532 pages of biblical insights, challenges, and encouragements for the new year. This beautiful leather-bound volume has more than 260 devotionals for reading and prayer time, Monday-Friday, 52 weeks of the year.
A “thank you” a day keeps the doctor away? Science tells us it’s possible. According to a number of studies conducted in recent years, the practice of gratitude has a positive effect on our mental and physical well-being, including better sleep, mood, and immunity, as well as decreased depression, anxiety, chronic pain, and blood pressure.
That’s good news as we head into a season focused on giving thanks. But challenging things accompany this season too. As we gather with friends and family, particularly in the wake of a fraught political season, passions run deep, emotions run strong, and common ground can feel shaky. Practicing gratitude together may just be the antidote for hard feelings and harsh words. Here’s how you can focus on giving thanks and pursuing peace in the next few months.
Count your blessings. French bishop Jean-Baptiste Massieu once said, “Gratitude is the memory of the heart.” Focus on those memories by telling stories of joy, the kindness of others, and help received along the way. This puts the spotlight on giving thanks together, not our differences of opinion.
Get active with your gratitude. Put hands and feet to your thankfulness by serving together during the holiday season. Set an extra place (or more!) at your Thanksgiving table and invite college students who can’t make it home for the holiday. Give to someone in need. Volunteer at a local nonprofit as a family. Shared purpose shifts our perspective from our differences to the people and causes that truly matter.
Think forward. Leaving a gift in your will or estate plan to causes close to your heart is a lasting expression of gratitude. The holidays provide a wonderful opportunity to talk about this with your family, reflect together with thankfulness, and move forward in peace and unity.
According to author and teacher Eckhart Tolle, “Acknowledging the good that you already have in your life is the foundation for all abundance.” Practicing gratitude together diminishes divisions and amplifies what’s good and true. The effort is worth it. No matter what jobs you held, you likely have retirement benefits available to you. Did you know the time you worked—along with the assets you have as a result—can be turned into a blessing for the charitable organizations you care about, both during and after your lifetime? Some ideas include:
Beneficiary Designation. The simple effort it takes to add us as a beneficiary of your Individual Retirement Account (IRA), 401(k), or 403(b) can have a significant impact on the work we do and the people we serve.
Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD). A tax-free distribution from your IRA to a charity, a QCD enables you to make a difference in lives now. What a gift to see your blessing in action!
Charitable Gift Annuity (CGA). A CGA allows you to use your assets to give to a charity while also receiving income during your retirement years.
Author Stephen Covey once said, “Your most important work is always ahead of you, never behind you.” Whether you worked 90,000 hours, 90, or somewhere in between, the good work you did then can continue in the good work of the charities close to your heart.
It’s estimated that the average person spends about 90,000 hours at work during their lifetime. And throughout those 90,000 hours, that average person will change jobs about 12 times.
As you reflect on your working life, how did you invest your 90,000 hours? Behind a desk or on an assembly line? Maybe you’re one of those people who held 12 (or 13 or 20) different jobs, or you stayed in a position or at a company for the long haul. You may have co-workers who became close friends, and had opportunities to travel, meet interesting people, or take on unique challenges. You have great stories to tell of watercooler chats, challenging bosses, and first-day nerves.
No matter what jobs you held, you likely have retirement benefits available to you. Did you know the time you worked—along with the assets you have as a result—can be turned into a blessing for the charitable organizations you care about, both during and after your lifetime? Some ideas include:
Beneficiary Designation. The simple effort it takes to add us as a beneficiary of your Individual Retirement Account (IRA), 401(k), or 403(b) can have a significant impact on the work we do and the people we serve.
Qualified Charitable Distribution (QCD). A tax-free distribution from your IRA to a charity, a QCD enables you to make a difference in lives now. What a gift to see your blessing in action!
Charitable Gift Annuity (CGA). A CGA allows you to use your assets to give to a charity while also receiving income during your retirement years.
Author Stephen Covey once said, “Your most important work is always ahead of you, never behind you.” Whether you worked 90,000 hours, 90, or somewhere in between, the good work you did then can continue in the good work of the charities close to your heart.
One of Dave Isay’s earliest memories involves capturing the stories of his grandparents and great-aunts on a small cassette recorder (remember those?). He turned his love of stories into a vocation as founder of StoryCorps. This organization has recorded stories from more than 600,000 people and preserved them at …
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? was an instant hit when it premiered in 1999. The game show featured contestants answering 15 increasingly difficult trivia questions, with the goal of winning one million dollars. If you’ve said, “Is that your final answer?” in the last 20 years, you probably have this show to …
Fred Barley was a driven, intelligent 19-year-old. He was also homeless. When the police found him living in a tent on the campus of Gordon College in Georgia, he explained he had traveled six hours by bicycle in 100-degree weather to attend his second year of college. He was two weeks early, hoping to get…
In 1982, New York publisher Byron Preiss released a book containing 12 puzzles, each consisting of a cryptic verse that had to be paired with a mysterious painting. If solved correctly, each puzzle would lead to a different park in a North American city where he’d buried a small container and key that could be…
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