I was recently talking with a good friend about approaches to funding ministry. Some have a “crisis approach”—going from need to need. But, we agreed that the better way is to develop a stewardship/generosity culture instead. You could say that a scarcity mentality versus one of abundance is related to these approaches.

Many people are rushing to get their wills written or updated due to the Coronavirus pandemic. It's really not surprising or odd that this is happening. I think it's a normal reaction to an abnormal situation. If this is something that's been on your heart and mind too, I want to encourage you to pause for a moment before you pick up the phone and call an attorney.

With few exceptions, the SECURE Act effectively eliminates “Stretch IRA” plans. Another change in 2020 is the elimination of longstanding provisions allowing non-spouse beneficiaries who inherit traditional IRA and retirement plan assets to spread distributions—and therefore the tax obligations associated with them—over their lifetimes.

Before my last blog post on January 14, the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act was signed into law on December 20, 2019. It represents the most sweeping set of changes to retirement legislation in more than a decade.

Thanksgiving is a great time to stop and think about thankfulness and generosity. These two things go hand-in-hand. As we give thanks to the Lord for His many blessings, it should remind us to be generous with all He has entrusted to us.

While Scripture doesn’t clearly state that you should make charitable gifts from your estate, God has called you to support your church and other ministries during life. A great way to accomplish this is through your estate plan. Giving from your estate often provides an opportunity to make the largest gift to the Lord’s work you’ll ever make.

Have you ever wished you could do more to inspire your adult children to be generous and engage them in the Lord’s work? Scripture is clear that God wants us to be generous and do good works (1 Tim. 6:17–19, 2 Cor. 9:6–15)…