There are some rosy numbers out there for the giving world. In 2014, the last full year numbers are available, charitable giving to donor advised funds (like The Signatry) was $29 billion—which is nearly 6 percent of total giving. The Atlas for Giving predicted for 2015 that overall charitable giving might decrease by 3.2 percent for a total of $442 …
I’ll never forget the frantic phone call I received one year ago on December 31st. A donor had sold some assets during the year and had just figured out his tax consequences. He needed tax deductions, and he needed them now! The problem was that he’d started so late in the game that it was too late to donate any …
When you meet with most advisors, they encourage you to think of retirement. “Plan for the long term” is the adage. But what about seven generations? In Jeremiah 35, God asks Jeremiah to bring in the Recabite family and offer them wine to drink. (For context, this is a period of time when Jeremiah questions whether any are faithful.) However, …
Whoever refreshes others will be refreshed. Proverbs 11.25 (NIV) It’s a simple proverb: if you refresh others, you get refreshed too. What does it mean to refresh? Webster’s tells us that refresh means “to restore strength and animation; to freshen up; to restore or maintain by renewing supply.” Similar words are “revive, renovate, stimulate, replenish.” Other variations of the verse …
It’s a proverb. He who refreshes others will himself be refreshed. (Proverbs 11.25) We were traveling across Kansas and needed a lunch break. Junction City and a Freddie’s Steakburger filled the bill. We ordered our lunch, and had a nice efficient break. Like most places of that type, they had a dining room attendant who picked up the baskets, napkins, …
Consider it. They were three friends. They were exiles living in a foreign land. Different people. Different culture. They lived under the rule and reign of a king who sought to conform them after himself. He even changed their name, and he issued an edict: all of his officials had to bow before a golden image he set up. Whoever …
On Thursday, July 14, 2016, Mohamed Lahouaiej Bouhlel, bicycled to a rented 19-ton refrigerated truck. At 10:30pm, he drove the truck down the Promenade des Anglais, and plowed into a crowd, which was celebrating Bastille Day. He drove 1.1 miles and crushed people in his wake. The results: 84 people dead, 202 people injured with 25 still in critical condition. …
Having a grandchild is a magical thing. It’s mind-blowing to watch your children have kids and go through some of the same things you went through. But on top of that, there’s all of these wonderful stages you get to observe without being in the middle of the action. The sleeping baby. The hungry cry. The cuddle. And then soon, …
“Never trust a man without a limp,” or so goes the adage. What does that mean? The story goes that Jacob wrestled with an angel of God, and at the end of the tussle, the angel touched Jacob’s hip. For the rest of his life, Jacob limped. The limp reminded him of his struggle. Limps force us to recognize we …
Can you imagine writing a terrible legacy for your life? All it takes is one choice. For Jeroboam, this choice came at the pinnacle of his career. Jeroboam, one of the kings of Israel, started out with great promise. He caught the eye of his boss. He won assignment after assignment. Before becoming king, he was appointed as superintendent of …
