Recently, I listened to a short radio program from Chuck Bentley of Crown Financial Ministries. He was talking about the fact that the Bible describes God as generous and that creation reflects this generosity. The trees give off oxygen for us to breathe, the sun produces heat and light, clouds provide rain, and vegetation provides food. The list goes on. The way that God has created the world reflects his… Read More
Needing Each Other
When is the last time you went to the gym? Where are you taking your next family vacation? How much money do you hope to save next month? The questions you just read have made it much more likely that you will go to the gym, take a family vacation and save more money in the near future. For many of us, talking about money is not a conversation friends… Read More
T.G.I.F.
Thank goodness it’s Friday (T.G.I.F.). That’s what I heard from one of my early morning workout comrades on Friday. Why are we so thankful to get to Friday? Does it in part have to do with our outlook on work? I have observed three unhealthy attitudes toward work. First, it’s a necessary evil. I need to make a living so I have to work. Work is simply a means to… Read More
It’s the Principle of the Thing
Principles trump feelings, especially in the area of investment decisions. When faced with an investment decision, we should always ask, “If I do this, will I be violating any proven principle?” In his book Investing for the Future, Larry Burkett relates a story about a man who had been retired from Sears for ten years. Over the years he had accumulated a significant amount of Sears stock, and that holding… Read More
A Team Approach
It’s probably no secret that the majority of my office mates are deep into sports. I tend not to share their passion. I just don’t get it. But then, they don’t quite understand my obsession for the fiber arts. So when the Bracket for the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament (I actually Googled that so I had it correct – that’s how much I am not into sports!), I uttered this… Read More
New Tax Law for Business Owners
Business owners, take heart! The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 is now in effect and may offer a boost to your bottom line. Changes in the new tax law affect business owners of both large and small companies in significant, and in most cases, positive ways. We will focus on the big picture changes in this blog post. We’ll look first at C corporations which are taxed at… Read More
Child Tax Credit Expanded & 529 Plan Changes
Today’s blog focuses on several significant changes that will directly impact those of you who have minor children or grandchildren who are college-age or younger. We will explore the Expanded Child Tax Credit and discuss some significant changes to 529 (College Savings) plans. Under the new tax law, the Child Tax Credit has been expanded from $1,000 per qualified child to $2,000 per child (under the age of 17). In… Read More
Changes to Standard and Itemized Deductions
In part two of our four-part blog series discussing the recent income tax changes, we will be looking at the most significant changes to the standard and itemized deductions. After the changes to the overall tax rates that we discussed in the first post, the changes to the standard and itemized deductions could have the greatest impact on your 2018 federal income tax bill. Under the new rules the standard… Read More
Major Tax Changes In 2018
Whenever there is major tax reform, the question on everyone’s mind is, “Will my taxes go up, down, or stay the same? We will try to help you gain insight into what bearing the tax code changes effective in 2018 will have on your personal tax situation. This is the first article in our spring blog series that addresses the recent tax reform bill known as the Tax Cuts and… Read More
A New Look
Exactly four years ago we introduced our first blog post to you. We hope that you have found our blog posts both timely and relevant. We have thoroughly enjoyed your personal responses after each post. We have decided to use this four-year milestone to refresh our look and give additional focus to our posts. We have created this unique look for our blog to distinguish it from our other marketing… Read More
