Participants:
Series Code: IIWSS
Program Code: IIWSS023010S
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00:00 (uplifting theme music)
00:14 (music ends) 00:15 >>Welcome to "Sabbath School," 00:17 brought to you by It Is Written. 00:19 We're delighted that you are able to join us again this week 00:22 as we continue our journey 00:23 through this quarter's Sabbath school lesson, 00:25 "Managing for the Master Till He Comes." 00:28 This, this is week number 10. 00:31 Lesson number 10, we're talking about giving back. 00:33 We have covered a lot of ground. 00:34 We've still got two weeks to go, 00:36 but this week we are taking a look at giving back 00:39 and what it means to give back. 00:42 This quarter, we have had Ed Reid with us each week. 00:45 We have him here again this week. 00:47 He, of course, is an ordained minister. 00:49 He is a licensed attorney and has a great deal of experience 00:54 in the area of stewardship. 00:56 So before we look at "Giving Back," 00:58 let's pray, as we usually do. 01:00 Father, thank You for blessing us with another opportunity 01:03 to learn more about Your plan for us and our lives, 01:07 especially as it relates to finances 01:09 and help us this week to understand some of the many ways 01:12 that we can give back for the many blessings 01:15 that You've given to us. 01:16 We thank You in Jesus' name, amen. 01:19 Ed, welcome back, we're glad to have you with us again. 01:21 >>Another good lesson, thank you. 01:23 >>So we're excited about this one, "Giving Back." 01:26 It takes a lot of years for many people 01:29 to gain enough to the point where they feel 01:33 that they can give back. 01:34 Of course, God--we've talked about tithe 01:36 and offerings and so forth, 01:38 but now we talk about giving back, and the memory text 01:41 is Revelation, chapter 14, verse number 13. 01:44 It says, "And I heard a voice 01:45 "from heaven saying unto me, 'Write, 01:47 "'"Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord 01:49 "'from henceforth"': 01:51 "'Yea,' saith the Spirit, 'that they may rest 01:53 from their labours; and their works do follow them.'" 01:57 So how does that verse relate with giving back? 02:01 What does it mean to give back in this context? 02:04 >>Well, giving back actually means that if God gave it to us 02:07 to begin with, when we're done with it, 02:09 what should we do with it? Well, give it back to Him. 02:11 So after your family's taken care of 02:13 and the needs of your family are taken care of, 02:15 we're not gonna take it with us, we know that, 02:17 so that we need to make arrangements 02:18 for it to go back to Him. And then, so, after we pass away, 02:22 the effect of that is that our assets 02:24 that we contribute, that we make to 02:25 It Is Written or other ministries 02:27 continue to work on God's behalf. 02:29 >>So even once a person has passed away, 02:31 the financial benefits that God has blessed them with, 02:35 in large part because of their faithfulness 02:37 during their life is going, to continue 02:39 doing the work of God afterwards. 02:42 In 1 Timothy, chapter 6, verse number 7, 02:45 last week we mentioned, says, 02:47 "We brought nothing into this world, and it is certain 02:49 [that] we can carry nothing out." 02:52 Somebody once said 02:53 that they've never seen a hearse pulling a U-Haul trailer, 02:57 and I think that's very, very true. 02:59 You can't take anything with you. 03:00 So it's important to know what to do 03:03 with that, with those financial blessings during the time 03:06 that you are here. 03:08 Sunday's lesson is an interesting passage. 03:10 It talks about the rich fool. 03:12 We've often, you know, heard this story before. 03:14 I wanna read this, though, from Luke, chapter 12, 03:17 starting in verse number 16. Luke, chapter 12, verse 16, 03:21 and I'm going to read down through verse 21. 03:24 It says, "[And] He"--that is, Jesus-- 03:26 "spoke a parable to them, saying: 03:27 "'The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. 03:31 "'And he thought within himself, saying, "What shall I do, 03:34 "'since I have no room to store my crops?" 03:36 "'So he said, "I will do this: 03:37 "'"I will pull down my barns and build greater, 03:40 "'"and there I will store all my crops and my goods. 03:43 "'"And I will say to my soul, 'Soul, 03:45 "'"'you have many goods laid up for many years; 03:47 "'take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry.'" 03:51 "'But God said to him, "Fool! 03:53 "'"This night your soul will be required of you; 03:56 "'then whose will those things be which you have provided?" 03:59 "'So is he who lays up treasure for himself, 04:02 and is not rich toward God.'" 04:04 So Jesus calls this individual a fool. 04:08 I think there are many things that we would like 04:10 to have Jesus call us. 04:11 "Fool" is probably not near the top of the list. 04:14 Why does Jesus call this man a fool? 04:17 >>The real interesting part 04:18 is that he's living only for this life. 04:20 He's not thinking of the future life at all, 04:22 thinking only of himself and not of others, 04:24 not the cause of God. 04:25 So I said that this rich fool is the poster child 04:29 of what not to do with your accumulated assets. 04:33 So if a person is quitting work 04:34 to spend his accumulated assets on himself, 04:36 he should be aware and take this story to heart. 04:39 So we're really talking about estate planning here. 04:41 The interesting thing, Eric, 04:42 is none of us know the day of our deaths. 04:44 So what we wanna do is prepare for it 04:46 as if it could happen now; 04:47 our assets are in order, and we've taken stock 04:50 of what we have and what we plan to do with it. 04:53 So you'd have your will done 04:54 and your trust if you need a trust. 04:56 I'm gonna tell you now that you wanna be your own executor 04:59 and try to give it away yourself if you can. 05:01 Your testamentary documents are only for those that 05:03 you haven't thought about giving away or you needed 05:06 to keep until you died, 05:07 like your house or your car or whatever. 05:09 >>So what we're looking at, then, is where does all this go 05:12 and how does it benefit the work of God 05:17 after a person's death. 05:19 As we mentioned a moment ago, you can't take it with you, 05:22 and that really is Monday's lesson: 05:24 "You Can't Take It With You." 05:26 What happens to all of our possessions when we die? 05:29 How does that all work? 05:30 A lot of younger people maybe aren't thinking 05:33 toward that end. 05:34 It's usually as we get more advanced in years 05:36 and we get more toward the end of our life 05:39 than the beginning at least, as far as we can foretell. 05:43 What happens to all of our possessions when we die? 05:46 >>At the end of today's lesson, 05:47 I'll give you some actual questions to ask 05:51 to what you should do with it. 05:52 But the bottom line is what we do 05:54 with our accumulated assets is just as important 05:56 as what we do with our day-to-day expenses. 05:59 So if we haven't made a plan, 06:02 of course, the state has a plan for you. 06:03 So that's the real sad part. 06:06 And another interesting thing about 06:07 if you don't have an estate plan is that 06:10 the state assumes that you're an atheist, 06:11 and nothing of yours will ever go to a church or charity. 06:14 It all goes to any relatives you may have, 06:16 whether they need it or not, 06:17 whether they would use it wisely 06:18 or whether you would include them in your will or not. 06:20 So if you want to benefit individuals 06:22 who have been kind to you or the cause of God, 06:25 you need to do that yourself 06:26 with your own testamentary documents. 06:28 >>So I want to run that by again 06:30 'cause I---make sure I heard you correctly. 06:33 The state is not going to choose to give 06:37 any of your possessions, your money, your income, 06:40 anything that you have left, 06:42 it's not going to choose to give it to your church 06:44 or to a ministry or to someplace that you want it to go. 06:47 It's gonna make decisions--as you said, 06:50 they assume you're an atheist. 06:52 >>Exactly. The interesting thing, Eric, 06:54 that--you summarize that correctly. 06:57 Even though you were a regular tither 06:58 and you were a regular supporter of ministries and so on, 07:01 if you die without using your assets up, 07:03 the state will always only use it from a civil perspective 07:06 and give it to relatives. 07:08 If you have no relatives living-- 07:10 once in a while that happens-- 07:11 the term is (indistinct) to the state, 07:14 and you get bridge-building out of it 07:16 and that kind of thing, 07:17 but no church or charity ever benefits 07:19 unless you have a will. 07:21 >>So you can't just tell somebody who's a friend of yours 07:24 or a family member that you want it to go to church, 07:26 and you can't scribble it down on a post-it note, 07:28 but there are some actual legal documents 07:30 that you need to have, yes? 07:31 >>Very simple documents, yes, 07:32 and that you should hire an attorney. 07:34 The reason I'm telling that is that 07:37 they have the proper documentation for the state 07:39 that you live in and they can make sure 07:41 the proper witnesses and notarization is signed and so on. 07:46 Because if you try to do it yourself, believe it or not, 07:49 when some people die with money, 07:51 relatives come outta the woodwork. 07:52 They're all wanting some of your assets, 07:53 but if you've made it, a will, theoretically and ideally, 07:57 you should give most of it away, if you can, 07:58 but what's left there should be very specific, 08:02 where you want it to go and what should happen to it. 08:04 >>All right, so we'll come back and look, as you mentioned, 08:06 a little bit later at some of the finer points of this, 08:09 but Tuesday's lesson talks 08:12 about beginning with personal needs. 08:14 I wanna read 1 Timothy, chapter 5 08:16 in verse number 8 and then give you an opportunity 08:20 to comment on that. 08:22 It says, "But if any provide not for his own, 08:24 "and specially for those of his own house, 08:26 he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel." 08:30 Again there, we don't wanna be considered 08:33 worse than an infidel, but why is this important, 08:36 and why do we want to take care of this first? 08:38 >>Believe it or not, weird things happen in money management 08:40 in families that aren't trained properly. 08:42 For example, sometimes I've had people talk to me-- 08:46 a lady told me one time, "Well, 08:47 "my husband passed away, and I have no idea what to do 08:49 "with the money because he always managed everything, 08:51 "and I think we owned some property in Florida, 08:52 but I'm not sure where it was." 08:53 And she didn't know what to do. 08:55 So, my personal feeling is that family should have 08:58 a family council, at least annually, 09:00 and decide what their assets are 09:01 and what they're doing with it and where it's going 09:03 and what income they have and what expenses they have 09:06 and so on. 09:07 The big bottom line is our first responsibility 09:10 is to our family. And we need to make sure that our children 09:13 are educated properly. 09:14 The goal of Christian parents, of course, 09:16 is to train their children to become independent adults. 09:19 The best way to do that is to help them with their education 09:21 so they can have a secure position in life 09:24 and provide a service for humanity and also be able 09:27 to support the cause of God. 09:29 >>So putting the children first, 09:31 of course, tithe and offering, those, 09:34 that's part of our daily regular giving-- 09:37 systematic giving or systematic benevolence, 09:40 sometimes it's referred to--but then caring 09:42 for our children at the top of the list. 09:47 But then after that, 09:49 there's--we want to continue giving--Wednesday talks 09:52 about deathbed charity, and we're gonna dive into that 09:57 in a little more detail in just a moment. 10:00 What are--give us some other reasons to make sure 10:04 that our immediate family is taken care of beforehand. 10:08 You already gave some, but some other additional reasons 10:11 why that might be so important. 10:13 >>One thing is very interesting, Eric, 10:15 and that is to make sure that your family's debt free, 10:17 that they're not burdened with a lot of debts 10:19 when you pass away. Make sure that that can happen. 10:21 That's very, very important. 10:23 Make sure that their needs are taken care of, 10:24 as far as their food, clothing, and shelter, 10:27 those kinds of things. 10:28 A lot of times people don't think about that 10:30 because they just get by from paycheck to paycheck. 10:33 But if you have plans and you follow the counsel of the God 10:36 and you've been diligent to know the state of your affairs, 10:39 that's what we're talking about in Proverbs 27:23 and 24: 10:43 "Be...diligent to know the state of [your] flocks, 10:45 and look well to [your] herds." 10:47 I've already mentioned earlier that the Bible 10:48 was written to an agricultural people with agrarian society, 10:53 but we can just make sure you know what your assets are, 10:56 where they are, and how safe they are and so on. 10:58 "For riches are not for ever: 11:00 and doth the crown endure [for] every generation?" 11:02 So I can just tell you that we need to make, 11:05 I would say, a balance sheet, 11:06 at least annually, to know what your income is 11:09 and what your expenses are and what your assets are. 11:12 I remember the first time I did a balance sheet 11:13 right after school, it was a negative net worth. 11:16 I mean, I owed more than I owned. 11:18 Fortunately that's changed a lot, 11:20 but the bottom line is if you don't do a balance sheet, 11:22 you never know where you are in these kinds of things. 11:25 >>So that's just your basic starting point 11:27 is a balance sheet to figure out what your assets are 11:30 and what your liabilities are 11:32 and find out whether you end up, 11:35 as they say, in the black or in the red. 11:37 And you want to try to end up with a positive balance 11:40 rather than a negative balance. 11:42 But a lot of people start in the negative balance. 11:45 It doesn't mean that they have to stay there. 11:47 In fact, they shouldn't stay there. 11:48 They should end up going from red to black. 11:51 For some people it's gonna take a little bit longer, 11:53 but by the grace of God, that scale can tip 11:56 and people can end up in the black enough 11:58 to take care of their needs, their family's needs. 12:01 And what we're talking about right now also 12:02 is the needs of the kingdom, 12:04 the needs of a spreading of the gospel around the world. 12:08 And so this quarter, that's what we've been looking at. 12:10 We've been looking at how to manage those finances 12:13 that God entrusts to us. 12:16 We're getting toward the end of the quarter. 12:18 Some of you have been with us through this entire journey. 12:20 Some of you are just joining us this week, 12:22 and for those of you 12:23 who are just joining us this week, welcome. 12:25 We're glad that you've caught us on week number 10 of 12. 12:27 You still have a couple of weeks to join us, 12:29 but if you want to catch up 12:30 and if you want to get more out of this quarter's lesson, 12:33 make sure that you pick up the companion book 12:35 to this quarter's Adult Bible Study Guide, 12:37 and that is "Managing for the Master" by G. Edward Reid. 12:40 You can pick that up at itiswritten.shop. 12:43 Again, that's itiswritten.shop. 12:46 And this book goes into greater detail in the subjects 12:48 that we are looking at week by week. 12:51 It'll give you a fantastic opportunity to catch up 12:54 and it'll give you an opportunity even to get ahead, 12:57 so you can stop at itiswritten.shop 13:00 and pick up the book "Managing for the Master." 13:03 Gives additional insights and will bless you abundantly. 13:06 We're going to come back in just a moment 13:07 as we continue with lesson number 10, "Giving Back." 13:11 We'll see you back in just a moment. 13:13 (uplifting theme music swells and ends) 13:18 (upbeat music) 13:20 >>[Announcer 1] Planning for your financial future 13:22 is a vital aspect of Christian stewardship. 13:26 For this reason, It Is Written is pleased 13:28 to offer free planned giving and estate services. 13:31 For information on how we can help you, 13:34 please call 800-992-2219. 13:38 Call today or visit our website, hislegacy.com. 13:43 Call 800-992-2219. 13:48 (inspirational music) 13:49 >>[Announcer 2] This season on "Conversations": 13:52 >>Many times I think I know what God wants 13:56 or doesn't want me to do, and many times it's the opposite. 14:00 >>I was looking next to the car, 14:02 there's this family with a little ugly car 14:05 I would never have, but I saw the family, 14:08 they're so happy; they're laughing and giggling. 14:10 I said, "Lord, this is--that's what I want." 14:13 >>Jesus just had this warm, loving feeling 14:17 that I just couldn't describe, and I wanted it 14:19 more than anything in this world, 14:20 and I knew He was the answer. 14:22 I don't know how I knew. I just knew He was the answer. 14:26 >>[John Bradshaw] Amen, amen. She is Gayle Haberkam. 14:29 His name is Dr. George Guthrie. 14:31 She once was a practitioner of Santería. 14:35 I'm John Bradshaw, and this is our conversation. 14:40 >>[Announcer 2] Now available on itiswritten.tv. 14:45 (inspirational music fades) 14:49 (uplifting theme music) 14:53 >>[Eric] Welcome back to "Sabbath School," 14:55 brought to you by It Is Written. 14:58 Today we're continuing with lesson number 10, "Giving Back." 15:02 So, once God has blessed us during the course of our lives, 15:06 it's time to give back--give back to our family, 15:09 give back to the spread of the gospel, 15:11 give back to the work of God. 15:13 And we're getting here to Wednesday's lesson. 15:16 Wednesday's lesson is entitled "Deathbed Charity." 15:19 Ed, is that when we should give back to God? 15:22 Is that the first time we should give back to God, 15:24 when we're on our deathbed? 15:26 Maybe there's some times beforehand 15:27 that we should be thinking about that 15:29 and taking some practical steps to do that. 15:32 Lead us through this idea. 15:33 >>Well, when we talk about deathbed charity, 15:35 we can also talk about deathbed conversions. 15:37 Like the thief on the cross, 15:39 it's always possible the last moment to accept Christ, 15:41 but you wouldn't wanna risk 15:42 not knowing, when you're gonna die, for one thing. 15:45 Another one is if you're giving it only when you die, 15:48 then you're giving it to death rather than to God, really, 15:49 'cause if you lived another day, 15:51 you'd keep it another day longer. 15:53 So it's not the best way to do it. 15:56 I have this little statement that I talk to people about, 15:58 which is, "If you do your giving while you're living, 16:00 then you're knowing where it's going." 16:03 >>I like that. I like that. 16:05 >>Because a lot of people, even though they have wills, 16:07 they have relatives fight over it, 16:08 and things go to court, and it takes years 16:10 for things to happen. 16:11 So my suggestion is to try to do as much as you can 16:14 while you're still alive. 16:15 >>So you get to experience some of the blessings 16:18 of seeing where those funds went 16:22 and not just hoping that everything ends up 16:25 working out right in the end. 16:26 >>That's true. >>That's encouraging. 16:27 I wanna read 1 Timothy 6, verse number 17 here, Ed. 16:32 It says, "Charge them that are rich in this world, 16:34 "that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, 16:38 "but in the living God, who giveth us richly 16:41 all things to enjoy." 16:43 Share with us some thoughts about that. 16:45 >>Well, one thing interesting I can tell you, that 16:48 Kathy and I follow a plan of doing the best we can 16:50 while we're alive so we know 16:51 where it's going, the good it'll do, and so on. 16:53 So I'm gonna share with you advantages 16:56 of giving presently rather than just waiting till you die. 16:59 One of them is the donor 17:00 can actually see the results of the gift. 17:02 For example, if I gave a gift to It Is Written, 17:06 and I wanted to benefit SALT 17:07 for training young people and others, 17:09 scholarships for those kind of people going forward. 17:12 New church building, young person in college, 17:14 an evangelistic campaign that's funded, and so on-- 17:17 funds are always needed for evangelism. 17:19 People say, "Well, all they talk about is money." 17:21 If we didn't talk about money, 17:23 that means the work is over, and there's nothing going on. 17:25 The second one I would mention is the person 17:27 or the ministry can benefit now when the need is greatest, 17:29 not when I die. The third one is a very good one also, 17:33 there's no fighting among family or friends after your death 17:36 'cause if you give it away, nobody's gonna say you-- 17:38 maybe they'll try to maybe say you were incompetent 17:40 or something, but most of the time, if you give it away, 17:43 you can do it with a video recording or something, 17:45 and there's no question about it. 17:47 Another one is it sets a good example of family values 17:49 of generosity and love for others. 17:52 Sometimes people don't realize this, 17:53 but your family values are one of your best heritage 17:56 from your parents-- 17:57 honesty, punctuality, and things like that. 17:59 Generosity is another good one. 18:02 Another one, number five, minimizes estate tax consequences. 18:07 Number six, this may not be a big deal for some people, 18:10 but it might be for others. 18:11 So always recognize that there's no estate tax consequence 18:14 if you give it away first. 18:16 Another one is that guarantees that the gift 18:18 will be made to your desired entity, 18:20 no interference from courts or disgruntled relatives. 18:23 Those are important things to remember. 18:25 Also, it demonstrates that the heart of the donor 18:28 has been changed from selfishness to love. 18:30 If I'm giving my assets away, 18:31 I'm just recognizing that God's the owner of everything, 18:33 and I'm just giving it back to Him. 18:35 And then probably the greatest one of all these 18:38 is stores up treasures in heaven. 18:39 So if you know that you're going there soon, 18:40 would you rather have your treasures there 18:42 or on this earth to get burned up? 18:44 >>Yeah, I think those are all legitimate things to consider 18:47 as you're trying to figure out where your finances should go 18:51 as you're, well, probably getting toward the latter years 18:54 of your life, but not waiting till the very end. 18:56 Ed, I wanna share this interesting quote 18:58 from "Testimonies for the Church," volume five, page 154. 19:01 There's some interesting counsel here. 19:04 It says, "I saw that many withhold from the cause 19:07 "while they live, quieting their consciences 19:10 "that they will be charitable at death; 19:12 "they hardly dare exercise faith and trust in God 19:15 "to give anything while living. 19:17 "But this deathbed charity is not what Christ requires 19:20 "of His followers; 19:21 "it cannot excuse the selfishness of the living. 19:24 "Those who hold fast their property till the last moment 19:27 surrender it to death rather than to the cause." 19:29 And you made that statement a moment ago. 19:31 "Losses are [occurred] continually. 19:33 "Banks fail, and property is consumed in very many ways. 19:37 "Many purpose to do something, but they delay the matter, 19:40 "and Satan works to prevent the means 19:42 "from coming into the treasury at all. 19:44 "It is lost before it is returned to God, 19:46 and Satan exults that it is so." 19:50 You know, many different churches 19:52 and conferences and ministries and groups 19:54 have planned giving and trust services reps 19:57 who can help guide someone through this process 20:01 so that they can make sure that all their legal documents 20:04 are in order and everything is the way that it should go, 20:10 which kind of leads us to Thursday's lesson 20:12 about spiritual legacy. 20:15 Walk us through this idea of spiritual legacy, 20:18 its importance, its significance, 20:20 its applicability to us depending on where we happen to be 20:26 in our life toward the near end. 20:27 Of course, nobody knows. I don't know, you don't know, 20:30 nobody knows when our last breath is going to be. 20:34 When should we be considering our spiritual legacy, 20:36 and what does that look like in practical terms? 20:40 >>My wife and I have had our estate plan enforced 20:43 for many, many years. 20:45 We did it when in our 20s, when our children were young, 20:47 and we've changed it; 20:49 we've modified, updated it several times. 20:50 Our assets change and our interests change 20:53 and that kind of thing, 20:55 so I would suggest that people do that. 20:56 But what we did is we asked ourselves some questions. 20:59 So I'm gonna ask you guys some questions, 21:00 and you think of what you think about these. 21:02 First of all, has your family been blessed over the years? 21:05 How has they been blessed? What has benefited your family? 21:07 Has it been church, school? Has it been a hospital situation 21:11 or a local church that you appreciate very much? 21:14 How did you come to know the Lord? 21:16 Well, in our case, we've got, I think, 10 ministries 21:19 that we're supporting with our estate plan. 21:21 We try to do it even now. 21:22 We've given most of them contributions this year, in fact. 21:25 The bottom line is it was one of these ministries 21:28 that most of people know very well 21:29 that brought our family into the Adventist church, 21:31 and if that hadn't happened, 21:32 I would have had no ministry for the church, 21:34 nor would any of my family be involved as they are today. 21:37 Another one, did you receive a blessing 21:38 through your educational experience 21:40 or during a stay at a medical institution? 21:43 This is always happening. Of course, your alumni association 21:46 always tries to keep in touch with you, 21:48 but if you had a good experience there 21:49 and you wanna help others to experience it, 21:51 that's a place to think about as well. 21:53 Here's another good one. 21:54 Do you appreciate having a church to worship in? 21:57 Would you like to help pay off the church's mortgage 21:59 and be debt free or fund some evangelistic outreach? 22:03 Another one, have you ever been blessed at a summer camp 22:05 or have children that have been blessed there? 22:08 Those are places you can think about for-- 22:11 let me just interject here, Eric. 22:13 The assumption is with all these questions 22:15 that I've been faithful with my tithe, 22:16 so these are my assets that I've already paid tithe on, 22:18 so this is all offerings that I'm doing. 22:20 So it's, what I'm telling you is that it's discretionary 22:24 how I want to use them. 22:25 Does that make sense? 22:27 >>It does. So the tithe just comes off the top and should be 22:30 for, you know, throughout our walk with the Lord. 22:33 >>[Ed] So this is-- >>[Eric] So that's-- 22:34 >>...our accumulated assets. >>...already done. 22:35 >>Yeah. >>Yep. 22:36 >>Okay, we'll go on. 22:38 Would you like to help others learn 22:39 about the soon coming of Christ? 22:40 This really encourages us when we see people 22:42 are doing evangelistic meetings 22:43 or on television ministries and so on. 22:46 Would you like to help build schools and churches 22:47 around the world? 22:49 Has your life been blessed 22:50 by attending evangelistic meetings? 22:52 Would you like to support these organizations 22:54 in the 10/40 window like Adventist World Radio, for example? 22:57 Were you helped by the church during the time of need? 22:59 Would you like to help others? 23:01 Have you gone on a short-term mission trip? 23:03 Kathy and I, we've been on short-term mission trips 23:05 and they've been high points of our life. 23:06 And would you like to see that happen 23:08 to some other person that might not be able to benefit, 23:10 like to help others be able to do so? 23:12 Would you like to help some orphanage or a clinic where HIV 23:15 and AIDS has brought much sorrow and pain? 23:18 There are many questions now that you could ask yourself. 23:20 You can think of more of it yourself. 23:22 How have you been blessed over your life? 23:24 What organizations do you believe are doing God's will? 23:26 So this is storing up treasures in heaven, 23:28 but most of all it's helping the ministry of God go forward. 23:32 These are the kind of things we read about earlier, Eric, 23:34 when it says when you're laid to rest, 23:36 your life continues to go on because you're blessing others. 23:39 >>So you've given us a lot of very practical suggestions, 23:43 of questions to ask, things to consider, 23:47 maybe people to contact or groups to contact 23:51 to help guide you through something. 23:53 What would you tell someone who is saying, "Yeah, 23:57 "those are good ideas. I'm gonna do those. 24:02 "I'll think about calling this person, 24:04 making this appointment, getting these documents in order." 24:07 What would you tell someone 24:08 who hasn't done it yet and intends to do it 24:13 but has other priorities at the moment? 24:17 >>Well, the bottom line is the sooner the better, really, 24:19 because you never know the day of your death. 24:21 Kathy and I thank God that we made a safe trip down here 24:23 to Chattanooga area, 24:25 but who knows whether we'll get home or not. 24:27 We're all ready, 'cause we have our plans made already, 24:30 no need to worry about that. 24:32 But I can tell you something interesting also, 24:34 and that is that people think that if they make their will 24:36 and their trust, they're gonna die sooner. 24:38 They don't die any sooner; they just die prepared. 24:40 That's important to know. 24:42 >>So making sure you have your will set up, 24:44 making sure you have your trust set up, 24:46 making sure that you've had important conversations 24:50 with children, with other family members 24:54 so that others know what your intentions are 24:58 and there aren't any nasty surprises, 25:00 if those can be avoided. 25:02 Any other practical things that one might do 25:05 to make sure that their affairs are in order 25:07 as we look at giving back? 25:09 >>Well, I think it's important also-- 25:10 I mentioned this earlier--that the entire family-- 25:12 you mentioned the children and so on. 25:14 In America today, most children think that they're gonna get 25:18 their share of their parents' estate when they die. 25:22 But if they're contacted ahead of time-- 25:25 we thought, in our case, that most of the benefit 25:27 to our children was to help them through 25:28 with their education, which we did, 25:30 but we still have promises to them in our estate plan, 25:34 but they're token gifts compared to what we've done before. 25:37 What we wanna do is make sure 25:38 that our children are in heaven 25:39 and they're not depending on us. 25:41 People who have worked hard for them, for their living 25:43 need to make sure that they're the ones that benefit. 25:45 They don't hand it off to their relatives 25:48 to take care of it, but they do it themselves. 25:49 That's what I'm encouraging people to do 25:52 is do their own giving, if they can. 25:55 >>So, plan early; 25:57 make sure that all of your documents are in order. 25:59 Talk with family, close and extended family, 26:04 prioritize where you want things to go, 26:06 and ultimately make sure that everything 26:09 is set so that that day doesn't sneak up on you, 26:12 as it does, unfortunately, with a lot of people. 26:15 I think, Ed, you and I have both heard stories of people 26:17 who intended to do something with their money, 26:20 but--I won't call it time and chance-- 26:24 but a person's number was called. 26:27 >>Yes. >>And they never got a chance 26:28 to do that. 26:29 >>One thing I would add also, 26:30 I mentioned earlier, is that if you're married, 26:32 talk to your spouse about this on at least an annual basis. 26:35 Here's what our assets are; 26:36 here's what we're planning to do. 26:37 Not that you're telling them then, 26:39 but this is what we've done so far. 26:40 Do we wanna change anything, or is this still good for us? 26:43 >>All right, so have some of those important conversations. 26:46 Ed, thank you again for leading us 26:48 and guiding us through this week's study. 26:50 We've still got two weeks to go, so we're not finished yet. 26:53 Make sure that you join us again next week 26:55 as we continue our journey 26:57 through this incredible subject of blending faith 27:01 and finances, stewardship, God's plan for the funds 27:08 that He entrusts to us each and every day of our lives. 27:11 If God has blessed you, then you can bless others. 27:14 God has blessed you, whether it's financially or in health 27:17 or in a relationship with Him. 27:18 The question is how can you take that and turn it 27:21 into a blessing for someone else? 27:23 And as we continue through our lives, 27:25 we get to see some good examples in the Bible 27:27 and some bad examples in the Bible, 27:29 and we've looked a little bit of both of those 27:32 as we've studied this quarter together. 27:34 Be with us again next week as we continue our journey 27:37 in the last two weeks of this quarter's lesson, 27:40 looking at "Managing for the Master Till He Comes." 27:45 God bless you, have a wonderful week. 27:47 We'll see you next time. 27:48 (uplifting theme music) 28:26 (music ends) |
Revised 2023-03-02