STEWARD TRUST BUILDING AS SHIP

BY DR. MICHELLE LOUIS

IN 1 CORINTHIANS 4:1–2, the apostle Paul offers a perspective on trust that anchors it in an imperative: “…this, then, is how you ought to regard us: as servants of Christ and as those entrusted with the mysteries God has revealed. It is required that those who have been given a trust must prove faithful.” Another translation renders the final part of verse two as, “…it is required of stewards that they be found faithful.”

This passage highlights trustworthiness as faithful stewardship. It conforms to a pattern that exists throughout the Bible in which God’s character or nature is revealed in what God does, and this demonstration is offered as a model for living in ways that conform to God’s image. For example, because God first loved us and called us beloved, image-bearing involves loving one another (1 John 4:7–8). The God who reconciled us to himself through Christ gave us a ministry of reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:18), and we are beckoned by a Creator God to be creative and fruitful (Genesis 1:28). Likewise, this invitation from our faithful and trustworthy God in 1 Corinthians 4 is to be people who can be trusted.

Defining Trust

However, even with an intuitive understanding that trust creates an emotional climate in relationships that makes growth possible, many people still struggle to define what trust entails. One particularly succinct definition comes from author Charles Feltman, who writes that trust is “choosing to make something you value vulnerable to another person’s actions.”

This definition contains several noteworthy components. First, it clarifies that trust is a choice that is based on a risk assessment. Framed in this way, it becomes clear that it is important to bring greater awareness to the nature of that risk assessment for ourselves and for others. What exactly is trust requiring someone to make vulnerable in a particular situation? Some possibilities include safety, treasure, future plans, relationships, or reputation. Building the practice of understanding more precisely what others are putting at risk when they decide to trust you can help you become a better steward of their trust. Likewise, identifying exactly what you are risking when you trust someone else can help you make a more informed decision about how to proceed.

Stewarding Faithfully

Feltman’s definition also emphasizes that actions are the currency of trust as it develops over time. Although trust exists at the emotional level, it is cultivated behaviourally in the choices we make about how to steward the valuable things that are placed in our care.

We are called to have “a manner of life worthy of the gospel of Christ” (Philippians 1:27) – to be honest, responsible, wise, and careful in our handling of the gifts with which we have been entrusted. These descriptors of faithful stewardship (honesty, responsibility, wisdom, and care) align closely with Feltman’s model that presents four separate aspects of trust:

SINCERITY is reflected in integrity and unity between beliefs and actions. It is demonstrated when values and stated priorities are clearly reflected in decisions and behaviours.

RELIABILITY is a measure of dependability and consistency over time in fulfilling commitments. This element of trust requires time to develop because it inherently depends on a series of observations, not just a single occasion of follow-through.

COMPETENCE is demonstrated when a person has sufficient skills, knowledge, or training to accomplish a task in a way that aligns with a desired outcome or standard of performance. Competence also requires grounding in a realistic appraisal of one’s own capacities and limitations so as to know when to ask for help.

CARE is relating to others with genuinely good intent and a commitment to uphold their best interests. It is a commitment to see beyond oneself and to place love at the center of decision-making.

As we seek to honour God through developing our trustworthiness, these four elements can help transform trust from an abstract concept into a concrete set of qualities that are evidenced in particular behaviours. This model allows for an understanding of trust as something that is not simply either present or absent, but instead as existing in varying degrees across multiple dimensions. Indeed, one benefit to considering these four aspects of trust is that it allows for more specific conversations

Reflection and Action

Consider a recent situation when you were not trusted to the extent that you had hoped you might be. For example, someone may have withheld information from you or hesitated to entrust you with a project or responsibility.

1 2 3 about contributors and barriers to trust that exist in relationships. For example, we may trust someone’s competence in a particular area based on that person’s education or training, but have concerns about reliability after observing inconsistent follow-through on commitments. Using more precise language about trust can enhance the stewardship of trust by presenting a nuanced perspective of the multiple factors that contribute to trustworthiness and a greater awareness of how it can be built.

Although the situation may be more complex, for the purpose of this reflection, focus on taking the perspective of the person who had reservations about trusting you. This challenging exercise requires humility and discernment, and it can generate important insight.

From the vantage point of that other person, which of the four elements of trust (reliability, competence, sincerity, or care) might have factored most strongly into their hesitation to trust you?

Prayerfully consider what specific actions you might take or avoid to build greater trust in this area. Invite God’s wisdom and strength to guide you into living in ways that enable you to grow into an increasing embodiment of trustworthiness in your relationships.

In all the roles we play – whether as ministry leaders, spouses, parents, or volunteers in the community – we are invited to be thoughtful stewards and to act in ways that align with our commitments. May our trust in the God who is true, reliable, capable, and endlessly loving, manifest in the stewardship and deepening of these very qualities in our own lives such that we may indeed be found faithful.

BY DR. JAMES PEDLAR

M Y WIFE takes great satisfaction in making lists; I do so only when absolutely necessary. Grocery shopping is one of those times when a list is absolutely necessary. I know I’ll forget something if I can’t tick off those items one-by-one!

A grocery list tells a story. It says something about our culture, age, household, health, and financial situation. It should also say something about our faith.

Most of us don’t realize that eating is an act of Christian stewardship. Our need to eat is woven into the very fabric of creation – life in God’s good world requires food. God did not create us as self-sufficient beings. We must eat to live, and in order to eat we must rely on God’s gifts: land, sunlight, rain, pollinators, chickens, farmers, grocers, truck drivers, family, friends… and on and on it goes.

So, what would it mean to eat as an act of Christian stewardship?

First, eating as a steward means learning how our food is produced. Is the land being sustainably farmed? Are the animals raised and cared for in a way that reflects their goodness as God’s creatures? Are the workers involved in food production being treated in a way that respects their dignity as God’s image-bearers?

Second, eating as a steward means eating healthy food. Our dependence on food reminds us that we are embodied creatures, and that our bodies are part of the good creation that God has given us. Are we eating in a way that fosters bodily health and enables us to continue to serve others with whatever strength God has given us?

EATING IS AN ACT OF CHRISTIAN STEWARDSHIP.

Life in a Canadian city obscures this truth. Food is conveniently and abundantly available, and we don’t usually think about how it got from the ground to the grocery store. Food’s abundance creates an illusion of self-sufficiency. Most Canadians can buy whatever food we need whenever we need it.

But Christians should know better. One of the first things Scripture tells us is that food comes from God. “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food.” (Genesis 1:29) God also gave humankind a vocation to “be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it.” (Genesis 1: 28–29). And God put Adam and Eve in a garden and tasked them with working it and caring for it (Genesis 2:15).

These things are all connected. In order to increase in number and fill the earth, humans had to care for the earth and cultivate food in ever-increasing amounts. Agriculture is the root of all human culture, because without agriculture we cannot live together in towns and cities; each of us would be forced to subsist on whatever food we could find or grow for our own household.

God gave us this earth with all that we need to sustain ourselves, but He also tasked us with taking care of it—stewarding the land and the animals so that we can continue to fill the earth, developing human life in a way that is sustainable and respects the goodness of all of God’s creatures.

So eating is not an “unspiritual” activity; it is deeply spiritual because it is tied up with our basic calling as human creatures: to steward the good gifts God has given us.

Third, eating as a steward means practicing gratitude and generosity. When we recognize food as a gift of God, we realize that we don’t provide for ourselves; everything we have is a gift of God to be received gratefully and shared generously. Food is a collective good that God has given to all humanity and we are entrusted to steward it faithfully. If God has given us more than we need, we are called to share with others.

Eating as a Christian steward is challenging, and those of us who struggle financially have less freedom to make choices about food consumption. But we can all aspire to a better practice of food stewardship, and there are some basics that can keep us moving in the right direction. The more we eat whole foods, the more we understand where our food comes from, the more we cook for ourselves, and the more we gratefully appreciate the food we are eating, the more our eating will reflect our care for creation and foster love for the Creator.

So, what story does your grocery list tell? Is it the story of a servant, ready to give account for what you’ve done with the good things God has given into your hands?

Norman Wirzba is the most important voice in the contemporary discussion of food’s relationship to Christian spirituality. See his book, Food and Faith: A Theology of Eating (Cambridge University Press, 2019), or watch this video of a talk he gave on the same subject at Yale Divinity School: youtu.be/4VCYSRrqSsM