Most individuals do not get a warm feeling when they hear the term, audit. Typically, an audit means a lot of tedious work, and it can produce significant anxiety should any large discrepancies be found. Though an audit can cause some anxious moments, there is also a lot of good that can come from performing an audit. Performing audits in a retail business will help achieve higher inventory accuracy and… Read More
The Master’s Minute – Behold
When I was in college, I participated in a mission trip to Nicaragua. While in Nicaragua, our team was primarily responsible for preparing the foundation of a new church building. That trip challenged me in many ways, and I had many great experiences during my time there. One of these special experiences was a trip to the Corn Islands, just off Nicaragua’s eastern coast in the Caribbean Sea. While visiting… Read More
Generosity All Year Long
The time between Thanksgiving Day and New Year’s Day is commonly referred to as the Giving Season. It is the time when many of us purchase and distribute Christmas gifts to family and friends, and according to one study, this is the time when non-profit organizations receive 24% of their total annual charitable contributions. Year-end charitable giving is often motivated by a current year charitable tax deduction. This entire Giving… Read More
The Power & Privilege of Generosity
Recently, our oldest daughter Christie and I had a good conversation regarding the verses found in I Timothy 6:17-19. This passage from the Bible gives a clear call to generosity, in both attitude and action. As I thought more about that conversation, and those particular verses, I was impressed by both the power and the privilege of generosity. Let’s first look at the privilege component. This may be stating the… Read More
Blessed?
I often find myself using the word blessed. I suspect that we might use this word too casually. We are blessed when we get a pay raise. We are blessed when we have a series of warm pleasant days. We are blessed when a new healthy baby arrives in our family. We are blessed when we see our children making responsible decisions and then those decisions lead to preferred outcomes. … Read More
Enough
John Bogle, founder of The Vanguard Group, told the following story about writers Kurt Vonnegut and Joe Heller: “They met at a party on Shelter Island. Kurt looks at Joe and says, ‘That guy, our host over there, he made a billion dollars today. He’s made more money in one day than you made on every single copy of ‘Catch 22,’ [Heller’s novel].’” “And Heller looks as Vonnegut and says,… Read More
Peace for 2015
Here we are at the birth of a new year. 2015 is here already! Typically this time causes us to reflect on what has transpired in the previous year and make plans for the year to come. None of us knows what this year holds, but we do know that life is predictable on one hand yet unforeseeable on the other. If you experience a surprise (good or bad), we… Read More
A Calming Perspective
I have always appreciated gaining the perspective of those around me, especially when I am feeling undue pressure. This fall I took on a big project – building a large deck out of concrete blocks and pavers. The job required a lot of precise measuring, leveling, and grading. I got so wrapped up in the project that at times I was trying to get almost every paver perfectly level. Thankfully,… Read More
Wisdom For the Wealthy
Wealth and wisdom seldom go hand in hand, but scripture offers wise instruction for the wealthy in God’s family. Here are three of those timeless principles. Remember who gives you the ability to create wealth. These are the words Moses used to warn God’s people as they prepared to enter the promised land: You may say to yourself, “My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth… Read More
Pursuing Contentment
Either through our own experience or the account of someone we know, we can all recall people who have much less than we do, or who live under unthinkable circumstances, yet their lives are characterized by joyful contentment. I believe contentment is a universal pursuit. Since the desire to be content permeates every area of our lives, let’s take a closer look at contentment. The pursuit of contentment involves choices… Read More
