Three Aspects of Every Family’s Wealth

The vast majority of wealthy families do not fully understand the different aspects of their wealth. Sadly, as a result, many go to their graves leaving their assets to suffer devastating taxes and reap only a small portion of the benefits that could have been provided to them, their heirs, and the Kingdom of God with strategic stewardship planning.

The IRS-Funded Kingdom Buy-Sell

How would you like to have the IRS fund your buy-sell agreement and make major gifts to the Christian ministries you care about all at the same time—without taking a penny out of your current cash flow?

The Banks Family: Multi-Generational Planning at Its Best

The Banks were all followers of Jesus with a strong personal interest and involvement in supporting many different ministry efforts. They liked the idea of using some portion of this unneeded wealth to support the Kingdom causes their families cared about. Here was the dilemma. If Mildred gave these assets to the grandchildren, very little would actually get to them and nothing would go to support Kingdom causes.

Don’t Render Unto Caesar More Than You Have To

When you employ common, often used, time-tested, creative planning techniques you can substantially reduce income taxes—all as a direct result of having developed a comprehensive and integrated Master Stewardship Plan.

Deflecting Wealth vs. Divesting Wealth

It is far easier and cheaper to avoid taking ownership of wealth and the additional income it produces than it is to attempt to dispose of it once it shows up on your balance sheet and your 1040 income tax form. Like avoiding degenerative diseases, it takes strategic, advanced planning to deflect your wealth where you want it to go without it first coming to you.

A Tool for All Seasons

One of the most powerful family stewardship planning tools is also one of the least understood and used even though it generates the greatest interest among affluent families––the family foundation. In the first of a two part series we will discuss the family foundation as it relates to two of the three most likely sources of information on the topic (an attorney or a ministry).

Does God Care How We Invest?

As we probe the extent to which God’s ownership and our stewardship impact how we live, we cannot ignore one of the most common areas of American life—how we invest. We cannot explore this area of life stewardship without first being reminded of the two foundational truths of life stewardship: first, God owns everything; and second, it is our job to carefully and wisely manage everything He entrusts to us.

Are Your Advisors Asking You the Right Questions?

As believers, we need to know what the Bible says about financial matters. It is not enough, however, to just know what the Bible says about such topics; you must also know how to integrate what the Bible says into a comprehensive Master Stewardship Plan that is consistent with all these biblical principles. Are your advisors asking you the right questions—the important spiritual questions that are consistent with your biblical worldview?

Understanding the Difference Between Ownership and Control

The idea of distinguishing between ownership and control is a new concept for many wealthy families. From a biblical stewardship perspective, we should at least mentally acknowledge that we own nothing—we are mere caretakers of our Heavenly Father’s property. But the fact is, the deed to our house, our stock certificates, and the titles on our vehicles still have our name on it.

Are You an Informed or Uninformed Taxpayer?

Christian families should become informed taxpayers—avoiding all capital gains and estate taxes and paying as little as they possibly can in annual income taxes, so they will have more for themselves, more for their heirs, and more for the Kingdom of God.