One of my favorite memory verses is Micah 6:8:
Micah 6:8
8 He has shown you, O man, what is good.
and what does the Lord require of you
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God.
That verse says so much about the heart of God that it is virtually bottomless in its application. One wonderful application is to use Micah 6:8 to answer the question often asked by people as they seek God’s will, “What does God want me to do?”
Some may not be satisfied with the answer of Micah 6:8 because they are looking for something more specific. My typical response to them perhaps isn’t helpful but it certainly is scriptural,
John 6:28-29
28 Then they asked him, “What must we do to do the works God requires?”
29 Jesus answered, “The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent.”
Jesus’ answer was general too, although there is a great deal of “keep the main thing the main thing” in that answer from Jesus. The truth is that often the Lord’s guidance to us is general and not minutely specific. The Lord allows us a range of options. That is because our relationship to Him is personal and our response to challenges in a relationship is typically very individualized. The very specific directions many seek (“Should I buy this red car or the blue one?”) isn’t what matters; what is important is your heart in making the final decision. Often the correct question is “Should I buy this car no matter what color it is?”
However, let’s try to be a bit more specific, even though to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with our God is wonderful. What is His will for you?
God wants you to be a good steward of all He has given to you. See What is Stewardship? Part of that stewardship is to plan responsibly for your future. Planning Your Financial Future and ….
One way to plan for one certain event in your life is to plan for the days beyond the time God has given to you. You can do that by leaving a legacy of your faithfulness, What Will Your Legacy Be, Part 1 and What Will Your Legacy Be, Part 2, by preparing your affairs well for that day, Documents (and Protection) Everyone At Every Age Should Have and Essential Documents – End of Life Checklist, and by having an estate plan that provides for your loved ones and for God, Planned Giving.
A donation now is almost as simple as a phone call to The Idlewild Foundation, (813) 264-8713. A donation upon your death will require a bit more effort and perhaps some expense, but not much.
One way you can donate is with an endowment or a permanent fund. You can leave money that will benefit Idlewild Baptist Church and its ministries on into the future, long after you have gone to glory. You can donate to an endowment now or donate at your passing, or both.
Or, if you have a retirement account [401(k), 403(b) or traditional IRA], an investment account, or a bank account that you wish to transfer and donate upon your death, a beneficiary designation to Idlewild Baptist will cause that to happen immediately upon your death.
A donation of your Required Minimum Distribution (RMD), the amount you must receive from your traditional IRA annually after you reach age 70 ½ (check with your adviser since that changed for some people in 2020), can also be done easily. But be aware that donations from a traditional IRA to a Foundation such as The Idlewild Foundation does not give you the same tax benefits as a donation to Idlewild Baptist Church.
Before completing the beneficiary designation forms, please consult with your financial adviser and estate planner. However, please be aware that The Idlewild Foundation is available for consultation at no fee and we would love to help with decisions that benefit the kingdom of God.
About the Author
John Campbell has retired from a 40-year legal practice as a trial attorney in Tampa. He has served in multiple volunteer roles at Idlewild Baptist Church in Lutz, Florida, where he met Jesus. He began serving as the Executive Director of the Idlewild Foundation in 2016. He has been married to the love of his life, Mona Puckett Campbell, since 1972.