Is time your friend or foe? One moment it crawls at a snail’s pace and the next minute rushes by like a rabbit in a race with a dog. In my experience, the rabbit always wins the race and my snail-paced moments are rare. As I write today the year is one-twelfth over, 8% gone, and halfway to Christmas. Well, I know it’s not quite that far gone, but it sure feels that way. Since we can’t slow the cal ...[Read More]
How to Get Started on Being an Intentional Donor
How to Fill the Empty Seat at the Holiday Table
Is someone missing from your holiday gatherings this year? It seems there is always an empty chair at the table. Someone you just lost or lost many years ago, someone who is across the country or simply at another gathering -whatever the reason, the chair is still empty. The holidays are full of triggers, memories that flood into our minds and can change our mood instantly. Sometimes it’s another ...[Read More]
How a Thankful Heart Inspires Generosity
What comes first? Thankfulness or generosity? A.W. Tozer said, “Perhaps it takes a purer faith to praise God for unrealized blessings than for those we once enjoyed or those we enjoy now.” Start with a definition of thankfulness from a tenth-grade student who described it in a 2004 essay on WriteWork titled, “The Importance of Being Thankful.” The writer tells us “Thankfulness is being able to ha ...[Read More]
The Surprising Staying Power of the Middle Class Donor
Ten years ago, the country plunged into a recession deep enough to have a grinding impact on America’s charities. When I read those last two words together, I think about my nonprofit friends right here in my community. When the Chronicle of Philanthropy ran an article with the headline: A Response to America’s Favorite Charities 2018: A Lost Decade? Not for America’s Charities that Tap the Afflue ...[Read More]