DECEMBER 7
Gifts with Joy, Gifts with Hope, Gifts with Vision |
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 | [Image credit: The United Church of Canada]
As you settle into the holiday season, whether you’re a planner or a last-minute shopper, consider a gift that gives back. Gifts with Vision is just a click away. |
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DECEMBER 14
Strengthening Communities |
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 | [Image credit: Bissell Centre]
During the 2025 federal budget announcement, Prime Minister Mark Carney delighted many by highlighting a Mission and Service partner: Bissell Centre in Edmonton. While Bissell Centre’s roots go back more than a century, their mission today is urgent and forward-looking: reducing poverty, preventing homelessness, and creating a community where everyone belongs. |
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DECEMBER 21
An Advent Lesson from Children |
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 | [Image credit: Natee Jindakum] This Advent, Mission and Service invites the church to share sparks of compassion that can ignite fires of change. When generosity is passed from one person to another, it grows into comfort, hope, and lasting impact for those who need it most. |
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DECEMBER 28
Rooted in Hope as a New Year Begins |
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[Image credit: Honey Haze Photography]
A new year invites reflection, but it also invites imagination. It offers space to dream, to reset, and to open ourselves once again to the transforming power of Christ’s love. |
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Congregational Stewardship and Generosity
As the church year comes to an end this month, and the calendar year end is also fast approaching, it is normal to be “wrapping things up” and starting to look ahead.
Many of your Communities of Faith may be feeling anxious or downright scared about what “year-end” will look like financially. Budgets that won’t be met. Deficits that are growing. It’s easy to be caught into the scarcity and fear cycle.
Now is the time of year to be intentional and- Review – What has gone before and what has brought you to this place?
- Re-View – How might you see, hear, and imagine things differently?
- Renew – Don’t just follow the same path. Do just one thing differently.
Instead of scarcity, where do you find abundance? How has God blessed and equipped the people that make up your Community of Faith and your neighbourhood?
Instead of focusing on meeting the budget, how are people growing in faith and practice? What difference is your Community of Faith making for its participants and those beyond?
The Stewardship Team is here to let you know there is another way, and we’d love to talk to you about it. Give us a call.
I wish you a blessed ending and beginning.
Take care. God loves you!
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Sharing and StewardshipWhat a difference doing a good giving program in your community of faith can make!
"Church A" had $6,000 in one-time gifts as a result of their program and are anticipating $8,000 more in PAR next year. At the end of the giving program at "Church B," 69% of those who had returned pledge cards planned to "step up" using their giving levels step chart. Both also tell really great stories of relationship building – and of better morale in their congregation.
Learn more and sign up for Setting Up Your Giving Program on CHURCHx.
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During Advent, how will you inspire and invite generosity to both Mission and Service and local?
Everyone is talking about giving gifts. Don’t be left out! - Be sure to use a Mission and Service Story each Sunday and specifically include an invitation to give to Mission and Service with your offering.
- Set and promote both a Mission and Service goal and a goal for a local social service organization – just for the Advent and Christmas season – as your Community of Faith’s gift to those in need.
- Tell an inspiring story of what your Community of Faith is doing for Advent and Christmas to make a difference in people’s lives, and invite a gift to help make it grow.
- Invite people who really don’t need more “stuff” to ask their family to make a gift to your Community of Faith and/or Mission and Service instead.
Shine the stewardship light of generosity during the season of Epiphany.- Five complete weeks of Epiphany-themed worship materials, including liturgy and full-sermons. Download “Discover Your Gifts – Share Your Gifts” from the Stewardship in worship web page.
Looking ahead to Annual Meetings – there’s still lots of time to change things up. Make this year’s meeting about abundance, not scarcity.- Prepare a Narrative Budget to tell the inspiring stories of what the money does, not just how it is distributed.
- Throw a “thank-you party” to make sure people know they are appreciated for who they are, not just what they give.
- Write a nice personal message (or make a short video) for the annual meeting, to say “thank you” for 2025 and give a couple of inspiring highlights from the past year of how you made a difference in people’s lives and increased in discipleship.
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Resources You Need!Free Themed Stewardship Resource Kits
The Starter Kit, the Digging Deeper Kit, the Stewardship Program Kit, the Planned Legacy Giving Kit. Get them at Free Stewardship Resource Kits. Coming soon: the Capital Campaign Kit!
Stewardship Seconds (updated for July-December 2025!)
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 page.
Offering Introductions & Dedication Prayers (updated for July-December 2025!)
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 page. |
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Gifts with Vision NewsThis year’s Gifts with Vision catalogue – featuring the gifts currently on the Gifts with Vision website – is small but mighty, and it’s available now! Email Gifts with Vision and we’ll send you as many copies as you need.
If you have questions, send us an email at info@giftswithvision.ca, or call us at 1-844-715-7969. |
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Why be a Mission and Service Volunteer? |
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What do you feel called to do? There's a place for you!
You might be a Church Administrator: maybe
you’d like to include some Mission and Service information in the weekly bulletin, or you’d like to give better answers when people call with Mission and Service questions. We can help you answer the questions and provide you with Mission and Service news you can use. |
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As a volunteer, you can send us the insights that come from working with your community of faith. You’ll get a weekly email with information you can share with your colleagues and congregation. And you’ll have help answering those difficult questions about Mission and Service.
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. |
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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! |
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