I read two articles today that both seemed to “teach” the same lesson: Be careful about “doing good” that actually does harm. Here are the prime illustrations the authors offered. Read the rest of this entry »

I got a copy of A Revolution in Generosity last week when I attended the Generosity Forum at Denver Seminary. Wesley K. Willmer, editor of the book, is also author of the first chapter, “Creating a Revolution in Generosity.” I was taken by what he had to say about a fundamental shift in perspective concerning charity that has taken place in the American culture at large but also–and much more–in the Christian church over the last 170 years or so. The shift, from stewardship to philanthropy, has devastated both donors and charitable organizations. Read the rest of this entry »

Last Thursday evening, my wife and I had the opportunity to attend a special meeting of CrossGlobal Link, The Mission Exchange, and the Evangelical Missiological Society/EMS. It was a dinner meeting held in honor of the lifetime achievements of my former boss and mentor Dr. Ralph Winter.

We stayed for an after-dinner panel discussion among four Christian leaders from the “Global South.”

At one point the panelist from Uganda noted, “It is said that ‘a picture is worth a thousand words.’ But sometimes it is worth nothing at all. Or maybe it is worth less than nothing.”

This kind of perverse result occurs, he said, when, for example, a photograph becomes more important than the people who are being photographed.

He told a story to illustrate his point. Read the rest of this entry »

Back on August 6th and 7th, I wrote about some of the things I was learning in Carol Weisman’s slim but inspiring book Raising Charitable Children.

If you have children–or grandchildren–from about four- or five-years old through high school, this book is for you. Weisman offers incredibly helpful, totally practical counsel for parents or grandparents of the entire spectrum. And she is no armchair philosopher; she has “been there and done that.” Moreover, she has obviously thought long and hard about the kinds of practical questions you’d expect most authors to forget.

Some examples: Read the rest of this entry »

I bumped into a cynically humorous post about charitable giving and its effects. It reminded me of a slim but instructional book that concludes with the sage observation: humility is a virtue, pride is a sin, and . . . arrogant philanthropy can wreak havoc.

But let us start with the cynical humor. Read the rest of this entry »

I’ve already read Jay Link’s Family Wealth Counseling.

He’s issued a clarion call to pay attention not only to the financial aspects of an estate plan or legacy plan, but, I would say, he calls our attention even more to the social and spiritual/emotional issues related to one’s . . . lifetime legacy.

I chose those last two words carefully.

I think we aren’t normally challenged to think in terms of our lives when it comes to estate planning. We are led to think in terms of death, dying, and what happens after our lives are over.

Link, by contrast, calls us to Read the rest of this entry »