Not many folks take the time to seriously consider how they will 'leave their
financial legacy' to their families and those that they care about. It's not an easy
topic to broach, so we opt to ignore and let the government sort it out in the end.
What's very unfortunate about that is that the law favors the government and
so resources that could have gone "tax-free" to any ministry, charity or organization that shares your values; gets taxed and diminished significantly.
Just yesterday, we were blessed to have the CEO of Hefron-Tillotson, a major player
in personal financial planning in our area, give a clear, detailed and personal
presentation on this topic.
What became clear to me is that most people take the path of 'least
resistance' and leave their estates; small and large to their families. This
seems to be the right thing to do except when you consider the potential
consequences of taxation.
All resources given to any ministry or charity are 'tax-free'; and not
subject to any 'inheritance' or 'death' taxes. If you want to bless a ministry
that has blessed you or advanced a mission that you care about, then
why not designate something of your estate to them before you go?
In fact, our guest encouraged the practice of 'giving with a warm hand'
meaning "why not give of your resources while you are still alive to see the
blessing you have been". I wonder how much of a cumulative difference
we would make if a great majority of us decided to do so!
Not long ago, a very wealthy Pittsburgh industrialist gave about $350
MILLION dollars to two Universities in our city; Pitt and Carnegie Mellon.
It was with a little fanfare, but certainly not close to what could have been
made of such a huge personal gift. About a month later, this individual
died rather suddenly.
I, for one, was glad to see the photograph of this generous man smiling
before a crowd of appreciative students and faculty. He had given with a
"warm hand", probably not knowing that within weeks he would no longer
have that ability.
May we all plan NOW for what we want to see at that time when our
journey on this earth comes to an end. Even better, why not DO something
while you can still experience the blessing!
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