2024 Stewardship
Pledge Drive
Passion & Faith at St John’s in the Mountains:
Fueling & Funding our Ministry
Dear Friends of St. John’s in the Mountains,
Celebrating the changing seasons throughout the year is an amazing gift in calling Vermont home. In the Episcopal Church, our worship is guided by the seasons of the church year, starting on the first Sunday of Advent, and concluding at the end of the Season after the Pentecost, exactly one year later. Earlier this year, the Vestry, at the urging of David Small, initiated the Seasons of Giving ministry dedicated to engaging St. John’s in varying stewardship opportunities throughout the year.
The word “stewardship” in the context of the church, more often than not, indicates a yearly pledge drive to keep the parish financially solvent. This definition of “stewardship” deprives the Biblical life of stewardship of its rich, evocative, and spiritual meaning. We are stewards of the faith, stewards of the earth, and stewards of the church. The yearly pledge drive is only one “season” of stewardship. The seasons of giving are ongoing.
In Paul’s Letter to the Romans, he reminds the new faith community that “we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us.” He names the gifts we have received from God and how we are stewards of them, “prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness” (12:6-9). Paul’s list of gifts is only the beginning of God’s abundance. The gifts each one of us has been given is ours to nurture, grow, and share with the church and the world.
The Seasons of Giving ministry will empower us, individually and corporately, to grow the gracious gifts of God for the life and well-being of St. John’s in the Mountains. The yearly pledge drive will be one aspect of their ministry. Starting in 2024, you will hear from the Seasons of Giving ministry about a wide range of “stewardship seasons” and sharing your gifts with the church and the world as compassionate, ministry leaders filled with generosity, faith, and cheerfulness.
Your brother in Christ,
The Rev. Dr. Richard. R. Swanson
Rector
Stewardship comes in many forms, including our financial gifts in response to the amazing love of God and Jesus Christ in our lives. Please prayerfully consider your support for the ministry of St John’s in the Mountains.
Thank you for your participation in the full life of St John’s in the Mountains.
Click here for the 2024 Stewardship Letter
Download and Print the Commitment Card
Seasons of Giving Committee Letter
Seasons of Giving
“Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to
enter the kingdom of God.” Luke 18:25.
I usually like to reflect on scripture or on a “one liner” from the The Episcopal Newsletter for Stewardship as a topic for a Seasons of Giving Ministry Article. Sometimes though, I find that special phrase or saying that catches my eye and I instinctively tuck it in the corner of my mind only to bring it forth at a later time for the purpose of reflection.
I would like to share with you a number of quotes I have discovered regarding giving and hope that you find one or two that catches your eye and serves as an inspiration in reflecting on what generosity means in your life.
“We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give.” – Winston Churchill
“Everyman must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or in the darkness of destructive selfishness.” – Martin Luther King, Jr.
“I don’t think we ever stop giving. I really don’t. I think it is an ongoing process. And it’s not just about being able to write a check. It’s being able to touch somebody’s life.” – Oprah Winfrey
“No one has ever become poor by giving.” – Anne Frank
“Happiness….consists in giving, and in serving others.” – Henry Drummond
“I have found that among its other benefits, giving liberates the soul of the giver.” – Maya Angelou
“If you haven’t got any charity in your heart, you have the worst kind of heart trouble.” – Bob Hope
“It is the preoccupation with possessions, more than anything else that prevents us from living freely and nobly.” – Henry Thoreau
“I do not believe one can settle how much we ought to give. I am afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare.” – C.S. Lewis
“A hospital visitor saw a nurse tending to the sores of a leprosy patient, and said, “I’d never do that for a million dollars!” The nurse answered, “Neither would I. But I do it for Jesus for nothing.” - Anonymous
Remember, in the Seasons of Giving, generosity can mean time, talent and treasure. God the Giver has given to each of us special talents, talents which we can use to make a difference in another’s life.
Your Seasons of Giving Ministry,
Pete Johnson, Nat Kinney, Andy Rodman, David Small, Barbara Cunningham
St John’s and You
Charitable programming is always in full pledge mode asking us all to become good stewards and to give as much as we can afford to help keep their organizations in full swing. Volunteers give of their time to talk with us through television commercials, phone calls and mailings about their cause with the wish that we can give as little as $5 a month and become a member of their family or even to become a “Sustainer” at higher levels. To encourage the public’s generosity, various gifts are offered with the hope that they will entice us to continuously give which will net us a T-shirt, calendar, a video or other minor amenities.
Well, there are some parallels between these organizations and the St. John’s in the Mountains’ family. Both depend upon the generosity of their members in order to thrive. At St. John’s there are staff salaries to pay, church building maintenance, new members to recruit and most importantly, financial needs to growing St. John’s new ministries of Art, Music, Wedding and Food.
The gifts that St. John’s offers, however, are much different from those offeredby other charitable organizations. God’s gifts are spiritual and much more difficult to describe or see. They’re not material at all but rather have to beexperienced within one’s self. The fact is, God is always there to help when times become difficult, to offer strength and comfort – and there with you to celebrate the joyful times. The fact is God freely gives to you the gifts of love and support whether you are simply a friend of the St. John’s family or a “sustainer” contributing time, talent and treasure.
Please give some thought to this as we move through the Seasons of Giving toward St. John’s annual pledge appeal. Growing the church and creating exciting new ministries cannot be accomplished without your generosity.
Your Seasons of Giving Ministry
Nat Kinney, David Small, Andy Rodman, Pete Johnson, Barbara Cunningham
David Small, Nat Kinney, Andy Rodman, Pete Johnson