As you preach about the objectives of stewardship you will usually face opposition from others. Stewardship objectives include money, time, and talent. Yet good people often resist planning for the ministry of the church for several reasons. I'm sure there are more than I have listed, but these are a few I encountered as a pastor:
(1) Some people do not plan and manage wisely in the church because they do not know how to do it in their own lives. They are not good stewards of their personal resources so they don't understand the preparation required for managing God's.
(2) When people do not understand God's purpose for stewardship personally it is difficult to plan. You must first know God's purpose and yours if you are to make plans to fulfill it. When you understand these things its easier to communicate them to others and help them recognize their part in God's plan.
(3) Some people resist because they believe stewardship planning is not Biblical. The Biblical record is filled with men and women who made plans under the direction of God. God is a God of purpose and planning. He has used individuals, nations, Israel, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and the Church in His plan. His purpose was established from the beginning of time, and He is still working out His plan in the world today.
(4) Some people believe planning and organization hinder the freedom of the Holy Spirit. This is not true. After the great outpouring of the Holy Spirit recorded in Acts 2, it is only a short time later that planning and organization under the direction of the Spirit begins in Acts 6.
The discipline of organized planning in ministry in no way restricts the freedom of the Holy Spirit. It makes you even more sensitive to the direction of the Lord because you make a conscious decision to seek His purpose and plans. Planning can be a form of worship, a time during which you reflect on God's purpose and plans and open your spirit to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit searches your heart and spirit, and because He has the mind of God, He reveals God's plans and purposes to you. When you pray, study God's Word, and plan under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, planning is a spiritual activity. It does not hinder the working of the Holy Spirit.
One good example of this is the plan of Joshua at Ai in Joshua 8. Joshua had a plan in Verse 4, but it did not hinder God's miraculous working in Verse 18. Both natural planning and supernatural events worked together in harmony.
(5) Anytime you try to do anything different, you will encounter opposition of those bound in tradition. They do not want to change. They have done things a certain way for many years and it has become a tradition. Jesus had this same problem with the Scribes and Pharisees. Sometimes you can lead these "traditional" people into positive change. Other times you may not be able to "put the new wine in old wineskins,” as Jesus described it. Then it is necessary to raise up new believers who are willing to enter into God's plan.
It does not mean the people bound by tradition are not saved or a part of the Body of Christ. They are our brothers and sisters in the Lord, and we should love them and help them as much as they permit. But they have chosen to cling to traditions of men rather than moving ahead to accomplish new things under the direction of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus and Paul both ministered in the temple and the synagogues as far as they were permitted. These were the "traditional" houses of worship at the time. But because of rejection due to tradition, they were forced to take their message to new believers who were more open to receive the message.
(6) Stewardship planning deals with the future. Some people fear the future and do not like to think about it or plan for it. But you do not have to fear because God controls the future. He already knows the plans He has for you. All you are doing in planning is asking God to reveal His plans to you.
Jeremiah 29:11 TLB "For I know the plans I have for you. Says the Lord, they are plans for good and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope."
(7) Some people do not plan and organize because it takes time and it is hard work. They are slothful. Slothfulness is unconcern and laziness. The field work of the slothful is described in Proverbs 24:30-34. It does not bring forth spiritual harvest.
(8) The unfaithful steward in Matthew 25:14-30 feared failure, so he did not even try to use what he had been given by his master in Verse 25.
The only time you ever really fail is when you stop trying. Thomas Edison, a great inventor in the United States, tried hundreds of methods which failed before he invented electricity. However, Edison went on to become a great success because He did not stop trying. Eventually, he discovered electricity.
The Biblical record is filled with stories of great men and women of God who failed, but went on to become successful for God because they did not stop trying. Actually, when you fail to plan, you are planning to fail!
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