As a wife, mother, grandmother, and one of the co-founders of Catholic Stewardship Consultants — an organization committed to developing disciples of Christ through the practice of stewardship at parishes across the United States — Lisa McArdle has been helping parishes, priests, and parishioners all over the country to develop stewardship as a way of life for close to 25 years.
In her new book — Stewardship Starts at Home: Using God’s Gifts to Grow as Disciples in Our Domestic Church — Lisa shares her insights on how the practice of stewardship and discipleship in our homes can help improve the spiritual lives of our families and help us build up our Domestic Churches. The newly-published book offers practical ways for your family to respond to the Good News of Jesus Christ, providing helpful tips and a powerful theological foundation for any family to find the way to the heavenly Kingdom together through Christ.
As a mother of five daughters ranging in age from 12 to 26, and now a “Mimi” to two grandchildren, Lisa has experienced firsthand both the challenges and rewards of family life. In Stewardship Starts at Home, Lisa highlights the spiritual transformation that takes place when we make stewardship central to our family life.
“We’re all called to live as stewards,” Lisa says. “It’s not just for saints or pastors or Pope Francis. Stewardship doesn’t just begin and end in our parish families, either — it really begins at home in our domestic churches. Ultimately, that is where it is taught and resonates the most.”
As a busy mom, Lisa knows it is not always easy to develop stewardship at home and build our Domestic Churches. Often, however, that is the very reason we should make the effort to do so.
“Families are so busy now that we don’t know how to stop,” she says. “Learning to be still and finding out what God is calling us to is so important, and to be centered in our faith is now more essential than ever. A priest once told me that we were created as human beings, not ‘human doings,’ and yet we’re so busy doing that we never stop to reflect. It’s really a gift to stop and make sure we’re on the path where God wants us.”
Lisa encourages readers to look at how they spend time with their families and what decisions they are making as a family.
“God has given us all talents,” Lisa says. “Whether you are washing dishes, changing a diaper, cheering for your son at baseball games, caring for a parent — all of these things are important.”
“I think that learning more about discipleship will transform hearts and transform lives, and I am excited to share this message with readers of this book,” Lisa adds. “In turn, strengthening families will strengthen the parish. I think of the words of St. Teresa of Calcutta — ‘If you want to change the world, go home and love your family.’ It sounds so simple, but it’s so profound. If we all did that, it would have a ripple effect and the world would be so much better.”
This 168-page paperback book is available on Amazon, and also on our website at CatholicSteward.com and clicking on the “Our Book” tab at the top of the homepage, or you can follow this link directly.
It is our prayer that this book will allow many more families throughout the world to recognize the great blessing of living stewardship as a way of life. We also hope this book encourages bishops, priests, deacons, and lay leaders to help guide parish families to more fully develop stewardship in their Domestic Churches.
