About three years ago, a new financial service came available which addresses the issue of the FDIC cap of $250,000. This service, known as CDARS (pronounced like the tree), is explained in full at www.cdars.com. Some banks have purchased this … [Continue reading]
Change
Posted on May 17, 2010 Written by
I heard it last week from my financial assistant: of the reported revenues for the prior week (total of $56,000), around $29,000 came in the offering plate. That means that about $27,000 came to the church outside the offering plate: in stocks, … [Continue reading]
Book Review
Posted on May 7, 2010 Written by
Just finished reading "The New Context for Ministry: Competing for the Charitable Dollar" by Lyle Schaller. He wrote this at the end of 2001 and it was published in early 2002. In the book, especially in the last handful of chapters he makes some … [Continue reading]
A Penny Saved …
Posted on April 28, 2010 Written by
I just filled up my gas tank (for future history, today gas was selling at $2.759 in Richmond, VA). Whenever I get gas, I look around the ground for pennies. I didn't find any today. I haven't found any pennies (dimes or nickels) for several months. … [Continue reading]
Jewish Philosopher Maimonides’ View of Charity
Posted on March 27, 2010 Written by
This comes from Louis Jacobs' the Book of Jewish Belief, page 185. One of the most reknown Jewish philosophers, Maimonides, listed eight levels of charitable acts. It is interesting to see how these are borne out by individuals and by churches … [Continue reading]
Retirement – how much
Posted on February 26, 2010 Written by
How soon you are able to retire depends on how much you have invested in your retirement fund. Whether you want to retire depends on whether and when you want to retire. Cut to the chase - how much do you need? Take whatever you believe you … [Continue reading]
Group Decision-making
Posted on February 15, 2010 Written by
I was asked to speak to our church's "Emerging Leaders" class about decision-making by groups. Specifically, there are three questions to answer: Why teams or committees in the church make decisions? How teams make decisions? How and why … [Continue reading]
Financial Resolutions 2
Posted on January 4, 2010 Written by
The next set of financial resoutions for churches from Brad Leeper of Generis.com 3. Conversations must move beyond stewardship to generosity With all due respect to the biblical concept of stewardship, the term itself is passive, hard to … [Continue reading]