Once upon a time, some people who were fortunate enough to live near a beautiful lake decided to try to start a brand new church where they and others who visited the lake on weekends could offer worship in the manner they had grown to love. A little church-by-the-lake was born.

A church building was planned and built with its two most notable features being its round shape and the way it had been positioned on the site; a way which afforded the worshippers inside the church a wonderful view of the wooded hills in the distance as they gathered around the altar.

People who attended this new church were blessed in many ways:  the blessing of worship itself with the graces of word, sacrament and one another, the blessing of a beautiful setting for worship and the colorful panorama of the changing seasons outside the church windows, and the special blessing of being part of a faith-community committed from its very beginning to ministries of service and outreach-in-love to others. This was a church set in a place of great natural beauty, and because of that, determined to give back, to give to others from the bounty it members enjoyed.

From the beginning, those who were the church in that place enjoyed being together. Social activities were anticipated and happily experienced year after year. But, the little church-by-the-lake understood itself as being part of a much larger community of worship and celebration and fellowship; communities really; "the Diocese," the "National church" and the world-wide community of Anglicans.

With the blessing of the diocesan bishop, priests began living near and serving the little church-by-the-lake. Perhaps, the most beloved and fondly-remembered of all the priests who have ever served the little church-by-the-lake now leads the first or second largest congregation in the Episcopal Church.

People, still around, who recall that priest's time, remember a lot of enthusiasm shared by everyone, sound teaching about the faith, closeness and real optimism about the future. An endearing memory for others was that it was just "fun." "Growing," they recall, was a big part of the fun.

The little church so thrived that it outgrew its original worship space. A new and much larger worship area was built. This space would accommodate many more worshippers and did so! The future was as bright as the sun reflecting off the beautiful lake back then.

Outside the purposely-directed windows of the new church, the changes became more than just seasonal. Distant hills were beginning to sport towers, monuments to the growth and so-called "progress" they proclaimed as they reached into the sky like giant out-stretched fingers.

It was then that the little church-by-the-lake became a church confused about its future, a church in search of itself. Every Sunday morning, worshippers saw the towers atop the distant hills and all seemed to know that things could never be quite the same as before.  For some of them, this was exciting and good and full of energizing promise. For others, though, those towers were but all signs announcing an unstoppable surge of growth that would change everything . . . their communities of residence and their beloved little- church-by-the-lake. It might never feel the same again, they believed.

While all this was going on, priests came to the little-church-by-the-lake whether as rectors of interims. Each priest brought his/her strengths and weaknesses, as well as his/her dreams and visions about what the little church could someday become.

Although priests and members knew that the only really effective way to move forward was through genuine collaboration with give-and-take by both priest and people, that did not happen as it should have happened. Some terrible and numbing losses and tragedies were suffered by members of the church, and the community became the extraordinary care-giving fellowship it is to this very day. Caring in times of illness and loss has never been wanting in the little church. It always happens and it is always the real thing. People come together for one another.

Coming together regarding purpose, definition and direction, however, has never come that easy for clergy and laity at the little-church-by-the-lake.

The only thing that has remained constant over the years has been the relentless surge of growth outside the church walls. The county exploded as more and more people discovered the beauty of the region and the good quality of life to be experienced here. The little-church-by-the-lake has never decided how to respond to that growth.

Meanwhile, a large tree was permitted to grow even larger just outside the big church window, thereby seeming to shield and protect the worshippers inside the little church from the harsh realities the towers on the hills had come to signify. "Growth and change?" or "Little or no growth and things feeling the same?" These became the unspoken yet very real questions that, unanswered, seemed to polarize, paralyze, or, at least, stunt the growth of the little church which could certainly become much, much larger if it really wanted to do so.

All of what I have said up to now is but the context of my assigned task and topic today.

As just one of many priests to have served this little church, I stand among you as I begin my third year as priest-in-charge.

An expected and altogether reasonable part of my job description is that I deliver a "stewardship sermon" which the Stewardship Committee hopes will help to ignite the fires of increased annual giving. After forty-five years of doing this, I've been here before . . . I know the drill!

But something's different about this particular situation and I cannot and I will not ignore it! I have watched you, listened to you, studied you and prayed about you for two years now . . . I haven't figured out much, but one thing I know: more money won't help by itself! I'll bet you never heard that before in a "stewardship sermon"!

Re-definition and a shared re-commitment to a shared and agreed-upon purpose for this congregation to exist must come first! All congregations need to do this, some of them multiple times . . . demographics change, economic realities change, and churches must study these changes and respond appropriately. The same plan of action doesn't work for every church. You must find your own.

The goodness of God the Father, the love demonstrated through God the Son, and the day-to-day empowerment of God the Holy Spirit . . . this does not change . . . this is forever! We who are the grateful recipients of this must constantly dare to ask, "Lord God, what would you have us do and how would you have us do it?"

I'm sure giving more of what's already God's back to God is a big part of it! It's no coincidence that Jesus talked more about money than anything else. What do men and women think about most? "It's the economy, stupid!" The personal economy, state economy, federal economy, global economy, and yes, even the church economy sometimes.

But what must precede even that, I believe, is for this little church to begin the process of re-definition and re-invention. Come together as never before in a common passion for a shared vision for the future - when that happens, the giving will follow . . . trust me!

And, by the way, here's one possible short-term action item: Cut down that tree . . . and then look up and see Jesus and the hills beyond, towers and all . . . that's the future God has prepared for you who are fortunate to live, worship and pray in this place. Embrace it! 

Joy in it!

Celebrate it!