Accountant for World Radio

Did you make any New Year’s resolutions? Have you, like me, already broken one or more of them? For any of us to decide that we need to make changes in our lives, we must first take an inventory of where we are. For some of us, we usually begin our inventory with a look at our finances or the lack of them, and then we move on down the list to perhaps our health and exercise program. Although all of these are needed, they are only our physical needs and desires. For many, the inventories stop here with our money, health, and exercise, but are these the areas where we should place the most importance?

This year I have decided to take a different approach in making resolutions. As I begin with my own life’s inventory, I want to encourage you to journey with me as I work toward putting first things first, that being God and His desires for my life. I have asked myself the hard questions: Am I the person that He wants me to be? Do I devote the time that I should in prayer to Him? Am I giving to Him financially what He expects of me? The real question is this: Is my heart where it needs to be in order to walk the Christian walk? I truly believe that if my heart is right with God, everything else will fall into place.

Friends, I don’t know where you find yourself in this inventory, but I find myself lacking in many areas. You, like me, should want to be healthy and happy as there is nothing wrong with those desires, but it is when they become the priority of our lives that we fall short of being the people that God has called us to be. What about you, where do you find yourself in this life inventory? Are you satisfied with where you find yourself spiritually? If you see areas in your life that need to be improved, decide today to begin to make changes and strive to be more like Him each and every day that we have on this earth.

Will I be able to "get it all right"? The answer is no. There are none of us who will "get it all right," because if that were so, we would not have needed our Father in heaven to send His only beloved Son to die for each one of us so that we might not perish. And although I won’t get it "all right," I will continue to strive toward "getting better," and that is what He asks of each of us. I want to encourage us all to pray more, love more, and give more. When we do those things, everything that we need will be provided for us.

Gifts of Appreciated Property create great benefits to you the donor, such as being able to receive regular tax savings, and avoiding the capital gains tax on qualified assets given for charitable use.

A Will or Living Trust can establish a lasting legacy, one that will continually provide funds that will help spread the Good News of Jesus Christ throughout the lands.

A Life Insurance Policy that has fulfilled its original intent could offer excellent tax benefits.

A Gift Annuity that provides an income and offers a tax advantage for you and or someone else is an option that offers a way of receiving regular payments for life or another period of time.