337 Ridge Road, Barrington Hills, IL 60010 847-381-0596
Our Ministry with Money
If this will be your first Sunday with us, we invite you to be our guest as well as Jesus’ guest. You need not put anything in the plate now. Instead, spend this week noticing all the ways in which God blesses you, then come back and make a thanksgiving offering.
When you return, we ask you to give generously to support all the ministries of this church. For the whole Church truly gives thanks for all the ways God blesses you.
Scripture refers to money and how it’s to be used more than 110 times in the New Testament alone. As author Craig A. Satterlee says in his article “Why Do We Give?”
Whatever verse or story we pick, the Bible tells us that our giving is an expression of something bigger and more profound than our church. In terms of money and giving, Scripture’s greatest gift is to keep before us the reason we give to God. We give to God in response to all that God has given us—particularly in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus—and as a way of sharing in God’s own will for and work in the world. In other words, we give in response to the gospel.
According to the Bible, we give to God (1) as an act of worship, (2) as a way of participating in God’s reign, (3) as an act of resistance, (4) as a way of bearing witness, and (5) to grow in grace. Some preachers also believe that the Bible teaches that we give (6) to receive. Individuals and even congregations are motivated to give for various reasons.
In the fall we ask members to prayerfully consider what amount they can give St. Mark’s for use in its mission and ministry. We collect ‘pledge cards’ and that helps parish leaders set a budget for the coming year. On this page you will find a place where you can make your pledge online any time of the year. Some folks find setting an automatic payment from their checking account works well for them, others prefer to have envelopes in which they can place a check. If you let the office know how you would prefer to make your donations you will be assigned an account number and then will receive quarterly statements for your taxes.