Wills emphasis Sunday is set for May

April 17, 2018 by Robyn Davis Sekula

If you are a pastor, having a conversation with a member of your congregation about their will may sound daunting. For many, it is.

But do remember you are helping them with a task that they are likely dreading, and assisting them with clarifying what's important and what legacy they want to leave. It is a ministry, in fact, to assist them with this task.

We have tools that can walk you through those conversations. Wills Emphasis Sunday is set for May 6 this year, and it can be a launching pad for a discussion within your congregation.

If you are ready to have a workshop in your church for those interested in estate planning, our Live Forward Give Forward program is a wonderful tool to help guide that process. This program takes you from start to finish, with promotional tools, a step-by-step guide to the workshops and an overview of all of the gift options. From our work in churches, we know that there are many more people than you'd ever suspect that do not have even a will. Our programs are a great way to lead that conversation. You can download the Live Forward Give Forward program guide here as a PDF.

Our Estate Planning Guide discusses much more than wills. We cover the difference between restricted and unrestricted gifts, endowment funds, donor-advised funds, charitable remainder trusts, retirement plans and real estate, all in language that's easy to understand and follow. You can find our Estate Planning Guide here as a PDF download.

The Estate Planning Guide works well when accompanied by the Estate Planning Workbook, which has pages for those completing it to fill in information about their investments, living will, retirement accounts and much more. When completed, this is an incredibly valuable asset for families, opening up important conversations between generations. You can download our Estate Planning Workbook here as a PDF download.

If you would like to talk to someone about legacy giving, wills and estate planning in your congregation, please reach out to the Ministry Relations Officer who serves your area. You can find your MRO here. They will be happy to help you.