Communicate your legacy

If you decide to use a lawyer to create, update, or review your will, you’ll want to find an attorney who shares your values and is knowledgeable about estate planning. Here’s how to find a trusted estate planning attorney:

Christian Legal Society. Search for a referral to an attorney in your area from the Christian Legal Society, a network of attorneys committed to acting justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly with their God (Micah 6:8).

Your Pastor. Pastors are connected to a wide network of people which may include an estate planning attorney. Even if your pastor doesn’t know an attorney, they can likely ask others for a trusted referral to send you.

Use one of these common ways to significantly increase your charitable impact through your will and clearly communicate your values:

• Add a child named “Charity.” Some families treat charitable organizations like an additional child. For example, if a family has three children, they might add a fourth child named “Charity” and divide the assets in their will into four equal parts. Each of their children would receive 25%, and the remaining 25% would be divided among their favorite charitable organizations.
• Percentage. Others commit a percentage of their estate to the charitable organizations they love, dividing the remainder among their heirs.
• Cap. Some families decide to “cap” their children’s inheritance, leaving the rest of their assets to charity. This approach is used when the parents want to provide a modest gift to bless their children and eliminate concerns of creating dependence or giving too much too soon.
• Update an existing will. An attorney can add, delete, or change an item in your will with an additional statement called a “codicil.” Here’s an example: “I give, devise, and bequeath twenty- five percent (25%) of my residuary estate to [charity name] whose address is [city, state, zip code].” Like a will, a codicil must be dated, signed, and witnessed.

Sample language for including a gift in your will is available here.