Endowments: A Blessing or a Curse

Inheritance comes in many forms; legacies, heirlooms, traditions, and personality traits to name a few. In our culture which equates self-worth with net worth, the inheritance which can be monetized is most desired.

The wealthy among us lean on their financial advisors when making decisions about how much inheritance will help, and the “too much” that will hurt their children and grandchildren. The danger is that “too much” does more harm than good. Curiously, too much money can rob the individual of initiative and integrity. Within the paradox of faith, we understand that that too much money makes us poor in spirit. Which proves the axiom “The rich kid on a trust fund.”

Years ago, I heard Walter Bruggerman speak about stewardship. The renowned biblical scholar approached the topic from several theological avenues over a three-day conference. One, in particular, has remained with me. He made the connection of the mainline church and the message to the church in Laodica – Revelation 3:14-17. Walter said the church of Laodica was lukewarm because they were rich, – they had endowments. I struggled with that comment over the years, making the excuse that just because you have an endowment, that, in and of itself, does not make you rich. In retrospect, I was deflecting the truth by trying to employ the “It depends on what your definition of rich is” argument. Like the rich kid on a trust fund, too many churches are and were satisfied with the status quo.

Over the years I have learned that endowments can be a blessing or a curse. The blessing is a flourishing church. The curse is having just enough to keep the doors open and the poor in spirit satisfied with the same old thing.

If we want church members to consider making a bequest to their church, we need to demonstrate our ability to make disciples first, to invite people into a relationship with Jesus. Members need to see that we have the initiative and integrity to fulfill our stated mission. They need to know that their gift will be a blessing and not a curse.