The first of the year is a time when many businesses take inventory. It is a great time to review your estate plan and decide if any changes are needed.

Developing a plan and acting on it can make life much simpler in later years. It's not wise to put off making a plan because you simply don't have enough money right now. Many people take advantage of generous tax laws to leverage their assets so they will have enough later in life.

A friend recently said that he had set up a gift annuity many years ago. Every month he saved his annuity payment until he had enough to set up a second gift annuity, which, of course, paid a higher rate based on his age. He repeated this again and again, occasionally adding a little from other sources. At the time he said this, he had 15 annuity payments coming to him as income each month. Every time he starts a new annuity he gets a generous tax break, plus the benefit of knowing that when he no longer needs the funds the remainder will be used to help others learn to trust in Jesus.

To learn more about how a charitable gift annuity can fit into your estate plan, please visit the charitable gift annuity part of our website, e-mail Planned Giving, or call us at 1-800-900-9021 to speak with a planned giving specialist.

The Quiet Hour confidently supports the following required statement and encourages prospective donors to give it consideration:

THIS IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE. ANY PROSPECTIVE DONOR SHOULD SEEK THE ADVICE OF A QUALIFIED ESTATE AND/OR TAX PROFESSIONAL TO DETERMINE THE CONSEQUENCES OF HIS OR HER GIFT. Payments made under a charitable gift annuity are backed solely by the full faith and credit of the issuing organization, are not insured or guaranteed by an insurance company, are not protected by any insurance guaranty association and are not backed in any way by the states.