Dear Incarnation,
I say it often: we have an amazing vestry. They are prayerful and faithful and wise, with an incredible mix of strategic, relational, and creative gifts. I always learn something when we're together and am grateful for the ways they serve.
Vestry takes a break from meeting in August, but the wheels are still turning behind the scenes. Over the coming month, we will consider changes to our draft budget for the next fiscal year and continue to pray for wisdom about the direction and needs of the church. One of the areas of pressing concern is Incarnation's finances; we are running a deficit of -$33k as of June 30, and this deficit is projected to grow by the end of the fiscal year on September 30. We spoke about our financial situation at the parish meeting, and while we have seen some promising signs since then, we are still praying for God's provision while pursuing wise stewardship in the direction of a balanced budget. I welcome your prayers for our vestry as we engage in these faith-stretching conversations and challenging decisions.
All of that might be a strange lead-in to say . . . have you considered serving on vestry? We will hold an election later this fall to elect two new members to vestry. It takes all kinds of skills, experiences, spiritual gifts, and temperaments to make a vestry! But what we need most is people who love Incarnation, love God, are willing to courageously follow his lead, and can do so with charity.
Do you enjoy creatively and prayerfully solving problems? Do you enjoy team leadership and collaborating with others? Do you want to better understand and support the inner workings of our church? Do you long to see your faith strengthened as God reveals and provides? My answer to all of these is a resounding yes — if yours is too, or if you suspect you know someone's who is, then please encourage them to consider vestry service.
You can nominate yourself or someone else in the church by sending their name and a few sentences about your reasoning to nominations@incarnationanglican.org. Our Nominating Committee will receive these nominations, prayerfully consider all candidates, and follow up to clarify questions of eligibility (you must be a confirmed member, but we have ways of working that out!). The vestry election will take place later this fall, and new vestry members will roll on this winter.
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There are many things coming up that I'm excited about. On Saturday morning at 10am, come to Greenbrier (5401 7th Rd S) to prepare a freezer meal together. We'll enjoy the fun of cooking together and each take home an easy meal to store in our freezers for later to help out in a pinch. This is such a simple way to practice "ordinary faithfulness" as a community — to share and lighten everyone's load in the preparation of daily bread. RSVP to Evelyn so we know how many ingredients to prepare: eyarzebinski@gmail.com.
And on Sunday at 7pm, we'll gather at Restoration Anglican (1815 N Quincy, Arlington) to hear from our outreach partner in West Asia, whom we refer to as "C." I strongly encourage you to come and hear encouraging stories, ask all your questions, learn about another culture, and pray for our partners. I hope to see you there!
Finally, I'm taking two weeks off starting Monday, August 19. I'm grateful to this church for the opportunity to rest, and especially to Katie for her leadership in my absence (and, well, always). Thank you! I will be praying for you while I'm away.
Much love,
Amy
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