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  Witness Talk given by Chris & Christie Ombrog on April 9-10, 2011
  
  Chris:
  My name is Chris and this is my wife Christie. Yes that really is our name or as Deacon Tim refers to us as the “Christ Bearers.” We are here today to share a little bit about what stewardship means to us and how it has blessed our lives.
  It’s that time again for our dedication and renewal of our commitment to our church. Every year we are offered to commit and re-commit ourselves for our community. This year’s Stewardship theme is taken from Galatians 5:13-14 says “Serve one another through love. For the whole law is fulfilled in one statement, namely, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
  When we were asked by Deacon Tim to give a short sharing about stewardship, we could not say NO. We believe as a young couple, the Lord has called us to do great things for our community and God has blessed us in so many ways, we wanted to share this with you.
  Just to give a little background about ourselves, Christie and I are what you call cradle Catholics; born and raised as a Catholic. I did not really get into my faith until after I graduated from The University of Texas (hook ‘em) when I joined a ministry called Singles for Christ. During this time, I finally let God into my life and He introduced me to my beautiful wife whose faith journey was much different than mine. Christie, on the other hand, was born INTO the church.
  Christie:
  When Chris mentioned I was born INTO the church, I was literally born in the church, in the Sacristy, now the altar of our church, on the first Sunday of Advent. I believe this was the beginning of God’s plan for me to serve Him by giving my time and sharing my talents. Growing up, I served as a youth leader in Youth for Christ, now known as Youth for Family & Life.
  When I moved to Katy in 2007 for a 3^rd grade position at Stephens Elementary, I needed to find a church that I could not only go to on Sundays, but to be a part of a community. I found it here at St. Edith Stein and discovered that this parish was in dire need of people to serve. So Chris and I answered this call before getting married. After Chris and I finally said our vows back in 2008, we made a commitment to each other and to continue serving our church.
  Giving our time, talent, and treasure here at St. Edith Stein, we have seen abundant blessings in our lives.  As a member of this parish, we have built many friendships that have made our faith that much more enjoyable as we grow together as one big family.  Outside of church, these friends have made our life easier (such as, dog-sitter, prayers, support) and even lead to fellowship (game nights, dinners, shows, etc.). 
  As Filipinos, we age very well and this has led many to think that we are still teenagers.  We may not be teenagers but we still are at heart and this has allowed us to naturally serve in the youth ministry.  When we witness teens grow in their faith in such a short time and actually have fun at church, we truly believe this is where God has called us to serve.  It’s such a beautiful thing to hear when a teen comes up to us and says how much they love adoration or they confide in us to talk about their personal lives.  These are just a few of the many blessings we have received.
   
  Chris:
  As you can see stewardship is a very important part of our life, in fact it is our Christian way of life.  Last week, you should have received your Stewardship Packet.  We ask that you review these materials and the Ministry Commitment Form. Please prayerfully review the many opportunities for Stewardship.  There are over 70 ministries to choose from, a ministry for just about anything you can imagine (ministry for mothers; serving mass; if you are in junior high or high school student, you can participate in youth groups; fellowship/welcoming ministry like bowling; maintenance; even just praying for Fr. Kulma and/or the parish).  Now there are some of you who are thinking of all the possible excuses, something that I did in the past as well:
  1)     I have nothing to offer – As I have mentioned there is a ministry for just about everything.  God reminds us in First Corinthians that “the Holy Spirit has been given to each individual for the common good.” (1 Cor. 12:7).  Everyone does have something to offer!
  2)     What I offer is not good enough or other people are better than me – I will be the first to admit that I am not perfect and anyone else who serves will tell they are not perfect either.  Mother Theresa said “God has not called me to be successful; He has called me to be faithful.”  Whether your offer is small or large, it truly makes a difference in our community!
  3)     I have no time – Serving doesn’t really require that much time. What we have found it is that all the ministries are willing to work with your schedule if you are willing to offer your time.  Think about this: you SHOULD NOT fit God into your schedule; you should fit your schedule AROUND GOD. God always makes time for us, shouldn’t we do the same?
  We can all think of reasons not to serve.  God asks us to prayerfully remember our blessings and share them with others.  As you pray, ask God how He can use you. Also, please prayerfully offer consistent financial support in your prayers.  Although, it is a difficult time in the economy, our consistent, sacrificial financial support is a witness of faith. The church offers automatic deposit from your bank.  It is the easiest way to ensure our consistent financial support.  Please fill out the ministry commitment form and bring it to Mass during our Dedication Weekend on April 30^th and May 1^st, the weekend after Easter. We challenge you if you have not committed to a ministry before, to pick at least one ministry. If you are currently serving, we thank you and ask you to re-commit yourselves. We are asking for everyone’s participation because without you, the church does NOT exist. To all who serve in our parish over the years till today, please accept our sincere and humble gratitude for your gifts of time, talent and treasure.
  We are just ordinary people who do not serve to glorify ourselves; we serve to glorify our Lord.  We have scripture on our wall that we live by: Joshua 24:15 “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”  St. Edith Stein is OUR home.  We are not called TO BE SERVED, but we are called TO SERVE ONE ANOTHER IN LOVE.  How will you answer his call?
  God bless.