Some friends who have seen Steven Spielberg’s “Lincoln” have come away disappointed that the film did not emphasize his faith as much as they had hoped. To that objection Stephen Mansfield wrote an insightful review in USA Today: “The challenge is that Lincoln lived through widely differing stages in his journey of faith. There is always the temptation to see his entire religious life through the prism of only one of these stages. To do this means missing the grand tapestry of faith that Lincoln wove during years of spiritual struggle.” As I read the latest New Yorker article on Rob Bell titled “Hell-Raiser ” I wondered if the…

  Thirty years ago three men (Larry Burkett Terry Parker and Ron Blue) started the National Christian Charitable Foundation (NCF).  This year the foundation is recognizing making billions of dollars of gifts here in the United States and around the world. NCF serves more than 9 000 donors. They recently hosted a 30-year celebration in Atlanta Ga. ” and I attended as a friend of Terry Parker and NCF.  In the morning session” the moderator (David Wills president of NCF) used texting to ask the 400 people in the room to describe their giving in one of three categories:  local ” national or international.  The results were immediate and interesting. …

  My daughter Haley ” is a student at Fuller Seminary and was part of a group recently that sponsored a panel of professors talking about money and stewardship. I asked her afterward for the three or four topics that were of greatest interest to those attending. “Guilt for what we have compared to the rest of the world” was near the top of the list. A close friend of mine told me in response to a Sunday School lesson on gratitude that he was afraid to be grateful. Afraid to be grateful? “I would love to be truly grateful to God for His blessings in my life. Instead” I…

  What is your criteria  for choosing a mentor? Today’s blog was written by my father, Fred Smith, Sr.  Dad continued mentoring through www.breakfastwithfred.com into his late 80’s giving great insight into the selection process of mentoring. He passed away in 2007 leaving a legacy of wisdom, integrity, strength, and insight.   It’s important to find the right mentor. Over the years I have identified seven qualities I look for: 1. Do they have wisdom from experience? Scripture says young men are for strength, old men for wisdom. A mentor must understand the principles of life which I think are the principles of Scripture. A mentor needs depth of experience—and…

One of the best five books I've read on business management was written by marketing consultant Al Ries. The book is “Focus “” and right from the start Ries states a premise that he repeats throughout:  "The key to results is concentration. Economic results require that managers concentrate their efforts on the smallest number of activities that will produce the largest amount of revenue. No other principle is violated as constantly today as the basic principle of concentration. Our motto seems to be: let's do a little bit of everything." It's not just true for business. It's true for the rest of life and just as hard to manage. Our…

If you sometimes feel the joy of giving is eluding you, you are not alone. Over the past 20 years, we’ve had the opportunity to interact with hundreds of individuals couples and families in working with the issues that affect their philanthropy. While each individual and family’s situation is unique, we have found the following five challenges to be almost universal. Discuss it with your family and see what response you get. TIME: The source of the most frustration for giving families is the lack of time to commit to the giving process. Good giving is work and takes a commitment of time and energy. Most donors have not given…

 I have been reading surveys from conferences designed for major donors.  It’s not something I recommend and I would rather be reading John Grisham or even John Calvin.  I’m not much of a spreadsheet person…but I am curious about what matters to people.  Of course” what people say matters to them and what actually matters are often two different things.  However ” in the case of one particular issue what they say and what they actually value are absolutely consistent. That is the need for encouragement. Why do wealthy people need encouragement?  What could possibly discourage them?  I have come to believe there are generally four areas of life that…

I received an email from a new friend telling me he was on his way to spend a couple of days in an exclusive location with a room full of young evangelical elites. He had misgivings about it because he’s a reflective type but as he said ” the draw toward being identified as an elite is compelling and attractive. Some might say tempting. I could not help but think about Oscar Wilde. Oscar Wilde was one of the most promising talents of the 1800s. Born in Ireland” the son of successful and influential Dublin intellectuals Oscar excelled in languages academics ” journalism and drama. He became at a very…

  If you ask most people to describe The Gathering they will tell you it is a conference.  Hopefully, they will also add it is a great conference and one of the things they like the most is being introduced to ministry leaders and speakers whom they have never heard or met.  Being a little “ahead of the curve” is one of the attractions.  We work hard at keeping that fresh.  George Romney said an officer can get so far ahead of the troops that he starts to look like the enemy.  We don’t want that to happen! However, there is a downside to discovering new talent and a conversation…