remind us of pressing forward, of reaching upward along this metaphorical staircase comes from Paul’s letter to the Philippians. It goes like this: "Brothers and sisters, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:13–14). Early in October, when you receive a pledge card in the mail, please give some prayerful thought to your stewardship in this light, and consider this idea of reaching forward, of laying hold, of the next step, the next rung with respect to God’s upward call upon your life.
