21 April 2008
Principles in Giving Panel Discussion
Panel offers financial advice;
answers questions about giving
by Chris Turner
Click here for event audio.
Click here for handout from event.
Being 18 years old, investing $2,675.47 per year for four years at a roughly 10 percent return – and never investing another dollar – equals more than $1 million by age 65. Right decision.
Being 25 years old, taking $29,000 that took 18 years to build through a conservative investment plan and plunking it down on a nice European model sedan - and losing more than $1.5 million in potential earnings by age 65; wrong decision, very wrong decision.
The first scenario is sound financial advice offered by a number of reputable advisors; the second is a true story, the consequences of which are lost on someone who values possessions more than a measure of financial security. Or, even more significantly, a lost opportunity to be in a financial position to contribute in ways that glorify God.
Wrestling with big personal financial issues and how they relate to the Future Grace Phase Two giving campaign was the purpose for the Principles in Giving panel discussion yesterday afternoon. Bill Bryan, Tim Kelley and Daniel Ladisa, all Grace members and all with banking or finance backgrounds offered perspectives on how to decide what amount individuals or families should commit to the campaign.
“[Giving] comes down to a basic foundation,” Bryan said. “If the foundation is not good and proper nothing will be properly constructed. Anytime money comes up in church it is in the context of giving. Giving and tithing for Christians is often the beginning and the end for God’s financial involvement in a family. We must realize that it all belongs to God anyway and he says some very specific things about it in His Word.”
Bryan, who has taught the Crown Financial class at Grace for the past five years, offered a biblical perspective on financial matters which included how God has first given us the Bible as a means to instruct us in all matters of life. Giving, Bryan said, should be viewed from God’s perspective who has an eternal purpose in mind when blessing us with financial resources. We must understand living as stewards of those resources and not owners.
“Ultimately we must ask ourselves how we bring glory to God in financial matters,” Bryan said. “Some ways we do that are by giving selflessly, cheerfully, generously and regularly. We should give because it is a priority done out of obedience.
“Randy Alcorn has a great quote: ‘God wants your heart. He isn’t looking just for donors for His Kingdom…He’s looking for disciples immersed in the causes they give to. He wants people so filled with a vision for eternity that they wouldn’t dream of not investing their money, time and prayers where they will matter most.’”
Ladisa, who formerly worked with clients in extreme financial crisis, offered several practical ways to help people improve their financial situations and put themselves in a better position to contribute to Future Grace. Some tips he offered were:
• Set goals and have a plan to get there (then actively work the plan)
• Live on less money than you make
• Have a budget; stick to it
• Get rid of credit cards
• Avoid car payments if possible
• Pay off debt as soon as possible, beginning with the smallest amount first
• Take out a 15-year mortgage instead of 30-year mortgage if at all possible
• Actively save and invest
• Take opportunities to learn about finances and investing
• Create an emergency fund that also could help someone else in need
“When it comes to the money and what you have it is all God’s anyway,” Ladisa said. “When it comes to giving, I’d ask that we’d look at it as what are we called to give then work our lives around what’s left. Then you are in a position to give what you are supposed to be giving instead of out of what you’ve got left to give. One way to look at is to take a look at what you’re doing to build wealth and to put yourself in a position where you can give more long-term for God’s purposes.”
Kelley surveyed two financial colleagues with years of experience, asking them where they believed people made the biggest financial mistakes. They responded that people fail to:
• Plan financially
• Exercise financial discipline
• Budget their income and expenses and don’t account for giving to God
• Start saving early
“The biggest problems arise when people wait until they are in a crisis before they start planning,” Kelley said. “You’ve got to start early. The time to work on it is before the crisis comes.”
Following the presentations, several questions were asked that have general relevance to those considering giving to Future Grace Phase Two.
Q: What are some practical insights how a family can sit down and think through how to carve out money for Future Grace?
A (Bill Bryan): “There’s got to be a balance. Evaluate where you are financially – not to take out an element of faith – but find out where you’re spending your money. Understand what you’ve got, then see what you can do without. If I don’t have a surplus after you evaluate, think of other means to give. Ask, ‘Does God need this more to build this building more than for what I need it?’
Q: What about the person who has a ton of debt and is struggling with what to give to Future Grace?
A (Bill Bryan): I’d say first continue to tithe. God’s promises are true. I wouldn’t tell anyone not to give because God has commanded us to give. We need to take actions to correct our financial irresponsibility. To me the tithe is the minimum we are asked to give so I’d say give something to be obedient then decide beyond that what God wants you to do.
Q: What do you do with people who already have the financial strain? How would get someone from inertia to taking steps?
A (Daniel Ladisa): First thing I’d recommend is taking a class such as the Crown Financial course taught here and reading books like [Dave Ramsey’s] Financial Peace. I don’t think you are ever in a position where you can’t dig out of it. It may be harder for some but it can be done. The first thing to do is prioritize spending (food, house, giving) then systematically start taking out the debt. Sometimes it comes down to a matter of what you’re willing to give up.
Q: How would you prioritize tithing versus giving to Future Grace?
A (Bill Bryan): Anything given to Future Grace ought to be done in addition to tithe. Give out of your increase. If you feel like God is leading to give to Future Grace, settle the matter of ongoing giving first then give short time. Don’t ask yourself what you should give, but ask yourself what you should keep.
Q: For someone with an irregular income I feel like I’m pulling a number out of the sky since I don’t have the foggiest idea what business will look like in the future. How do you do a three-year pledge when you have no idea what’s coming?
A (J.C. Haynes): It is a personal matter between you and God and what we give is a matter of faith. There is no set answer. You can say, Lord willing I’ll give this much, and if it more comes in then give more. Look at is an amount to be given over a three-year period and not monthly.
Q: I don’t expect to be praying and hear God to say give “X” amount. Is there practical way to decide—maybe by making budget—then decide within that what God wants me to give?
A (Elder Matthew Ladisa): I honestly believe the Holy Spirit works in us and if we are prayerfully considering what to give and we are in God’s Word consistently reading and studying, and we are truly seeking what God wants, you take all of that and the practical side of it and make a decision. It is coming from a heart and mind that is seeking to give to God and is being informed by the Holy Spirit. There is joy in giving and even if that is $5 a week or $5 a month and you are giving that because that is what God has led you to give.
Category: Event Summaries.
