Last week I pondered about giving and gratitude, and offered some ideas from Diana Butler Bass’ lecture and book on the subject. This week, it’s time to get down to business.
After months of consultation, meetings, paperwork, bureaucracy, and the particular part of purgatory that is ChurchHub, (although there was an angel from the UCC staff that helped me navigate ChurchHub eventually), this week the Bermuda Nova Scotia Regional Council approved the extension of my appointment to full time hours, (40 hours per week), from May 1/25 to April 30/26.
This is so that I can offer support and leadership to Bethany as we focus on several key areas that were named in the Congregational Survey carried out by the Community Profle group last fall – the areas of Stewardship, governance (how we make decisions), and pastoral care.
I will focus on each one of those areas in this space in the coming days and weeks.
This week – let’s talk about Stewardship. Stewardship is not just about money. It is about how we live out our faith. It is about discipleship.
The United Church of Canada has a multitude of ideas, blogs and testimonies about Stewardship on its website. It’s a bit overwhelming. Here’s a video that I found engaging.
Chris Levan - Giving Thanks/Modelling Gratitude
As I begin to think about how to begin our work at Bethany, I found two short blogs interesting, both written by Vicki Nelson, Community of Faith Stewardship Support for Pacific Mountain, Chinook Winds, Northern Spirit, Living Skies and Prairie to Pine Regions of The United Church of Canada.
This one articulates how United Church camps teach the radical generosity that prepares young people to create a more just world. This gave me hope, and reminded me that stewardship is not just what we put in the envelope on Sunday morning.
https://united-church.ca/blogs/round-table/training-grounds-revolution
In this one, Nelson articulates some current thinking about Stewardship, and why it matters, and in my opinion, makes a very good case for seeing Stewardship as something that is about more than just money. It’s about time, and community, and a way of living out one’s faith.
How I Stopped Worrying and Learned to Ignore the Budget | The United Church of Canada
I will be looking for folks to think this out with and help me plan a Stewardship campaign in the fall, so let me know if you are interested.
