God's Mission Our Gifts: Your August Mission and Service Stories and more!

Congregational Stewardship/Generosity    This is your resource to help you grow generous disciples as part of doing God’s mission. Please modify and use these ideas in your context.    Maybe Your Parents Were Right!  I remember that as a child, I had to write a thank-you note whenever I received a gift. I hated it. But maybe there was something to it that I didn’t understand at the time.    Especially in this time of “digital everything,” writing a thank-you note on real paper stands out. It clearly says that you appreciate the gift and you took the time to say so.    So do it now! Write a thank-you note to one person for something they have done to help your church live out its purpose. Be specific. Name the gift, and tell them why it matters and how you appreciate them and their gift.     After all, your parents may have known more than you think.  Rev. Dave Jagger Community of Faith Stewardship Lead New FREE Stewardship Resource Kits  No need to dig through downloads and struggle to decide what you need for your Community of Faith to grow in stewardship. Now you can choose from one of these free Stewardship Resource Kits:  Stewardship Starter Resource Kit  Stewardship Digging Deeper Resource Kit  Stewardship program Resource Kit  Planned Legacy Giving Resource Kit  Each kit contains a number of resources and a “READ THIS FIRST” document to help you use the resources.  Find the kits on the Encouraging Generosity in Your Community of Faith page on our website.  Called to be the Church: The Journey     The courses in our United Church stewardship program, Called to Be the Church: The Journey, really make a difference.  In each course, Community of Faith leaders rediscover how inspiring their church really is and get excited about telling their stories as they invite people to share their resources in order to grow in faith and make a difference in people’s lives.  Step right up and join the movement!   NEW COURSE OPTION!  On-Demand Bequests and Estate Giving  Do it on your own timeline. Watch the videos. Answer the quizzes. And after all that, we’ll be here to help you make Bequests and Estate Giving a reality for your community of faith.   Find more information and register for all these courses at CHURCHx.    Getting Started in Stewardship   Join United Church people across the country to learn some stewardship first principles.     SPECIAL SUMMER COURSE:   Get ready for the fall. August 27, 4:00–5:30 p.m. Eastern, with a reunion on October 14, 4:00–5:00 p.m. ET.    Stewardship Best Practices  Best done AFTER Getting Started in Stewardship.    REVISED PROGRAM:  Phase 1: FIVE weeks. (Ends before Advent!) Two-hour sessions each week. The first hour is learning and content. The second hour is discussion and application in order for you to set goals, create an annual stewardship plan, and get energized!  Phase 2: 10 months of coaching for implementation starts January 2025.  Course fee: Pay what you can. Recommended fee $100/team.     Setting Up Your Congregational Giving Program    Learn how best to utilize the Called to Be the Church Giving Program materials and develop a plan that will work for your church with two 2-hour online sessions and coaching.    Fall dates now available: We moved the January course ahead into November to make it easier to plan your giving program for January-June 2025. Bequests and Planned Giving for Your Community of Faith Explore how to set up and maintain a Planned Giving Program at your church, with two one-hour online sessions. Course fee: $29.99/person.    Find more information and register for all these courses at CHURCHx.     For more information on these and other stewardship supports, contact called@united-church.ca. Stewardship Seconds (updated for July-December 2024) Short, pithy sayings that pack a punch, to help infiltrate stewardship thinking into your community of faith. Add them to newsletters, worship, announcements, webpages, wherever people gather!  Find them at the Stewardship in Worship webpage.  Offering Introductions and Dedication Prayers (updated for July-December 2024)  The offering time in worship is NOT about collecting money! It is about growing generous disciples and stewards. These Offering Introductions and Dedication Prayers, for each Sunday of the year, will help. Find them at the Stewardship in Worship webpage.  Get the Stewardship Support You Need The people and resources to help you succeed are here.  Your August Mission and Service Stories AUGUST  4 Building Community through an After-School Program   [Photo credit: Westminster United Church]   “I’m going to sleep here!” Amarah, aged 6, threatens from under the table when it’s pickup time at the Tomken Grove Afterschool Program. This is not an uncommon occurrence, as every Tuesday at 6:30, the children feel that two hours together is not enough. AUGUST 11 Minority Youth Forum: The Power of Bringing Youth Together     [Image credit:David McIntosh]   “God called upon me to see how the people of Miyako Island are living, and to share with everyone their struggle for peace,” says Ashley Keeping. She was one of two United Church young adults selected to attend the Minority Youth Forum on Japan’s Miyako Island. The Youth Forum is an ecumenical initiative of churches in Japan, supported by The United Church of Canada and Mission and Service.  .     AUGUST 18 Nothing Can Hold Us Back   [Video still credit:The United Church of Canada]   Audacious Hope, the national youth and young adult event, brought together over 450 energetic young people and passionate youth leaders from July 3-6, 2024 for an unforgettable experience charged with rejuvenated spirit and boundless optimism.   AUGUST 25 A Church with an Extraordinary View     [Photo credit: Ruth Richardson]   Canadian churches grace unique places: restaurants, storefronts, even movie theatres. Perhaps the most serene of all settings, though, is a national park. Ask Glenn and Dave! Questions about congregational stewardship or Mission and Service? Just ask Glenn and Dave! Glenn Waterman answers your questions about Mission and Service, and Rev. Dave Jagger handles everything related to congregational stewardship. There were no questions this month! Don’t be shy – send in your questions on our handy form. You’ll get an answer by email or in the next issue of God’s Mission, Our Gifts, or both (your choice). And if your question stumps our all-star team of two, they may even collaborate! If you haven’t, take a few minutes and do it today!   Questions? Email Mission and Service or call us at 1-800-465-3771.  Here’s an Idea! Have you seen the updated “My Generation” Mission and Service video? The United Church youth featured in this video present a vision for the future of their church and their place in it. And the band, Strange Situations, was able to record their original piece thanks to a Mission and Service grant. You can view “My Generation,” as well as download it, on the United Church’s YouTube channel. Each of the ministries highlighted in this video are supported by the generous gifts of the people of the United Church to Mission and Service. Get Ready for Thanksgiving! Even though summer is just beginning, we’re giving you the opportunity to look towards fall and plan your community of faith’s Thanksgiving Sunday celebration. We’ve created a new service for 2024 along with a separate sermon, so you can download whatever you need. Find this service and more downloadable resources for Thanksgiving and the weeks leading up to it on our Thanksgiving Sunday worship page. Gifts with Vision: Power They Can Rely On What would it be like if we couldn’t count on the lights coming on when we flip a switch, or clean water coming out of the tap? In Harare, Zimbabwe, the number of people who live on the United Theological College (UTC) campus is increasing – and the power supply to the college is unreliable. This means their electric water pump is often unusable and community members must walk several kilometers for clean water. The power outages also affect the lights and equipment in the library.   Switching to solar power, with support from Gifts with Vision, will provide a stable source of clean water as well as ensuring that the student population will be able to use the library. A reliable water supply can also provide extra water to grow vegetables, increasing food security for students, staff, and their families. Did you know that thank-you certificates are on their way? Thank-you certificates for 2023 Mission and Service givings have been mailed to communities of faith and UCW groups! Also included in this mailing is a copy of the 2023 Mission and Service accountability report. (If you can’t wait, you can also see the accountability report on our website!)   If your mailing hasn’t arrived, email ms@united-church.ca or call us at 1-800-465-3771, and we’ll send you another copy. GOD’S MISSION, OUR GIFTS is your newsletter. We want to provide news and information that you can use in your community of faith, whether you’re a minister, a board member, an administrator, a treasurer, or anyone else who wants to make a difference.   What else would you like to see? What can we do to help your community of faith get where it needs to go? Send us your thoughts! Donate Facebook Twitter Website Email Instagram YouTube LinkedIn   Your generosity enables the United Church to love, serve, and minister in the world. Make an online donation or learn more about your options to support the work of the church.

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