Use of Resources
Over the years, you may have made great sacrifices in order gain wealth. However, it may be you have achieved financial gain with little or no effort on their own. No matter how God has blessed you, He expects us to be wise managers of all He has given us. Jesus illustrated this point well when he told us the "parable of the talents" in Luke 19:12-27.
The Big Question
If you live in America and have wealth in seven figures, you have been given the full quotient of ten talents. (If you have less then 7 figures of net worth you still have at least nine talents.) The question is, "What are you doing with the resources He has put in your charge — the money, time, talents, experience, and possessions?" What are you planning to give back to Jesus? See also the parallel parable in Matthew 25.
Develop a Plan
You probably have enough resources to self-support any work God would be calling you to do. However, you may be asking, "How is that possible?" or "Where do I go from here?
You realize you need a plan of action. Unless you are an architect, you wouldn't consider building a house without having an architect interview you for design preferences. Similarly it is recommended you seek professional help to give you confidence that your financial plan is designed to meet your life-objectives. You want to use the best strategies and techniques available.
The Bible has a lot to say about seeking advice. Finishers Project has developed a dynamic partnership with Master's Advisors, Inc. This is a business of Christian professionals.
Master's Advisors has designed and constructed specific strategies for persons looking to serve part-time, part of the year or full-time in kingdom work. It is safe to contact them as they first work for the Master, then their clients. There is no fee for a first exploratory conversation. You can learn more about and the services they provide at www.mastersadvisors.com.
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Strategies for Finishers
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Income
Having financial resources usually is only the beginning step to developing a plan for funding God's calling on your life. The key component to designing this type of plan is creating income or cash flow. You may own many assets that don't produce any substantial income. For example, you may own farmland that is worth millions of dollars; however, the income you receive from renting the land is minimal, or you may own individual stocks that do not pay dividends. These could be extremely valuable assets; however, they do little in helping you achieve your financial objectives for income. Therefore, strategies for positioning assets that create a tax efficient income stream are valuable tools to accomplishing your income funding objectives.
There are several useful tax efficient income strategies. Some could involve the use of charitable planning tools. These are too technical for the scope of this web site.
Choose what charity to sponsor. The IRS is the default.
An experienced financial counselor used to ask his clients if they had any charitable interests. The response was always, "No, not really." Then at the suggestion of a Christian Financial Advisor he rephrased the question and got a completely different response: If you had to choose between giving one million dollars away to the IRS in estate taxes or giving that same one million to your favorite charity, which would you prefer?
Again, there are several useful tax efficient estate planning strategies that involve the use of charitable planning tools. These are too technical for the scope of this web site.
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Resources:
Websites:
www.mastersadvisors.com
www.financialengines.com
Books:
About 50 books by Larry Burkett
Sound Mind Investing Austin Pryor
The Family Financial Workbook Larry Burkett
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Compare the biblical overview of wealth with your own values
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This section has been developed by Master's Financial Associates, Lancaster, PA and the Finishers Project.
