All things come from Thee, O Lord

The word "Debts" is typed in black onto a sheet of white paper.
A pencil is eraser, above right has been erasing the word, leaving it visible,
but fading.

“All things come from Thee, O Lord, and of thine own have we given Thee.”

These are the traditional words said by the priest when receiving and giving thanks for the Sunday offering. We do not use them at St. Martin's, but they echo in my head every time the gifts of the assembly come forward.

At worship.together, the children pass small wicker bread baskets for the collection. The stuffed baskets come up to our little altar and every Sunday I experiment with what to say. Inevitably, what I say is a version of “All things come from Thee, O Lord….” because it is the most essential truth, and that is what we share with children and adults.

For me, it is very simple. What do I owe to God? I owe everything to God. There is no me without God. There are no gifts in life without God. There is no opportunity to serve and to offer and join in life-saving, life-giving mission without God. So I owe God everything.

In abundant divine mercy and generosity, God only asks for a tenth of all I have. Imagine being presented with a bill for 100% of your net worth and then having the debt collector scratch out 90% of what you owe, indicating that 10% will cover the whole debt. Imagine the relief and gratitude and joy. Our generous and generative God gives us all we are and all we have and only asks for a tribute of 10% to further God’s work in return.

As much as we might strain to make an alternative algorithm for our response to God’s abundance, the math only works in one way. I might assert that, I deserve, I am owed, I am entitled, I have earned, I have achieved, but when all is gift and all is God’s we stop calculating and start giving back with gratitude and freedom secured by God’s promises.

Now, many who are addressed by God’s grace and love discern a calling to give even more back to God. Some give their whole life. They are the saints, martyrs, missionaries, monks and nuns, and lay-religious who express their dedication to God in total devotion of life to God’s purposes. We need to keep them in mind. Do we imagine our life as one of growth in commitment and dedication in response to God’s generosity?

Stewardship is a moment for self-examination. To whom is our life oriented? Have we grown in grace this past year? Have we de-centered our life-focus from ego to love for God and neighbor? Are we growing in the love that values the good of all others on the same level as our own good and that of our families?

I wish you a rich and rewarding and happy self-examination. May it be inspired by God’s generosity and return to God that same abundance.

Blessings,

The Rev. Jarrett Kerbel

Rector

Of Dumpsters and Stewardship

Image: photo of the cluttered inside of a closet space. Boxes and baskets
and bags are piled on top of each other. Text in image: "We can look at the
inevitable entropy and clutter in church closets and basements
as signs of inertia and neglect, or we can see them as a sign that the church
has been so busy in ministry, so busy putting first things first,
that cleaning up after ourselves falls out of mind."- The Rev. Jarrett Kerbel
Of Dumpsters and Stewardship, 10.17. 2019

Among my earliest church memories is helping my mother clean out the Sunday School closet at my home church in New Brunswick, NJ. Mom was the new volunteer leader of Sunday School and the first task was to clean up, put the rooms in order, and even paint a wall-sized mural of Noah’s ark in the room for the youngest grade. The giraffes carried umbrellas!

That closet was full of detritus from the previous 50 years. There were crayon fragments and chalk nubs from the 1930s. There were pamphlets extolling thrift and the donation of metal for the war effort in the 1940s. Rolled up and molded felt banners, popsicle sticks galore, and an endless supply of lapel pins for every church activity imaginable. 

To me this was utterly fascinating; the archeology of an active church ministry spanning the 20th century. We can look at the inevitable entropy and clutter in church closets and basements as signs of inertia and neglect, or we can see them as a sign that the church has been so busy in ministry, so busy putting first things first, that cleaning up after ourselves falls out of mind. 

St. Martin’s is incredibly active and abundant in meaningful and impactful ministry to such a degree that we forget some forms of stewardship needed to make that work thrive. Every plant needs to have the soil tended to grow to its potential. Every worker needs a lunch break to refuel and relax if afternoon work is to be productive. Every Christian needs Sabbath on Sunday to turn to God and revive our souls so we may live in grace in all we do. 

We are stewards of our own wellbeing; physical, spiritual, relational, and emotional. While the call of Jesus Christ can pull us out of balance at any moment for service to the Kingdom of God, Jesus is also the one who heals and restores our balance and well being for a ministry that requires endurance, persistence, sweat, tears, and sacrifice.

St. Martin’s is here for the long dure; we are here for the long run work of God’s steadfast love. To be here for the long term means we steward our abundant gifts for witness, ministry, and results with multiple generations in mind. We clean out closets and basements to make room and free up space for future ministry. We give generously to underwrite our transformational ministry for years to come.

Please join us for Dumpster Days (see below). I guarantee the church will feel like it is levitating this Sunday after we pitch so much ballast overboard. Be sure to join in on St. Martin’s Day as well and bring your pledge card!

Blessings,

The Rev. Jarrett Kerbel

Rector

Dumpster Days October 18 and 19
The properties committee invites members of all ages to help us clean out the basements, crawl spaces, closets, and attics of St. Martin’s! Over our 130 years we have accumulated lots of junk. In preparation for planned repairs and improvements to the property, we need to get a clean, well organized facility! Please come to the church from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday, October 18 or during the same hours on Saturday, the 19th! For more information talk to the rector, Carol Horne Penn, our properties chair (ckjj616@gmail.com), or Debra (debradroberts@comcast.net) or Ike (ikeroberts@comcast.net) Roberts.

Boiler Update: Mid-work

As we reported on September 13, the boiler that failed on us last December is currently undergoing replacement. This project continues on schedule. Here is what has happened over the last month: 

The Trefz Mechanical crew removed the defunct boiler in mid-September. In order to get the pieces out, they had to build a custom dolly, narrow enough to fit through the basement door. Incredibly, each section was removed by two men! 

Dumpster at St. Martin's

Custom cart made to haul the boiler components out of the basement

Old boiler components (800 lb. cast iron!) in dumpster, pending recycling

As mentioned in the previous message, the one boiler will be replaced with two compact and energy efficient boilers. A new concrete pad was set, and the new boilers have been installed.

Two new boilers on their concrete pad. Ever seen the inside of a boiler before?

Back/control side of new boilers.

New exhaust ducts are being installed to connect to the existing chimney. You can see the U-hangers in the photos above.

New piping set for installation.

Jake and Kevin are assembling the new piping on site.

Important improvements included in the work are the introduction of more thermostats and valves, so that heating can be better-controlled to provide heat when and where it is needed in the Parish House - rather than the all-on-in-every-space as we have had in the past. The new boilers are 83% energy efficient (vs. 60-70% estimated efficiency of the old boilers), which will result in operating cost savings and support St. Martin's commitment to sustainability.

The Rev. Jarrett Kerbel explains the new control valves for zoned heating.

  

New thermostats have popped up around the building.

This work is estimated to be completed, with the church and parish house heated by the two new boilers, by mid-November. In the meantime, the remaining older boiler is being started up this week.

All will agree that this work is necessary and of obvious value to the parish, as it permits our buildings to be used. Yet, it should be noted, the work is difficult, and the components are expensive. The entire project will cost about $200,000, per the following cost breakdown:

Labor – $34,000

Material – $27,200

Electrical – $5,200

Insulation – $7,800

Control – $15,500

Major Equipment – $54,000 (The heat-exchanger is about $2,500. The rest is the two boilers and boiler control.)

Commissioning – $3,600 

Permitting (allowance) – $3,000

Contingency (allowance for unforeseen scope)* – $30,000

Engineering Fees – $24,800

Total: $205,100  

*note that it is hoped that $10,000 to $15,000 of the contingency will not need to be spent

Thank you for your patience during this time. We'll continue to keep you updated on our progress.

Blessings,

Dave Harrower, properties committee chair

Perspective Restored - An Essay on Stewardship

Fifteen years ago, some older friends chose me and my wife as the next owners of their property in Hancock, Maine.  These remarkable people were both retired pastors who had been on the front line of every good cause from the American Civil Rights movement to putting their bodies between the Contras and the Sandinistas during the war in Nicaragua. In an unexpected phone call, Bob and Fran announced that we were the chosen ones.  “Why?” we asked.  "Because you share our values and commitments and will be good stewards of the property," they answered.

So we bought the property on Egypt Bay, next to Egypt stream, on a remote stretch of Taunton Bay.  With the property, we inherited a chainsaw and a forestry management plan.  Bob had worked many years to make the seven acre wood an official Tree Farm with a plan to promote plant diversity, wild-life habitat and a forest of diverse trees at all stages of the life cycle.  Indeed, our seven acres were wonderfully populated by red oaks, 80 foot tall white pines, fir trees, cedars, birch trees, tamaracks, popples (the local name for quaking aspens), maples, apple and pines. My job was to be the next steward of Bob’s hard work and vision.

From the perspective of 15 years, today I see trees which were chin high at the beginning of my tenure and are now three times my height with trunks thicker than my thigh.  I am moved to tears by the happy notion that my grandchildren may play under these same trees and their children too.

Stewardship of this property puts my life in perspective and joins me to a greater purpose and meaning.  The forest also teaches me that stewardship is unavoidable.

From the perspective of life among the trees, I am constantly reminded that the cycle of life is so much bigger and more mysterious than me and my petty concerns. 

From the perspective of life among the trees, I am constantly reminded that I am a recent visitor on a short duration visa in this world.  The trees will be here long after I am gone and that makes me incredibly happy. My stewardship is not about me.  Stewardship is about the generations that will come – what will they need to thrive and find joy in life and how can I prepare and provide for them?

From the perspective of life among the trees, I am constantly in awe of the beauty and resilience of nature.  The abundance and persistence of life is breathtaking.  The unique stories told by each tree trunk in the scars of weather and the search for light are fascinating. The super-abundance of wind-sown seedlings each summer puts me in mind of Christ the Wild Sower of Seeds.  The Stewardship question is always: what to do with so much abundance in life?

From the perspective of life among the trees, I am constantly asking whether I am doing all I can with my limited gifts and abilities to add to the health of this forest and ecosystem. Stewardship is working in that dance among what is given, what gifts I bring and what is envisioned by God to add to and to advance the well-being of all. 

Stewardship is unavoidable. If you walk through my seven acres, you will find low stone walls and a small cemetery plot dating back to the Civil War. This land has been cleared of trees at least three times since European settlement - for boat building, for salt-water farming, for animal grazing.  What appears to be natural  - here and throughout New England - is the result of human intervention.  Therefore, we must continue to be active stewards intervening to correct past mistakes and play our part in the flourishing of a nature renewed. 

We are all stewards of community, personal gifts and talents, property, mission, vision and society itself.  Our spiritual work is to be reflective and self-aware stewards who give our lives in Christ like ways to God’s  renewing of Creation.

-The Rev. Jarrett Kerbel

Budget 2015 - Stewardship Means Planning Ahead

From August through December, your Vestry and Finance Committee are working hard on our budget for the coming year.  Our over-riding question is: How to match vital ministries with adequate funding to promote their growth in mission?

Some exciting possible uses for new funds include:

1. A paid part-time youth minister to support our growing High School and Junior High School groups and the lay people who teach the youth.  (estimated $10,000/year)
2. Provide paid counselors for our booming Vacation Bible School and Choir Camp ($2,500/year)
3. Funds to bring in well-known speakers and teachers for Wellspring and other adult-formation areas, because “learning leads to God!”  (estimated $4000)

Of course, budget planning is a combination of discretionary and mandatory spending.  So in addition to the exciting missional funding opportunities above, we have some rising costs in other areas.

1. Benefits for the staff.  We work hard to offer a living wage and competitive benefits to our paid employees from pension to medical insurance.
2. Cost of Living Increases for paid staff.  We don’t want our employees to fall behind inflation in their earnings.
3. Energy costs. Our cost for energy will rise by $7,500 next year. This is partly the result of heavier use of the facility and partly a result of the way we pay for energy.  We will make up in 2015 for the frigid winter of 2014. 

On the revenue side we know that we have abundant resources when our membership gives generously to our Annual Campaign.  Certain factors are always the case:

1. It takes 5 to 10 new pledges to make up for larger pledges lost through death or relocation of members.
2. Approximately 60% of members pay for the operation of the church through pledged giving.  We would like that to be at 80% at the least.
3. Our congregation has a wide range of incomes.  While the average cost per household to run the church is $2,100 we know not all members can reach that level.  Thankfully those who are able give well in excess of the average and make church possible for us all.

We hope you will consider these facts as you plan your pledge for 2015.