Stewardship Talk at St. Ann’s

October 2024

Hi everyone, in case I haven’t met you yet, I’m Kerry Zrenda.  I’m fairly new to St. Ann’s, although I guess two years have already flown by since I first walked into our welcoming red doors.  I came here after the worst of the pandemic had passed as I was seeking a church where I felt I could empower my children (and future children) to develop a strong and personal faith in God, with hopefully a little less Catholic guilt than the way I was raised.  You probably all know my daughter Zoe…  She is hard to miss with her naturally outgoing and social personality coupled with her assortment of dresses and sparkly shoes.  You’ve probably also seen my son Nolan… he’s in that stage of toddlerhood where he’s always on the move, so he can usually be found trying to dash up an aisle or climb all over the pews.  While my primary goal was searching for just the right church for my children, I also hoped to find a place where I could reconnect with my own faith.  

Let me shift gears for a moment.  In reflecting on what I should talk about today, I struggled to find time to sit still, to quiet my inner to-do list, and to focus on assembling some sort of inspiring message to share.  Does anyone else feel like the world is spinning faster these days?  To fit more into the same number of hours in a day?  To juggle more roles, take on more responsibilities, and to succeed at them all?  I can’t help but feel sometimes like society’s expectations of what is humanly possible in a day just keep getting higher and higher.  This past week was another week where I felt like each workday needed to double in length in order to accomplish the tasks being asked of me.  Where I rushed from one activity to the next from the moment I woke up in the morning, but was still somehow late to almost everything.  Where my family time felt so cramped that I had a hard time being present to enjoy it. 

Yesterday, I thought back to Drew and Bob’s messages from the last couple of weeks, and their reminders of our stewardship message this year:  “Walk in love.”  It may sound silly, but suddenly it struck me:  the message is not “Race in love.” It’s not “Run in love.” It’s not even “Speedwalk in love.”  The verb is to WALK.  Walking, by nature, usually consists of movement at a slower and steady pace.  Isn’t that interesting?  Life, society… it is pushing us faster and faster, so much so that we feel like we may find ourselves like I often do - rushing about in a frantic state, feeling like I’m barely keeping my head above water. But our stewardship committee, whether intentionally or not, they reminded us to WALK in love.  

That, right there, is what I love about St. Ann’s.  In finding St. Ann’s, not only did I successfully find a church community that has helped me reconnect with my faith, but one that regularly reminds me to slow down and to be present, to form new connections and build new, caring relationships.

Have you ever listened to Christine tell one of the bible stories during Godly Play?  If you haven’t, I highly recommend it.  You can’t help but press the pause button on the hamster wheel spinning in your brain and just soak it all in.  Our choir?  Have you ever noticed how they take their time to beautifully sing every verse of their hymns, even the ones that don’t fit directly under the music notes?  My childhood church used to stop after 2 verses, rushing along through the mass.  Isn’t that sad?  Stop and listen, the St. Ann’s choir reminds us. Even sing a little - judgment free (though Zoe often still tells me not to!).  Our coffee hours?  I’d be lying if I said sometimes I felt like I didn’t have time to stay for them, but when I saw Zoe last week independently invite all the children in attendance to sit together with her at their own “kids table,” my heart swelled.  There it was again - my reminder to slow down.  

Granted, so many of these wonderful things that make St. Ann’s special are due to the many of you who volunteer your time and talents.  We would not be the community we are without that pattern of giving.  Yet we know there are many other aspects of our church that require financial support to keep them running.  Therefore, if you haven’t already, please consider making a pledge to support St. Ann’s as you continue to receive your weekly reminder from God to slow down, to be present, and to WALK in love.