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

Scroll down for congregational stewardship news! Your February Mission and Service Stories PowerPoint slides for each story are available on the Mission and Service in Worship page.

February 1 The Heart of Winter [Image credit: Lindsay Glennie]   As winter settles in, Mission and Service partners continue to respond with care, creativity and resilience. Across communities, they are meeting urgent needs while offering connection, dignity and hope during the coldest months of the year. February 8 Shared Healing and Cultural Renewal [Image credit: Mamawe Ota Askihk]   On the land during Mamawe Ota Askihk at Sandy-Saulteaux Spiritual Centre in Manitoba, Indigenous children, youth and families came together for learning, ceremony and time in community. The gathering centred Indigenous knowledge, relationships and cultural renewal, creating space for healing across generations. February 15 Support That Grows with Families [Image credit: London Community Chaplaincy] At London Community Chaplaincy, families facing poverty and instability find practical support, consistent relationships and space to rebuild together. February 22 Where Play Builds Community [Image credit: Westminster United Church] Two hours never feels like enough at the Tomken Grove Afterschool Program. Neighbourhood children gather in an electronics-free space for play, movement, shared snacks and responsibility, building connection and community beyond the school day. Congregational Stewardship and Generosity   Can stewardship help your Community of Faith be more resilient and inspiring? You bet it can!! On average, 53% of the Communities of Faith who did the Stewardship Best Practices course in the fall of 2023 or spring 2024 showed an improvement in 3 key financial indicators. AND 100% of the spring 2024 Communities of Faith also reported an improvement in their culture & morale. 100% of the Communities of Faith who did the Setting Up Your Giving Program course in winter and spring 2024 and went on to do a giving program showed an improvement in key financial indicators. AND 84% of those reported an improvement in their culture and morale. What was most important??? They made a stewardship plan and acted on it! You can do this, too! The learning and coaching in the courses that make up Called to Be the Church: The Journey will show you how. Find out more and register today. Take care. God loves you! Let’s Get Ready! Your Annual Meeting Can Be Inspiring! Register now for this inspiring Webinar. January 28 | 12:00–1:00 pm ET Annual congregational meetings are required — but they don’t have to be dull or discouraging. This one-hour online gathering will offer practical tools for shaping an annual meeting that reflects your congregation’s ministry, tells hopeful stories, and invites members, donors, and newcomers into a shared vision for the year ahead — including those participating online. We’ll explore how to connect finances to faith, and use the meeting as a moment of purpose and encouragement rather than obligation, whether people are in the room or joining remotely. Led by Rev. Brenna Baker, Community of Faith Stewardship Support Staff for Southwestern Ontario.   It’s Tax-Receipt Time! Write a nice personal message to include with the tax receipts you send to say, “Thank-you” to people for their 2025 gifts. Share a couple of inspiring highlights from the past year of how their gifts made a difference in people’s lives and increased discipleship. The most important phrase to use is, “Your gifts made this possible.” You can get sample letters by downloading the “Stewardship Digging Deeper” free Stewardship Resource Kit from the Encouraging Generosity in Your Community of Faith webpage.   Lenten Worship Resources Look no further. Worship, Liturgy, Sermon, Kids Activities, for all 5 weeks of Lent are all available in the Loving Our Neighbours: Worship for Five Sundays of Lent file on the Stewardship in Worship webpage. Resources You Need!   NEW Free Capital Campaign Resource kit In secular fundraising they say that if done well, capital campaigns can raise 10 times the annual amount given for operating. Think of the church or ministry you love. What would it mean to raise 10 times your annual donation amount? Improved facilities? New programs?  There is a lot of untapped potential generosity if your Community of Faith hasn’t engaged in a capital campaign in a while. Get the free Capital Campaign Resource kit. Ideas, plans, samples. And don’t forget the Stewardship Starter Kit, Digging Deeper Kit, Stewardship Program Kit, Planned Legacy Giving Kit.  All available on this web-page: Free Stewardship Resource kits. Stewardship Seconds (NEW Update for January-June 2026!) 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 & Dedication Prayers (NEW Update for January-June 2026!)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. 2026 Lectionary Worship Starters UPDATED Sermon ideas, theme hymns, RCL based. Five-week worship series on giving and generosity. Available now on the Stewardship in Worship webpage. Get the Stewardship Support You Need Team Changes Beginning on January 1, 2026, The Rev. Roger Janes has retired! We will seriously miss him but wish him the best. Those in his regions are still welcome to reach out using stewardship@united-church.ca. Unfortunately, Vicki Nelson is now on Medical Leave for the foreseeable future. Those in her regions are still welcome to reach out using stewardship@united-church.ca. In both cases for the short-term, other members of the team are covering. For the longer term, more information will be coming when we know more. The people and resources to help you succeed are here. Gifts with Vision News Our small but mighty Gifts with Vision catalogue – featuring the gifts currently on the Gifts with Vision website – is available now! Email Gifts with Vision and we’ll send you as many copies as you need. You can also call us at 1-844-715-7969 to request catalogues or if you have questions.   And stay tuned for new gifts in 2026! Why be a Mission and Service Volunteer? What do you feel called to do? There's a place for you! You might be part of the Outreach Committee: you’re looking for new outreach ideas, but nothing is really clicking. We can help you find new partners to support through Mission and Service (and also Gifts with Vision!) and share their stories with your community of faith.  As a volunteer, you’ll receive Mission and Service stories for each month well in advance, so you can see what you might want to emphasize in your work and also have talking points to share. You can also virtually meet other Mission and Service volunteers and learn what works for them!    It’s easy to take the next step to become a Mission and Service volunteer. Just call us at 1-800-465-3771 or email ms@united-church.ca. 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 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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