“Remember though, what you say in that thank you note can keep your donor or giver wrapped in a warm glow for a very long time.”

What’s important is that you carve out thirty minutes (really, that’s all!) to set your priorities – your intentions – for what you hope and dream for the coming year in the area of stewardship.

…once a year, I do make it a priority to look back and see what blog posts resonated with you the most. So, before we get started with too much hilarity and frothiness for a new year, here are the six posts – backwards…to build up the anticipation – that you read and shared with abandon.

When people say, “Have an abundance mindset,” I know they mean well. But to some whose lived experience has been one of scarcity and deprivation, such advice can seem naive and shallow – or just coming from privilege. I have been guilty many times of being flippant with people who don’t get the concept of abundance. And for that, I am sorry. Their fear is real and not to be glossed over.

There’s one more thing to keep on your to do list: the all-important Christmas letter. I write about this every year because:

People are expecting a letter from you.
People are feeling more generous in December.
People want to give at Christmas.
People need to be asked to give.

By encountering Katherine through this short video (from I Like Giving), she teaches us much about audacious generosity, audacious giving and really…the audacious incarnation of Christ that dwells in so many people in this sometimes-dark world. 

“Susan (Howlett) shared with me how her University Unitarian Church (UUC) gets laity involved in storytelling during worship utilizing the offering time.”

The church that succeeds, is “not afraid to cast a vision for more exciting ministries that can happen as disciples grow in generosity – letting go of our scarcity mindset and putting trust in God and God’s amazing, startling abundance!“

“The job of declaring the Good News to all people through word and action belongs to the whole of the church.”

How do you keep on top of what needs to be replaced or updated on your church property? Church of the Resurrection’s Rachel Svaty has four suggestions.