2014 February

How Do You Handle Life’s Most Embarrassing Moments?

February 28, 2014 by Brian 8 Comments

Hidden Nuggets Series #30 - “O my God, I trust in you; Let me not be ashamed; Let not my enemies triumph over me.” - Psalms 25:2

Wonder if Larry Legend every had an embarrassing basketball moment?

My teammates and I are playing defense in the second quarter of our private school state championship basketball game. Suddenly a player from our team steals the ball. Noticing an opening, I move from my defensive position up the floor. In a split second, I find myself on the receiving end of a pass with nothing but hardwood and our basket in front of me.

Pounding the ball into the floor, I streak forward, gaining speed with each step. All of their team’s defenders are trailing behind me as I hear the crowd’s cheering begin to swell. This is clearly leading to two points as an open lay-up awaits.

Then, as I approached the goal and jumped with the ball extended in one hand, the unthinkable occurred…

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Filed Under: Hidden Nuggets Series, Inspiration Tagged With: Basketball, Embarrassment, Emotion, Mistakes

3 Tips for Taking a Charitable Deduction on Your Taxes

February 27, 2014 by Kim 12 Comments

The following is a guest post by Kim, otherwise known as Mrs. Luke1428. She is a CPA at Loggins, Kern & McCombs in Jonesboro, Georgia. The following is intended to be a general tax discussion and not tax advice. If you have questions about your specific situation, please consult a professional.

Feeling a little charity-minded? Here are some tips that may help you come tax time.

Do Not Give Simply For The Tax Benefit

I am making this the #1 tip because that is how strongly I feel about it. Giving should come from my heart and not because of any perceived benefit come tax time. It’s a spiritual issue for me based on teachings like this one from the Bible:

“So let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or of necessity; for God loves a cheerful giver” - II Corinthians 9:7

Knowing how to deduct the charitable gift on your taxes is important to make sure it is done right, but the tax benefit should not be the motivation for the gift. Suppose you can’t decide whether to give to a charity or to a person in need, and maybe you feel led to give to the individual person. Even though you can’t deduct gifts to individuals, the right thing to do is to give how your heart is leading you despite losing the deduction.

Keep Good Records For Cash Gifts

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Filed Under: Giving, Taxes Tagged With: Charity, Deduction, Giving, Taxes

Price Limits, Blow Money and the 24-Hr. Rule

February 26, 2014 by Brian 33 Comments

I’ve mentioned before how I’m a recovering spend-a-holic. In another life, I spent to my heart’s content, undeterred by any financial damage it would cause. I wrecked our ability to save and follow any semblance of a budget.

My wife and I would have frequent “discussions” about ~~our~~ my spending patterns. The discussions were mostly one sided, with me downplaying the extent of ~~our~~ my struggles. I got so good at deflecting any negativity about ~~our~~ my poor spending habits that I usually ended up getting what I wanted at the end of those conversations. Kudos to my wife for putting up with me…I was a mess.

Clearly I had convinced myself there was no problem.

It’s very easy for spending to spiral out of control. Much of the time, we do damage simply by not developing a system of checks and balances to monitor what’s going on. We end up waking up one day with a mess on our hands, wondering how we got there.

The biggest step that had to take place for my spending habits to change was a shift in my attitude. Thankfully for me, that did take place through a series of well-timed events that occurred at a point when my mind was open to improvement. Only after I willfully chose to get my act together and develop some discipline could my wife and I move forward with some strategic practices to curb spending.

Two such practices we implemented proved valuable for us. Those were setting price limits on spending and following the 24-hr. rule.

Price Limits

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Filed Under: Spending, Vices Tagged With: Discipline, Money, Spending, Vices

Interview with a Centenarian: At 100, My Grandfather Reflects on Life, Faith and Finding Purpose

February 24, 2014 by Brian 38 Comments

Byron Miller, preaching at 100 years of age

Centenarians - 100 years of living. Amazing! Most of us would settle for 80% of that. It’s hard to fathom the changes and life events someone born in 1914 has experienced.

What will you be up to at 100 years of age? My grandfather, as shown in the picture, preached a sermon the day after he turned 100. His challenge to those who listened:

1. Practice Gratitude (be thankful)

2. Express Certitude (in the things of your faith)

3. Develop Fortitude (build the power to endure)

Oh, and he played his guitar and sang a short chorus at the end. The song’s message - “Just a little bit longer Lord…just a little bit longer.”

Not a dry eye in the house.

In the weeks leading up to his 100th birthday, my grandfather was kind enough to answer some questions about his life. I’d encourage you to take five minutes to enjoy this thought provoking read about a man who has experienced the Depression, the loss of siblings, financial challenges, joys and regrets and 60+ years of ministry.

1. What is the most amazing thing you have seen in your lifetime? Why did that stand out?

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Filed Under: Faith, God's Provision, Lifestyle, Marriage Tagged With: Finishing, God's Provision, Longevity, Relationships, Wisdom

Giving to Charity in Secret…Because It’s Not About Me

February 21, 2014 by Brian 15 Comments

Hidden Nuggets Series #29 - “Therefore, when you do a charitable deed, do not sound a trumpet before you as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory before me. Assuredly, I say to you, they have their rewards. But when you do a charitable deed, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, that your charitable deed may be in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will Himself reward you openly.” - Matthew 6:2-4

Jesus was calling out some pretty crusty characters in the Bible verses I quoted above. The “hypocrites” he mentioned were actually the religious teachers of the time known as the Pharisees. Even though they were the church leaders, they were actually very poor spiritual role models. On this occasion, Jesus was blasting them for their practice of giving.

The Pharisees would give only to get noticed. They would make sure people were watching them at church when they put their offering in the collection box. They looked down on people who didn’t give as much. One could even find them on the street corners bragging about how much they had given, even though it was a small percentage compared to their overall wealth.

To an outsider, their giving looked very religious and sacrificial. Jesus saw right through the motives and exposed their hypocrisy. In reality, he said their purpose in giving was to gain status, power and the favor of men. Needless to say, they didn’t like Jesus much for saying this.

Think this still applies to us today? I do. It’s not like human nature has changed. We battle against the same self-seeking motivations that characterized the Pharisees.

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Filed Under: Giving, Hidden Nuggets Series Tagged With: Charity, Giving, Pride, Selfishness

How Are Various Investing Markets Related to Each Other?

February 20, 2014 by Guest 3 Comments

The following is a guest post by Troy Bombardia.

Commodities: An oil refinery at dusk

In the world of investing we have something that is known as correlation. The basic definition of correlation is simple: how do changes in variable X affect changes in variable Y (oh no, more math!)?

Correlation and relations exist in the financial markets. Changes in the price of certain markets (i.e. stocks) will have impacts on prices in other markets (i.e. bonds, currencies, commodities). In this post, I’m going to examine how various markets are related to each other (their correlation).

Why is it important to understand the relationships between various markets? Because if you know how one market is reacting and what relationship other markets have to this market, you can predict what the future price of other markets will be (which equals more profits!).

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Filed Under: Investing Tagged With: Bonds, Commodities, Investing, Money, Stock Market

Stubbornness Cost Me Four Months of Running. What’s It Costing You?

February 19, 2014 by Brian 21 Comments

That twinge on the bottom of my foot sure didn’t feel good. One minute I’m running fine and the next minute I was praying “I hope I’m fine.” That was August 2013 when, after running about 1,200 miles in a year and a half, my left foot gave out, right between the heal and the arch.

Problem was that I didn’t know what it was then and quite frankly, I didn’t want to know. I had the Baltimore Marathon coming up in mid-October and had already completed two-thirds of my training. If I could endure the pain and run through it, then I’d rest afterward. No doctor’s diagnosis was going to stop me now if I could help it.

So that’s what I did. I taped my foot during training, kept running and completed the marathon in a personal best time.

Four months later I’m still paying for it.

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Filed Under: Inspiration, Running Tagged With: Choices, Patience, Rest, Running, Stubbornness

How to Write Great Content For Your Blog

February 17, 2014 by Brian 31 Comments

The blog world is such a crowded space. How many millions of posts get published every day? Too many it seems. All that content being pumped out sure makes it difficult to get noticed.

No matter how much preparation is done before starting a blog, we all have unrealistic expectations about what those first few months will be like. Nobody (at least in the realm of us common folks) has 2,000 page views the day when that very first post goes live. Building an audience takes time, hustle and more than one publication every three months.

While social media tools like Facebook and Twitter and SEO strategies can assist the blogger in building an audience, the number one way to attract readers who will remain loyal to your blog is to write great content. Produce quality material week in and week out and people will eventually come and then continue to read.

That raises an interesting question though: How does a blogger know if the content they produce is great? How can their content begin to stand out in whatever blog space they write? That’s what this post today will address.

Am I even writing about potentially great stuff?

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Filed Under: Blogging Tagged With: Blogging, Improvement, Writing

Now That’s What I Call Love

February 14, 2014 by Brian 17 Comments

Hidden Nuggets #28 - “Love never fails.” - I Corinthians 13:8

These hands have seen many years.

Time has not been kind to the physical features. These once vibrant hands have aged into a wrinkled shadow. The attempt to elude time’s impact on the body has failed. Time ages us, one and all.

The belief we can escape time’s impact is folly. Yet it is not all-powerful. In this picture, I find three evidences of time’s failure:

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Filed Under: Hidden Nuggets Series, Inspiration Tagged With: Endurance, Love, Sacrifice, Time

How to Save Money and Cut Taxes by Hiring Your Kids

February 13, 2014 by Kim 14 Comments

The following post is by Kim Fourman. Please note that this article is intended to discuss general tax topics. Consult your own tax advisor regarding your specific circumstances.

Boy at a weaving station - circa 1908

One of the most overlooked ways for small business owners to save on taxes is to employ your own children in the business. Here’s how it works:

Consider What Work Can be Done

The first thing to consider is the work that your child can do. Their work must be age appropriate and must be legitimate work for your business.

For example, having your child do household chores would not count as working for your business, but picking up trash and cleaning up the yard at your rental property would. The IRS has accepted employment by a child as young as seven. You do not run afoul of any federal child labor laws when you employ your own children, but make sure to check with your state department of labor.

You Must Do the Paperwork

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Filed Under: Kids and Money, Taxes Tagged With: Kids, Money, Taxes, Work

18 Ways to Reduce College Costs, Plus One Huge Bonus Tip

February 12, 2014 by Brian 19 Comments

Ramen: A college student staple

Welcome to Part II of my “Paying for College” series.

In case you missed it, you can read Part I here. In that post, I talked about the five most popular ways students pay for college.

The focus today will be on reducing the total college cost in whatever way possible. Of course things like scholarships, grants and military funding are all givens as I discussed in Part I. But what other practical things can a student do to bring down the total cost?

I’ve divided the cost cutting topics into three categories: things that can be done in high school, things that can be done in the preparation phase and things that can be done while enrolled in college.

And at the end I’ll provide one bonus tip on how to dramatically reduce the cost of college.

While in High School

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Filed Under: College, Saving Tagged With: College, Costs, Money, Saving

How Do You Handle Life’s Most Embarrassing Moments?