The sands in the annual hourglass have just about made their way into 2013. The end of 2012 may be one of the best years ever for end-of-year giving.
Those with modest or significant assets are insecure about changes coming to the world of personal finances due to the friction in Washington, D.C. However, this year there are some great opportunities to invest in spreading the gospel and receive the maximum benefit.
For example, there are always bold opportunities to give to your local church. Making an end-of-year offering for a special project that may not occur until sometime in the future is always appreciated. Ask your pastor. He knows the vision God has placed on his heart.
There are always mission projects that can make a difference in the world whether those mission projects are in our state of Missouri or in a strategic location in North America – or even a mission endeavor in the world. The beauty of being Southern Baptists is that we work together to reach every corner of the world with the gospel.
That’s why even a year-end gift to the Cooperative Program can do so many things in so many places. A gift through the Missouri Baptist Convention (MBC) for the Cooperative Program places funds in the hands of international missions, AND the Missouri Baptist Children’s Home and its safe house for sex-traffic victims or the crisis pregnancy ministry, AND Hannibal-LaGrange University, AND Southwest Baptist University, AND church planters in Missouri and other states, AND the 14,000 students enrolled in six seminaries of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), AND the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission. There are more ministries supported by the Cooperative Program than I can possibly enumerate in this short article.
But our vision is to all work together for the cause of Christ in this generation and generations beyond. Your gift reaches people for the Lord and trains the next generation of leaders. It helps ministry in places far away and places nearby.
Of course, you can also designate your year-end gift to specific areas of ministry, and the Missouri Baptist Convention can assist you in directing that gift to an appropriate location.
So if the Lord has prompted you to make a year-end gift of any kind to any ministry, there are a few things to consider:
1. Seek the Lord—that’s always the right place to start. He knows the motives of your giving. He knows the reason you received your assets and how He desires to use your life and the resources He has entrusted to you to make a difference for eternity.
2. Consult with a financial advisor—Before you make a significant gift to MBC or to one of the ministries in the MBC/SBC family, talk with your CPA, attorney or other advisor to help you understand the dynamics your gift will make on your income taxes or your estate. Don’t be afraid to ask. You may want to consult with your pastor even if your gift is not for your local church.
3. Take a good look at your stock portfolio—Many stocks have performed poorly. Some have appreciated. What about making a gift of these stocks. If you sell them, you incur capital gains tax on the earnings. However, if you gift the stock, you receive a charitable deduction for the full amount of the stock plus the earnings. Furthermore, if you can’t use all the deduction in one year, you can carry it forward for up to five years.
My friend and former pastor in Missouri who now serves in Oklahoma as their development director, Marty Harkey, says in a recent article that such gifts are deductible up to 30 percent of your adjusted gross income.
4. Plan your gift and make sure it is postmarked before Dec. 31. Whatever your gift to your church or to any ministry of your church through the MBC, it must be postmarked by Dec. 31 to be recognized as a charitable deduction.
5. If you need to catch up on your tithing to your local church, make sure that gift, too, is postmarked by Dec. 31.
6. No end-of-year gift is too small or too large to make a difference for Christ. The key is to be obedient to the Lord with our resources and experience the satisfaction of God using that gift for His glory.
7. Pray that the Lord will use your gift to motivate others to invest in God’s kingdom. After all, if we really believe that Jesus is Lord of all, then He desires to use our assets (time, talent and finances) for His glory.
There are just a few days until 2012 is history. Your gift at the end of the year makes a life-changing impact for Christ.