Baby steps.
What does it take to find a spiritual home? For Tom Greenwood, it took almost 30 years, a career in the Marine Corps, and 15 moves before his family stumbled into Saint Peter’s in 2000 and never left. In this stewardship testimony, Tom reflects on how his family grew from grateful newcomers into active members of the parish, first by volunteering and then by discovering the sacred act of pledging. His words remind us that stewardship doesn’t require giant leaps. It begins with baby steps, given faithfully and according to our means, that grow into bolder strides as we walk in God’s grace.
I’m Tom Greenwood, and it is a privilege for me to speak to you this morning about stewardship.
The Greenwood family’s journey to Saint Peter’s took almost 30 years. I was in the Marine Corps that long, and we moved a lot: 15 times, to be exact. Yet we somehow always found Episcopal services to attend, no matter where we were and no matter the circumstances. We once worshiped in the TV room of a private home, where a ping-pong table served as a makeshift altar. We also worshiped at a church with recorded music on a boom box, and the dear elderly lady working the buttons sometimes found Frank Sinatra before “Faith of Our Fathers.”
But alas, in 2000 I was reassigned to the Pentagon. One day we stumbled into Saint Peter’s, and we have never left. From the moment we entered Saint Peter’s narthex, we were overwhelmed by the friendliness of the parishioners, the congregation’s commitment to living God’s Word, and, yes, the many programs and pathways Saint Peter’s offers for receiving and expressing God’s love as part of the Christian community. We knew immediately that Saint Peter’s would be our permanent spiritual home. And what a blessing it has been. In our early years here, we went to Foyer dinners and Shrine Mont, and we witnessed the confirmation of our two sons within these sacred walls.
Yet at times, if I’m honest, we could still feel like newcomers. This had nothing to do with how we were treated. Rather, it was because we were stuck in a rut, acting as spectators, marveling at something glorious that we had seldom or never witnessed before. Having been newcomers too often in our past, we prayed that we would find a way to bring our relationship with Saint Peter’s, and with God, to a more meaningful and impactful level.
Our prayers were answered in two ways.
First, we came to realize that many helping hands and cheerful hearts are needed to keep Saint Peter’s a functioning and vibrant parish in service to others. This inspired us to become more involved in a diverse range of church activities. At first we took baby steps, volunteering now and then for a committee or a commission here and there. But over time we found that rolling up our sleeves and jumping in to help strengthened our commitment to Saint Peter’s, enriched our relationships with our beloved fellow parishioners, and brought us closer to God.
Second, we discovered the sacred act of pledging. Before coming to Saint Peter’s, we had always been spontaneous contributors to the Sunday plate. Whatever could be scrounged from wallet or purse made it into the plate, provided the ushers did not move too fast. But at Saint Peter’s we learned that pledging is different. It is intentional, not opportunistic: giving based on thoughtful reflection and discernment about how much our family valued its faith and this church.
Yet pledging was new for us, and for a few years we found it really hard. We had a mortgage payment. We had new soccer cleats to buy. Our boys’ college tuition loomed over our heads. We had car loans to pay off. The list was nearly endless. So our family decided that our pledge needed to be based on our means and capabilities during each stewardship season. We aspired to pledge every year, no matter how small the amount, and, if we were lucky, to increase our giving slightly the next year. But we sometimes failed on both counts. Yes, we sometimes failed. Yet through our struggle to better align our family finances with our real priorities, and through many baby steps forward, we ultimately found a sustainable, recurring path for giving back to Saint Peter’s.
What I think is important here today, at this moment, is that we recognize that as Christians we never quit trying to serve others: God, church, nation, community, family, friends, strangers, and most especially those in need. We do it all to the best of our ability, unselfishly sharing the many gifts that have been bestowed on us for the greater good.
In my heart, I believe pledging is not a business transaction. For me and my family, it is a sacred expression of the value we place on our faith and on this parish. May it be the same for you.
Baby steps. More baby steps. And even more baby steps. Those tiny steps grow into bigger and bolder strides that let us walk in God’s grace and do His will.
Thank you very much.
Tom Greenwood
