Episcopal Church Foundation Vestry Papers - for leading congregations

As 2014 approaches, many people, including us at ECF Vital Practices, are busy preparing for Christmas, tending to tasks to close out 2013, and considering personal and professional resolutions and goals for the coming year. In this midmonth digest, we offer some practical and helpful ideas for crafting goals for your congregation in 2014.

On December 25, ECF Vital Practices will be running our 12 Days of Christmas via Facebook and Twitter, featuring our 12 most popular posts for 2013. Please join us as we celebrate Christmas by ‘unwrapping’ one these gifts each day.

We hope that ECF Vital Practices has been helpful in your congregation or ministry this past year. Help keep ECF Vital Practices a strong and relevant resource for congregations, dioceses, and other Episcopal organizations by making a donation to ECF Vital Practices by December 31. Your gift goes a long way to help develop the articles, resources, and tools featured every day.

Connect with us for congregation tested tools and resources on Facebook and Twitter, share your resources on Your Turn, and find others in our Tools. Also, be sure to share this page with others in your congregation and invite them to subscribe to ECF Vital Practices.

The Lord Broke Through
Incorporating prayer and time for study and reflection can seem counter-intuitive to some who see vestry and other church meetings as ‘all business.’ In “The Lord Broke Through,” Richard Schmidt shares how prayer transformed vestry meetings in his ministry. “Only in my last parish did prayer become part of the vestry agenda. That was also — and I think this is no coincidence — the parish where the vestry focused on mission and ministry rather than arguing.”

Closing the Planning Gap
Many people can feel uncomfortable about discussing end of life issues, but they are nonetheless important. In “Closing the Planning Gap,” David Farrand reminds us that not only does the Book of Common Prayer call us to make prudent provisions, but planning such final affairs makes a profound gift for loved ones. 

Blog Posts Make an ask this New Year's Eve: 22% of a year’s worth of online giving takes place on December 30 and 31; is your congregation ready to ask and receive these gifts? New Year's Resolutions: Are you thinking about setting some goals for 2014 that will make parish ministry more manageable in the year to come? Peter Strimer shares his ideas for his congregation. Being Prepared: From fire, flood, and storm to tragic violence, we have seen time and again that our communities are not immune from them, but being prepared helps us to effectively respond and care for each other.

Tools and Resources Winter 2014 ECF Webinars: From Vestry Orientation to Basics of Parish Finances, ECF’s Winter webinar schedule is full of great opportunities and are all free. View our archive to watch previous webinars too. Statistical Data on Episcopal Congregations: Do you know your congregation's statistics? New data for 2012 has been updated in the congregation and community reports. Christmas Reality and Budget Strategy: It’s not “us” and “them,” the vast majority of those who fill the pews on December 24 are your congregation. What if we used that reality to inform our budgets as well?

Feed the Poor or Fix the Roof
Trying to keep up church buildings and remaining committed to mission and ministry can be a daunting task with limited resources. In “Feed the Poor or Fix the Roof?” Dan Austin offers advice for getting through this struggle and points out “It’s at bottom a phony debate, but one that reoccurs as often as the liturgical calendar changes.”