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Individuals and Families with No Dependents (Page 1)

Personal Planning Topics

When passing on inheritance to adult children or other adult relatives, it is important to pray about how much they should receive from your estate. Since dependency needs have been met, inheritance and love are two excellent biblical concepts to consider when transferring assets.

Transferring Assets to Adult Children and Relatives

In the Old Testament, most scripture on the topic referred to the Israelites inheriting the Promised Land. The guidelines for inheritance were often based on passing along assets to the next relative who would oversee the family, so dependency was a key factor here. In the New Testament, inheritance is most referenced in the context of inheriting the kingdom of God. Of course, passing on

God’s Word emphasizes love, and we undoubtedly want to pass on inheritance to those we love. Pray through how to balance this desire with good stewardship. Consider how a gift to a loved one would impact their relationship with and dependency on the Lord, as well as how the recipient would steward such a gift.

If your adult children and other relatives have needs you can help meet today, consider passing on an inheritance while you’re living. Also, consider if your family needs a financial inheritance. If your children already have plenty of assets to cover their own family’s needs, pray for God’s wisdom and guidance regarding how to best pass along your assets. You may have the freedom to contribute even more to Kingdom ministry.

young happy family with child and tablet planning careers
multigenerational family happily enjoying their time together

Grandchildren

“A good person leaves an inheritance for their children’s children…”
Proverbs 13:22a (NIV)

We know that the New Testament emphasizes inheriting the kingdom of God, so the greatest inheritance that can be passed on to grandchildren is knowledge of Jesus Christ and His salvation. Gifting assets from your estate merits additional consideration, as your grandchildren may still be developing as good stewards. If you decide to provide for your grandchildren through your estate, consider leaving assets to your grandchildren through their parents, especially if the grandchildren are minors. This allows the parents to provide for their dependency needs and also consider their stewardship abilities when it comes to passing along additional inheritance. If you prefer to pass inheritance directly to your grandchildren, you can do so outright or incorporate a Grandchildren’s Trust into your will or living trust. For more information on a Grandchildren’s Trust, please contact our Gift & Estate Design team.

Wayward or Spendthrift Children

Planning for a wayward or spendthrift child may be your greatest prayer concern as you develop the right plan of stewardship for your family. If you are interested in customizing your estate plan to provide individually for these situations, please visit the Families with Complex Estates section of our site.

Prayer and Action Items

☐ Pray over your heirs and their needs and consider how much to leave to them

☐   Pray over your grandchildren and consider if and how you will leave assets to them

☐   Pray over and consider how and where the Lord is calling you to support ministry through your estate

To download the Prayer and Action Items PDF, click here.

Next Step: Charitable Giving and Tax-Wise Planning Topics

Click the button to learn about charitable giving and tax planning.

  • "You should have two financial goals in life: to make a little money first, and then to make a little money last."

    Unknown

  • "If we command our wealth, we shall be rich and free; if our wealth commands us, we are poor, indeed. We are bought by the enemy with the treasure in our own coffers."

    Edmund Burke

  • "Every man ought to have money on his mind. No man ought to have money on his heart."

    Anonymous

  • "How much better it is to get wisdom than gold! And to get understanding is to be chosen above silver."

    Proverbs 16:16

  • "The plans of the diligent lead surely to advantage, but everyone who is hasty comes surly to poverty."

    Proverbs 21:5

  • "Divide your portion to seven, or even to eight, for you do not know what misfortune may occur on the earth."

    Ecclesiastes 11:2

  • "Almost any man knows how to earn money, but not one in a million knows how to spend it."

    Henry David Thoreau

  • "We are not to jude thrift soley by the test of saving or spending. If one spends what he should prudently save, that certainly is to be deplored. But if one saves what he should prudently spend, that is not necessarily to be commended. A wise balance between the two is the desired end."

    Owen D. Young

  • "There's no reason to be the richest man in the cemetery. You can't do any business from there."

    Colonel Sanders

  • "A good man leaves an inheritance to his children's children, and the wealth of the sinner has stored up for the righteous."

    Proverbs 13:22

  • "Planning one's finances must take place under the sovereignty of God, recognizing His omnipotence, wisdom, purposes, and plans."

    Ron Blue

  • "If a person gets his attitude toward money straight, it will help straighten out almost every other area of his life."

    Billy Graham

  • "God can have our money and not have our hearts, but He cannot have our hearts without having our money."

    R. Kent Hughes

  • "Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share."

    I Timothy 6:18

  • "Ultimately, financial planning is the predetermined use of financial resources in order to accomplish certain goals and objectives. The difference in financial planning between the Christian and the non-Christian is the belief as to whom the financial resources belong and the source of the goals and objectives."

    Ron Blue

  • "…every spending decision is a spiritual decision"

    Ron Blue

  • "Stewardship is the use of God-given resources for the accomplishment of God-given goals."

    Ron Blue

  • "A wise man should have money in his head, but not in his heart."

    Jonathan Swift

  • "Make all you can, save all you can, give all you can."

    John Wesley

  • "A man's treatment of money is the most decisive test of his character - how he makes it and how he spends it."

    Moffat

  • "Financial planning is allocating limited financial resources among unlimited alternatives."

    Ron Blue