This is the third in a series of reflections offered as part of my service with the Stewardship Ministry at Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, Hickman, Neb., where Anne and I are members.

When you hear the word “mystery,” what faces pop up in your mind’s eye? Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, the cast of CSI or NCIS or some other detective show? No matter who comes to mind, we envision ones who establish facts, solve mysteries, and dispel uncertainty. They all show amazing powers of observation, deep knowledge of human behavior, and an uncanny command of the tools and techniques for detection.

Watching these amazing sleuths practice their craft is entertaining, yet the deep truth remains: some mysteries do not yield solutions because their nature is not that of a puzzle but of a deep truth that calls us simply to acknowledge and to reflect upon in wonder.

In his first letter to the Church at Corinth, St. Paul ties together “mystery” and “steward” in a way that helps us to embrace more fully both of those words. He writes:

Think of us in this way, as servants of Christ and stewards of God’s mysteries. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy.
—1 Corinthians 4:1–2, New Revised Standard Version

This opens up a new way for us to see our calling to follow our Lord Jesus Christ. We have a pair of roles to embrace; we are both servants and stewards. We have received these roles as the baptized members of the Church. It makes sense: if Christ is our Lord, then we are his servants. We listen to him and we follow him and we do whatever he leads and calls us to do.

A second part of our lives entails serving as “stewards of God’s mysteries.” We learn that God’s mysteries—his wondrous and rich ways of coming to us through his Word and sacraments—are gifts that he entrusts to us. We are not called to solve them, to explain them, but to treasure them, to tend them, to proclaim them in word and action so that the Spirit will move others to join us as servants and stewards.

Our calling as stewards certainly includes caring for the time, talent, and treasure God has given us. But living as “stewards of God’s mysteries” means caring for the holy things of God. Nothing is more holy than God’s gift of himself, the ultimate mystery. And so we pray that God will find us to be trustworthy stewards of those divine mysteries.