Does God Care Where We Give? with David Wills

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Hi, I'm Rob West. We all have to make decisions about where we will give from our limited resources, so a good question to ask is, does God care where we give? I'll talk about that today with David Wills, and then it's on to your calls at 800-525-7000.

That's 800-525-7000. This is Faith and Finance, biblical wisdom for your financial journey. Well, our guest today is my friend David Wills, President Emeritus of the National Christian Foundation, and he spent a lot of time helping hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of individuals and families decide not just how but where to give. David, great to have you with us today. So good to be with you, Rob. Thanks for having me.

Absolutely. David, your article on the NCF website titled Does God Care Where We Give caught my eye, and I invited you here just to unpack some of your thoughts about this really important topic with our listeners because you point out that sometimes we have this backwards. Why don't you start there and tell us what you mean by that?

Well, Rob, let me back up and give some context so that I think people can understand what I'm saying. I think there's, you know, we often say there's three primary uses of financial resources. We give, save, and spend, and when it comes to the give of those three, there's three questions that we ask. Why should I give? How do I give? And where should I give? So we're going to talk about the third question, the where to give question. And so one thing we need to be kind of clear about when we're thinking through the where to give question is that it is primarily a matter of the heart when it comes to our giving. So Jesus didn't command the widow, the history's most famous giver, whose name we don't even know, for giving to the best synagogue. He committed her for a sacrificial heart.

So the widow walked away that day, having experienced what 1 Timothy 6 says was life that is truly life. Then the next question is, when we're thinking about where to give, how do we get it backwards? And I'm very guilty of this, this thought process. And often I will ask myself, and I'll even tell others, you know, what are you passionate about?

And then figure out what you're passionate about and then give there. And that's where I think we kind of get it backwards, because I think our priority should be first asking the question, what is God passionate about? And then asking the question, is my giving aligned with his heart?

Wow, that's powerful. Yeah, and perhaps an entirely different approach to our giving than we've considered in the past. All right, so how do we determine that? Does God tell us where to give, David? I think you're kind of asking that as a rhetorical question. Absolutely. So yes, he does care.

And he does tell us. So let me take a stab at a framework. It's not perfect.

No framework is perfect. But I think maybe it will help us think through this. And so imagine a three by three grid with nine boxes, kind of like a tic-tac-toe with a box around it.

All right. So let's go the left side of this box. And I'm going to kind of put together this framework that will help us think about this. And so the places God cares about are in the three slots on the left side. And the passions that God cares about are on the three boxes along the top.

And then we'll see how they interact and ask us to ask the right questions. So the left side, the verse that really helps us here is Acts 1-8. And we're all familiar with this verse about being witnesses in all Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and the ends of the earth. So each of us can decide for ourselves these geographies. So you might say, in the upper left, the first one might be your community, then your country, then internationally. So those three pieces of that framework are kind of the starting point of this framework that I hope can help us think through what is it that God would have us do. So that's the first place that we need to think about. Does that make sense to you? Yeah, absolutely.

Yeah. And it's important for us to think through the two facets of this because we're going to have this grid. And when we get to the top in just a second, one of the first questions you will ask is, so at the local level, am I giving to these areas of what God is passionate about? And then we'll ask that question maybe for your country. Are you giving to areas in your country of these three things? And you're not going to hit every box, but hopefully this will give a framework and then we'll get to the top here in just a second. I love this, David.

And I think you're exactly right. Having a framework that allows us to think more intentionally about our giving in light of the heart of God that we see in scripture perhaps is going to change entirely the where piece of our giving. David Will is with us today, President Emeritus of the National Christian Foundation. Much more to come just around the corner.

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To find a Certified Kingdom Advisor in your area, visit faithfi.com and click Find a CKA. More information, including the short video webinar on profit and peace of mind, no matter what's happening in the market, is available at soundmindinvesting.org. Welcome back to Faith and Finance.

I'm Rob West. Joining me today, my friend David Wills, President Emeritus of the National Christian Foundation. We're talking about a recent article that David wrote on NCS website titled, Does God Care Where We Give? And David, just before the break, you were really setting up this perhaps grid or framework that we can think about in terms of the where of our giving. But does God's Word tell us who we should give to as well? Absolutely it does. So it kind of, one of the great things about the Word of God is if we'll go there first, it'll really give us a picture.

We just talked about the left side of this framework, this grid, if you will. And just one additional thought about this left side, where we talk about giving locally, maybe giving to your country and then internationally, or whatever you think are the best three ones that kind of mirror Acts 1a. It probably is wise for us to think back just for a second on what did the disciples think when Jesus, or when it was Acts 1a, was said. And so when they hear Jerusalem, they're thinking, well, this is where we live. This is our community. When they think Judea, they think, well, I know where that is. It's a short journey, but it's not where I live. But when he added Samaria, there was a little bit of a twist on that one, because that was a place that they probably would not have gone had Jesus not told him to go there.

So when we think about our giving, there are times when we should think, are there places that God really is telling me to give that I just have never thought about giving there before? And then, of course, the ends of the earth for the disciples were way beyond anything that they would have ever imagined. But they ended up obeying Acts 1a. And today we are followers of Jesus because of their obedience. And so that's right. So now are we ready to go on to the top of the grid?

Absolutely. So let's move to the top of the grid and talk about who we give to. Yeah, so there are three. So the left side are the three places and the right side are the three passions that God cares about. And of course, you know, it was take us a long time, there are dozens and dozens of verses that describe the passions that God has. But there are three biggies.

Biggies, if you will. In fact, you might call this framework, the great giving framework, because each of the top grids describes something that God's Word describes as great. So the first one at the top left is going to be the Great Commission, Matthew 28, 19 through 20. The verse we all know about making disciples, baptizing them, teaching them, going to the uttermost parts of the world. And you can see how all of these things intertwine. So this is not, they're dashed lines, if you will, of this grid.

In fact, the lines are probably not perfectly straight because the kingdom doesn't work that way. But it's helpful for us to think about. So there's a lot packed in that verse with regards to the, you know, who should we give to, or the things that we should give to. So let's just say as an example, in this column, there would be things like missions, or evangelism, discipleship, maybe giving the scripture translation or Christian education.

Those are the kind of things that you hear about when you read the Great Commission. And of course, we all come up with our own specific things, but that's just kind of some examples. So in the middle box at the top, let's call it the greatest commandment. And that's found in Matthew 22. And that very famous verse is that we're to love the Lord our God with all our heart, with all our soul, and all our mind.

So when we think about that one, that's the second column. And then the third one to the right, upper right, would be the second greatest commandment, which is in the next verse that says we are to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. So the types of things we want to give to are the things that are in the greatest commandment, possibly could be preaching, and teaching, and cultural issues, things that are central to us, loving the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, and mind. And the third upper right box, those kind of things are the ones that are most often mentioned in scripture.

And there's really five big ones, but underneath there's lots of other ones. So widows and orphans, prisoners, the poor and needy, the sick, the oppressed. God talks about basically giving to them over and over and over again. And we should be a little maybe more creative. So when you think of widows, maybe you also think about single moms. Or when you think about orphans, you could think about foster care or adoption. And so let's take the oppressed, for example. We're living in a world right now where there's a refugee crisis going on in so many places in the world. And of course, there's also issues of trafficking and slavery of all kinds.

Those are people that are oppressed, if you will, immigrants as well. And so we want to be a little creative here, but we do want to be biblical. We want to really stick to that top part, are the passions of God. What is it that God is passionate about? And there's overlap, and all of us can kind of make our own grid, but I'm just kind of giving a framework out there to help us think through what is God passionate about, and then let that drive what I am passionate about giving to. This is really helpful, David, because I love that it involves intentionality, but it's rooted in Scripture. And so again, if we have this three by three, these nine boxes, down the left side, we have our community and our country and then international. And across the top, we have the three greats, the Great Commission, the Great Commandment, and then the second greatest commandment. It gives us a framework to think about our giving.

Now, what does it look like for you, David, or you and your wife, as you think about your giving? How do you go about putting this together, let's say, on an annual basis? Yeah, let's take the top one, the local. Most of the folks that I work with, by the way, Rob, they actually look at it kind of like concentric circles with regards to the places. So first, they ask the question, how should I be engaged locally?

And then they ask, what's the next outer circle, and then the uttermost parts. And so let's just take the local, for example. When you talk about the Great Commission, the greatest commandment, really everything that we give to locally is going to intersect one of those three, if we're following this framework. So let's just take an example, giving to my local church. If you looked at what I just talked about, you would see that giving to my local church clearly fits within what God's passion is. I live here in Waco, there's several organizations that we've given to that are ministering to the poor and needy. And so that fits in the upper right hand box. And there are other organizations that we give to here that are educated, doing different types of education, especially some special needs related things. And we give to a local organization here that's connected to our church that deals with trafficking. And so I know that what we're giving to these things, I can clearly put them in just on that top row in the local. And then I want to ask the same questions about the middle two boxes. Am I doing this in my country?

And am I doing this in the uttermost parts of the world? We've been very involved in what's going on in Afghanistan and Ukraine, for example. And it's just easy to see there's refugee issues there. There's poor and needy issues. There's healing. And you can see how they all intersect.

So you can really be competent. If I'm giving to those things that God is passionate about, then I'm definitely going in the right direction. That's so helpful, David. All right, we've almost out of time.

Tiabo on this for us. Well, just as we're closing up, I would ask one more question. What in my passion don't align with God's passions? Well, the answer to that is give to the things that God is passionate about. And where your treasure is there, your heart will be also love it. David, thanks for stopping by, my friend.

Thanks for having me, Rob. Really appreciate it. That was David Wills, president emeritus of the National Christian Foundation.

You can read this article at our website, faithfi.com. All right. Your calls are next. The number 800-525-7000.

That's 800-525-7000. I'm Rob West, and this is Faith and Finance. We'll be right back. Create your free Faith Buy account by going to faithbuy.com and click sign up to begin receiving weekly wisdom in your inbox. Great to have you with us today on Faith and Finance. We're taking your calls and questions today. The number to call 800-525-7000.

Again, that's 800-525-7000. We'd love to hear from you with whatever is on your mind. You know, one of the other ways we receive questions from you other than you calling the broadcast each day is by email. Let's tackle a couple of those emails now.

This one comes to us from Tamara. She writes, Hi Rob, my husband and I plan to retire in five years and I will soon be receiving an inheritance of $200,000. How can we save or invest this money given our retirement time frame? What I would say to you Tamara, for you and your husband, is number one, I would think about whether number one, you want to manage this yourself or you want to hire an advisor to manage it for you.

Oftentimes, for somebody who's especially in the prime of their working years, I mean, you still got five years left before retirement. The last thing you want to be doing is making a decision on how to invest a couple of hundred thousand dollars. So what I would do as a next step would be reach out to a few certified kingdom advisors in your area. You can do that on our website at faithfi.com.

Just click find a professional and I'd interview two or three CKAs in your town. Find the one that you feel is the best fit. And then what would happen is you would actually move that money into an account that they're managing and making the buy and sell decisions on your behalf. You will also be able to look as a part of that conversation at how you might get some of this into a tax deferred environment, whether that's, you know, perhaps maxing out your company sponsored retirement contributions and supplementing some of your income from this account.

So thereby kind of transferring it into your tax deferred environment, you could be contributing to IRAs, you and your husband could each put in $8,000 this year if you're over age 50. But I think the big idea is to have somebody managing it for you that, you know, can take responsibility for it with great communication to you and make those decisions at the end of the day. By the way, folks, if you have a question you'd like to send along at any point, just email them along. Ask Rob at faithfi.com. All right, let's head to Ohio.

Craig, go ahead, sir. Yes, I was wondering about annuities, and what would be a good amount to invest in an annuity? I mean, I was told that if you invested like $200,000 that you would get a guarantee of $16,200 in return.

Yeah, it really depends on what you're trying to accomplish. So what investable assets do you have today, Craig? About $300 in cash. All right, and so those are not in retirement plans? No. Okay, do you have anything in qualified accounts, retirement accounts? I just have, I just get Social Security of about $1,000 a month. Okay, and are you pulling anything out of the $300 to supplement your Social Security to cover your bills?

Yeah, somewhat, as I go along, yeah, a little bit. What do you think you pull out over either a month's time, or if it's not monthly, any idea what you've pulled out over the last 12 months? Well, in the last 12 months, I've pulled out quite a bit for like some medical things, issues, so it's been $10,000, probably $12,000. Okay, do you think $1,000 a month on average is what you're going to need moving forward, or would you expect to pull less? I would expect to pull a little more, yeah, somewhat more. So more than $1,000 a month?

Yes. Okay, all right, well, here's, you've got a couple of options. I mean, one is we need to get this position for it with a longer term approach. I mean, even though rates are very attractive right now, and if you had this in a laddered CD, maybe you're getting 5% on this money, which is great, you get 4.5% right now in a high yield savings with FDIC insurance, that's not going to be available forever. So we need to take a long term, even at 73, with some health issues, we still want to plan for this money to need to last you the next 20 years.

And so we want it invested. The question is, do you want to assume that risk and keep full access to the money? Or do you want to transfer that risk to somebody else, namely an insurance company, and lose some access to the money?

And so you've got to decide which is a higher priority for you. Typically, I'd recommend somebody in your situation, which doesn't sound like you're in bad shape, would take this $300,000, we'd carve out maybe 12 months, somebody would take somewhere between six and 12 months worth of emergency savings, probably six months. So maybe that's a, you know, $2,500 a month, times six months, we put $15,000 aside in high yield savings, and then we take the rest $285,000, and we'd invest it. Maybe, you know, we put 30% of it in stocks, 60% in bonds, maybe 10% in gold, have an advisor manage it, the goal would be to allow you to pull, you know, about 1000 a month from it, and maintain the balance. And then you'd have access to the principal, the 285,000, if you ever needed it for long term care, or whatever that might be.

The other approach is to say, No, I don't want to take that risk. I don't sleep well at night, I want to give this to an insurance company in in exchange for a guaranteed return, and then let them take it and invest it. And then if at any point you wanted to convert it in what's called a new ties, it was just means you're converting it to an income stream, then they'd pay you an income stream for the rest of your life.

And depending on the fine print, you may or may not have anything left over at your death for your heirs. So which sounds like it'd be a better fit for you? Probably, maybe the latter.

All right. Yeah. And so then I think it's a matter of not all annuities are created equal. Among annuities, you have fixed annuities, where they give you a guaranteed return, you have variable annuities where they invest it, you get a portion of the upside, but they put a floor on the downside. So you can't lose money.

How do they do that? Well, they don't give you all the upside, they keep some of the upside for themselves. And then the same applies at some point, after the accumulation phase at the time of your choosing, you could annuitize it and convert it to an income stream and live on it the rest of your life.

But as I said, they're not all created equal. So I think in either case, you need to get with an advisor, somebody who shares your values as a believer, who can talk you through these options, not try to sell you something, but understand your goals and objectives. And if an annuity is the best option for you, because of the tax advantages and the guaranteed growth and the potential income stream that you don't have to worry about for the rest of your life, great, but lets them help you understand what's the best type of annuity for you and make sure you've thought through all the fine print.

So I'd head to our website, faithfi.com, and click find a professional and interview two or three certified Kingdom advisors in your area. Thanks for your call today. Well, folks, man, we covered a lot of ground today. So thankful that you invite us into your financial lives each day. And to that end, if you want to help support our work, we've heard from several people today that have said, listen, I listen every day. I've really been blessed by this program.

I benefit from it. We would just ask you to consider supporting the ministry. We're a listener supported not-for-profit ministry here at FaithFi. And the only way we can bring you this broadcast is through your financial support, whether you give one time. And by the way, at $25 or more, we can send you our new study rich toward God is our thank you. Or by becoming a FaithFi partner, that's those who invest in the ministry with a tax deductible gift of $35 or more per month. Just head to faithfi.com and click give to learn more. That's faithfi.com and click give. Hey, big thanks to my team today, Adam Suddeth, Robert Youngblood, and Jim Henry. Enjoy the rest of your day and come back and see us tomorrow. Bye-bye. Announcer Faith and Finance is provided by FaithFi and listeners like you.