Rusty's blog

There’s been an interesting shift in our social landscape over the last few years. When people are made to wait—at the doctor’s office, restaurant, coffee shop, or even stoplights (unfortunately)—they rarely just sit and twiddle their thumbs. Instead, you’ll see these waiting areas filled with people with their heads bowed and attention focused entirely on their screens.  

You've done it, right? Checked sport scores and movie times. Cleared Facebook and Twitter notifications. Browsed Craig’s List. Played solitaire. Searched for directions. Checked email. Googled some random question about something or other.  Maybe even caught up on the latest episode of your favorite sitcom.  Read more »

In a couple of recent posts, I’ve introduced the idea of a perspective shift from giving to something (building campaigns, mission projects, and so on) to giving from something. When I talk about giving from, I’m not talking about our checking accounts or retirement funds; rather, I’m talking about heart and head issues. Specifically, there are three general categories of “froms”: the shoulds, the cans, and the want tos.

THE SHOULDS

As followers of Christ, we should be offering financial support to God’s work. Here’s the trouble: motivation that comes from finger wagging and guilt-inducing “should” lectures lasts for only a short time. Instead of lecturing, then, it’s our responsibility to introduce new language. Your invitation to participate in the offering is a great time for some succinct teaching:

1. We acknowledge God’s ownership of all we have, and so we give from an understanding that everything we have belongs to God. Read more »

In an earlier post (See Stories - Part 2: Normalizing the Conversation), I briefly mentioned a critical paradigm shift related to our conversations about generosity in the church: shifting our thinking from giving TO to giving FROM. For the next couple of weeks, we’re going to take a deep dive into that idea.

For so long, we’ve talked about giving to church budgets, building campaigns, mission projects, special Christmas offerings, and more. Granted, identifying specific needs and inviting people to participate in meeting those needs can be effective. However, to develop a true culture of generosity—to help people move along the Discipleship Path of Generosity—it’s helpful to turn our thinking inside out. Read more »

Recently I had the opportunity to connect with Rob Kuck of Philanthrocorp. We discussed some of the changes that are coming in tax law if the looming 'fiscal cliff' isn't resolved by Dec. 31. Several options are being discussed, including one which would limit and/or entirely eliminate tax deductions for charitable contributions. Additionally, estate tax changes are on the horizon. Here are notes from our conversation.

What possible implications in the charitable tax area that might result from the looming "fiscal cliff" we are hearing about in the news?

Due to the political climate in Washington many pundits agree that it’s entirely possible that no resolution will be reached before the December 31st “fiscal cliff” deadline.  Read more »

In the spring of 2011, Andrea and I had reached giving goals that we had set for ourselves the year before. We were feeling great that God had so blessed us that we were able to give at levels we had never attained before. Having given beyond the tithe for years, this marked a new level of generosity for us. And, to top it off, these goals were reached during the same year our youngest entered college. Now we were paying the expenses for two to be in full-time higher education, and yet, giving at never-before-seen levels! Thank you God.

As it happened, I went to the Exponential Conference in Orlando that spring, feeling really good about where we were with our giving. I wouldn’t go as far to say we were ‘proud’ of our accomplishment, but we were enjoying the satisfaction of reaching a goal. OK, maybe we were experiencing a small bit of pride. Well, not for long. Read more »