Perspective

Your assets are appreciated, even when they’re not

Lately, on any given day, the stock market is up, down, sometimes really down, and what-happened-to-my-401k down. But should that impact our generosity?

It should come as no surprise that many churches and charities are looking at the mail each day lately, and giving is the same way – up, down, really down, and can-we-keep-the-doors open down.

But the last few years have proven NCF givers’ willingness, eagerness even, to come together and be generous despite market declines, pandemics, war, and disaster. In response to these, last year givers at NCF gave $3.2 billion. That’s an increase of a staggering $1.2 billion over the year before, proving biblical generosity doesn’t depend on markets. It rests on the One who gave everything for us and has given us everything we have.

Still, the last two years have also been a challenge on a great many levels. At times, it has felt as though we were being stretched to a breaking point. Churches, Christian charities, and secular charities are experiencing increased demand for care and services while managing societal challenges many could never have imagined. The needs are great right now.

How often have you heard the phrase, “now more than ever?” I imagine quite a lot in the last two years! And yet, as the U.S., and indeed much of the world, face economic uncertainty, what do our churches and charities need “now more than ever?” Biblical generosity. They need sacrificial generosity from a community that appreciates its transforming power.

And, while it remains true that one of the most effective ways to increase your charitable giving is with appreciated assets, those may be in short supply for many right now. But that doesn’t lessen the need, and it shouldn’t dampen the heart for generosity.

Your assets are appreciated – even when they’re not!

Whether you’re doing great because you invested in pharmaceuticals or toilet paper, or you’re in the red with so many others, we want you to know that your assets are always appreciated by:

  • Pastors serving communities in distress 
  • Those experiencing homelessness and seeking shelter
  • Women traveling long distances in search of clean water 
  • Students desperate for an education
  • Hungry families and individuals lining up at food pantries
  • Ukrainians scattered across Europe and around the world
  • Individuals and families venturing back to church
  • Communities trying to rebuild after a natural disaster
  • Children struggling to thrive in foster care
  • People who have never heard about Jesus
  • Women, children, and men trapped in human trafficking 
  • Those working to protect our earth and the millions of species relying on it
  • Those bringing the gospel to the ends of the earth

At the moment, finding an appreciated asset in your portfolio may be difficult, but finding an asset may not be. And finding a deserving church or charity will not be difficult at all. The challenge will be to help these institutions care for the millions in need.

For many, giving appreciated assets can be just as challenging as letting go of depreciated assets. But, there is good reason for letting them go. In 1 Chronicles 29, King David said this before pouring out gifts to God from his national – and then his personal – treasuries:

Who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand.”  – 1 Chronicles 29:14 (NIV)

Givers at NCF are motivated by the understanding that everything they have belongs to the Lord. Our Giving Funds exist not for reasons of personal gain, or solely for a tax deduction, but for reasons of good stewardship and faithfulness as we express generosity in all times.

Whether the stock market is up, down, or really down, NCF givers are not motivated by markets, but by radical, biblical generosity – and by the One who transforms our hearts through grace.

King David was hoping to build a temple; through us, God is building a kingdom.

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