- an excerpt from an article written by Kirk Plattner, HarvestCall’s Country Director of Europe, Jamaica, Japan, & Mexico. The Fatted Calf is a ministry of HarvestCall.

Being Stewards of the Mission

In the days of viral online word games, I reflect on their old-school predecessors. A favorite was to pick a word and have each participant see how many other words they could create out of the letters of the chosen word. Then, the participant with the greatest number of alternative words would be the winner. This is the image that came to my mind when I thought of the topic of Stewardship in Missions.

Stewardship of the Commission

As Christ’s church, he gave us his commission which flows from his commandments. We were commanded to love God with all of ourselves which would be evidenced by our love for our neighbor. These commandments are further given expression in the mission given to the church to go into all the world to make disciples, baptizing and teaching all things commanded by Christ. The gift of this mission is the church’s to steward.

As a church, we have a responsibility to ensure that we are engaging in the mission of making disciples by baptizing and teaching all things he commanded.

And, we are to steward the mission by ensuring that as a church our eyes are looking to the fields and that we are sending laborers into the harvest as directed by God.

Stewardship of the message

As Christ’s church, he gave us the good news of the gospel message. And, along with that good news, we were given a very clear stewardship responsibility to preserve the soundness of the message. (1 Cor. 9:12, Titus 2:1, Jude 1:3, Phil. 1:27, and many more). While there are multiple angles to looking at how the message is stewarded, two of them have to do with preserving the content of the message and ensuring clarity in its communication.

Our stewardship of the message is to ensure that the gospel that we are proclaiming is the full gospel as represented in the scriptures, not influenced by the world. And, that as we communicate that pure message, that it is done in ways that honor the message and are most clearly able to be received in truth by the hearer. What an awesome responsibility!

Stewardship of people

As Christ’s church, we are commanded to steward the gifts and callings of the church body. The command given by Christ was to look at the fields that are white unto harvest and to pray that the Lord of the harvest would send forth laborers. The command is clear. And, as he sends workers, we should be faithful in our equipping and supporting of them for the work.

We have each received gifting for the work and places in the fields to use those gifts on behalf of the Kingdom. This stewardship is to continue to call each other to this work and seek the Lord for this continued work of sending.

Andy and Erin Ott, from Congerville IL, serve in Magdalena MX with The Fatted Calf as HarvestCall missionaries

Stewardship of financial resources

As Christ’s church, we are given resources to steward on behalf of the Kingdom. This responsibility starts with the acknowledgment that God owns everything in the world; therefore, everything that we have is his. Our goal is to discern areas where we can share the resources God has given to us in ways that align with his heart and kingdom. While God guides us and directs us in this process, we know from the scriptures of God’s heart for orphans, widows, the poor, and those who have yet to hear the gospel message.

May our hearts be continually guided by his spirit to steward God’s financial resources in ways that glorify him.

There are many other ways

As Christ’s church, we are given days to steward. The scriptures speak of redeeming the time as well as the importance of recognizing the sovereignty of God over our lives. We are to utilize the time we are given in worship and service of God. We do this through obedience to his word, applying godly wisdom in our choices, and utilizing the time we are given for the purposes of the Kingdom of God. Jesus gave us the example to work while it is day, for night is coming when we will not be able to work. This is our opportunity!

“I must work the works of him that sent me, while it is day:
the night cometh, when no man can work.”

— John 9:4

The Fatted Calf Scholarship

The Fatted Calf Scholarship is designed to help current and former residents of Casa Vida y Esperanza as well as those affiliated with CVE with post-secondary education expenses. The scholarship is set up to provide funds (65% grant and 35% a no-interest loan) and mentoring to the eligible students. The loan portion, to be paid back within 10 years of graduation, provides sustainability to the program as well as a method for TFC Scholars to support future Fatted Calf Scholarship recipients. As an alternative to making a monetary payment to the loan, the scholarship offers a service option to “give back” to the mission.

The First recipient

The Scholarship committee pictured with Eunice in 2014: (LtoR: Ann Wulf, Geo Aquino, Eunice, Todd Stoller)

Eunice Anaya was working full time as a school teacher at Colegio de Verdad y Vida (CVV). With her desire to become better qualified for a different position at the school, she applied for The Fatted Calf Scholarship to help her with her education expenses.

Eunice states “Undoubtedly the scholarship was a fundamental piece for the success of my career. It would not have been possible to reach term without that support. I had the desire and the strength to have professional training, however, being the mother of 4 children, with no other economic support than my job, the scholarship made it possible to fulfill this desire. The benefit has gone far beyond economics!”

Eunice, far right, with one of the first high-school classes at CVV.

After the completion of Eunice’s degree in 2018, she secured a principal position at CVV in the highschool program. In 2021, Eunice was promoted and is currently serving as the director of the elementary school and on the leadership team at CVV .

Todd Stoller, the chair of the scholarship committee said, “Since its inception, the scholarship program has undergone a slow, steady process of adaptation and development. Each candidate has helped us refine our program structure to better serve the needs of future recipients navigating the Mexican undergraduate system. It’s been a pleasure to see the project take shape and bear fruit, particularly in the case of Eunice Anaya, our first recipient.” Todd, also the General Director of Education at the school says, “Our school has benefited many times over the value of her scholarship as a result of Eunice’s abilities being made available through her degree and qualifications.”

Giving Back

As an alternative to making a monetary payment on the loan, The Fatted Calf Scholarship Committee identified that one way the scholars could give back to the program was to help with Expo Esperanza. “Expo” is a joint effort of The Fatted Calf and Casa Vida y Esperanza where a 2-day event held at the end of the summer allows students to showcase their animal, static and stage projects. For several weeks leading up to Expo Esperanza, classes are offered so that participants can learn more about a new project or refine their skills in one that they are already interested in.

Eunice assists a participant work on her creative writing project.

Throughout the years, classes have been taught by CVE summer staff and Fatted Calf interns. As participation increased and interests diversified, there became a need to identify more Spanish-speaking teachers for the classes, and in particular those classes where writing was a big part of the project. As the committee considered what “service” possibility to offer Eunice, the option for her to teach summer project classes and help with Expo Esperanza opened up great opportunity to fulfill the needs of both programs.

When asked why Eunice elected the service option, she states, “I chose it because I have been focused on meeting the expenses of my children's academic career. The option of being able to pay with service instead of using my salary has been a good support.”

Eunice has taught the Creative Writing Class several times and adds, “It is very gratifying to be able to start a project from scratch. Sometimes the participants do not have clear ideas about which project to do, and having the opportunity to guide and motivate them to later appreciate the finished project is an incentive.”

Eunice and her son review his Expo Esperanza entomology project.

From the perspective of those working with the summer Expo program, it was an added blessing that Eunice was familiar with Expo Esperanza, the campus of CVE where Expo is held, and the existing relationships with the students that would be participating. In the 3 years that Eunice has helped with Expo, she has made great contributions to the success of the program. In addition to teaching the Expo Creative Writing Classes, she has helped with the community service projects, tended to numerous administrative duties for the participants and judges, and organized the Tosti-Expos food booth.

Aside from Eunice’s scholarship responsibilities, her interest in the success of The Fatted Calf programs is manifested by serving as a volunteer judge and being invested in Expo with her children and their projects.

The extent of the committment and contributions that scholars like Eunice make defines the success of The Fatted Calf Scholarship program.

“Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure,
pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again.”

— Luke 6:38

Click the following link(s) The Fatted Calf or HarvestCall to donate to the Scholarship program or other programs of The Fatted Calf

Stewardship of the Message