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Transcript:
Hello, welcome to Walking in Step with God. I’m Steve McDonald. Today we explore the topic “Give Your Resources” as we continue our series ‘Give’. The world is full of examples of communities that lack basic necessities such as shelter, food, and water. There are entire populations around the world where the lack of resources, government corruption, or war and conflict have forced innocent people to be without essential survival needs.
Closer to home, there are many around us – even on our streets – who are suffering from homelessness, hunger, and even lack of healthcare.
While all of this suffering is around us, most of us go about our lives with all of the things that we need to survive each day. There are even those of us who are blessed enough to afford a significantly enhanced lifestyle, such as a home in a nicer neighborhood, a nicer car, a fancy wardrobe, or maybe a combination of all of the above.
Today let’s explore 3 ways that we can give our resources to others who are in need. Let us give thanks to God for the things in our lives that we take for granted.
Before we go any further, we will take a quick break. I will be right back.
Welcome back. Let’s continue in our discussion of 3 ways to give our resources to others in need. You do not have to be wealthy to give from your resources. It is more likely than not that all of us have the capacity to give something to an individual, organization, or cause to improve the quality of life for someone in our community.
#1 Give your money
The most common and practical way to offer your resources is to offer a financial contribution to an organization that can utilize the funds in a way that will benefit others.
There are many trusted and reputable non-profit organizations that use donations to reach populations that most of us will never see up close. Families are provided with housing. Children are provided with educational materials. Communities that are experiencing hunger or lack of health care are provided with much-needed food and medicine.
There are also many websites online that can help you find a trustworthy charity that can put your donation to good use. One such website is Charity Watch at www.charitywatch.org. That website URL once again is www.charitywatch.org. This website does the investigative work to find charities that make effective use of donations for a cause.
Whatever organization you choose, use wisdom. Be thoughtful. Use discernment. Do your research to make sure you know where your money is going before you give.
God sees your giving and truly loves a cheerful giver.
#2 Give your in-kind donations
In-kind donations are non-cash or free service donations to a charity or organization. Do you have gently used items around the house you know could be of better use in another home? Maybe you are downsizing and have lots of great furniture and clothing that you can donate to a thrift store or give away for free.
Are you a business owner? Have you considered providing a service from your company for free as a donation to an organization? You may even decide to organize a free giveaway of your service or product to those who are in need within your very own community.
Whether you are doing some major downsizing of your home or you own a deli in a busy part of town, ask God how you can provide an in-kind donation to a cause that is important to you and important to Him.
#3 Give a planned gift
This last idea may not be a popular subject to bring up, but it is a powerful way to give your resources. We have all heard the saying, “you can’t take it with you,” and it is true! ll of the things we have built up throughout our lives will be out of reach once we have passed on. Have you considered making special arrangements to donate some of your most valuable possessions to a charity?
Do you own a home or property that you could donate when you pass away? What about a financial gift?
Why not seek out legal advice about donating resources through a will or living trust? Again, as with all big decisions, ask God how you can plan a financial or material gift after your passing.
Wrap Up
In today’s message, we explored 3 ways we can give our resources to others in need. We discussed the idea that often, the simplest way to give is to give our money to a reputable and trustworthy organization that can put the donation to good use and reach the individuals who need it most. We discussed the idea of giving up our possessions, especially those that may have little or no value to us but may really have high value and impact on someone in need. Lastly, we discussed the idea that a planned gift through a will or living trust is an excellent way to arrange for a sizable gift once we have departed. As you will learn across the messages in this series, there are so many ways to give. Take some time today to consider the resources in your life that could be given to others, then pray about it. Seek God’s guidance as to how He would direct your giving today.
Are you interested in discovering more about the guidance offered in this message? Learn more in the companion article Going Deeper with the Word: Give Your Resources
