A S E R V I C E N E T W O R K F O R P A S T O R S A N D M I N I S T E R S

insideJune 2011A Publication of Rick Renner Ministries

Wise as Serpents, Harmless as Doves The Mentality of the Master Matt Jones

Lift Your Light Higher and Increase Your Influence in the World (Part 2) Rick Renner

Zebras, Ostriches, and Corporate Grace Tony Cooke

To Opt Out or Not To Opt Out?

Choosing Your Path for Retirement (Part 2) Mark Helland, CPA

Partnering With God for Your Future Rick Renner

June 2011

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Wise as Serpents, Harmless as Doves The Mentality of the MasterA Word From the IMPART Executive Editor | by Matt Jones

Jesus gave it to us straight when He said, Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves (Matthew 10:16). But then He equipped us for absolute success with this wise counsel: Be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. Command-ing us to be pure in our hearts and motives yet to possess the shrewdness and maneuverability of a snake the Master sends us forth with the power to succeed if well take His tried-and-true words to heart.

Lift Your Light Higher and Increase Your Influence in the World (Part 2)Life Lesson | by Rick Renner

In this article, Rick Renner shares his own personal example of pain and ultimate success as he encourages ministers to lift their lights high and then shows them how to do it. Read how some-thing as simple as gumption can serve as a key to unlock doors to greatness in God.

Zebras, Ostriches, and Corporate GraceGems for Ministers | by Tony Cooke

When most believers think of Gods grace, they think in terms of how it affects them individually. But God also designed grace for relationships in the home, in the workplace, and in a corporate body of believers to be manifested through our individual gifts. In this article, Tony Cooke cites 16 Bible instances where this cor-porate grace is mentioned or implied and encourages readers to be ready distributors to those around us as we do life together.

To Opt Out or Not To Opt Out? Choosing Your Path for Retirement (Part 2)Playing by the Rules: Accounting | by Mark Helland, CPA

The option by pastors to elect out of paying Social Security taxes is an irrevocable election. In this article, CPA Mark Helland shares four benefits of paying into the Social Security system and offers several possible solutions for ministers who have already elected to opt out.

Partnering With God for Your FutureLast Word | by Rick Renner

God only gives where were willing to go. Read this article by Rick Renner and learn that there truly is a God-ward side and man-ward side to achieving ministerial success. If were willing to formulate a plan and take the necessary steps to carry it out, God is willing to guide us, grant us success, and fulfill our dreams!

IMPART2011

A N o t e F r o m t h e I M PA R T E x e c u t i v e E d i t o r

I n this verse, Jesus gives us the straight scope view of our calling as ministers: We are sent out by Him as sheep among people who are like a pack of wolves. The first part of this verse alone is quite shocking, but what Jesus goes on to command is even more compelling and strong: Be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.

Jesus last statement was a therefore statement of great consequence. Jesus was saying, in effect, Im sending you out among people who are like wild wolves; therefore, youre to be as wise as a serpent yet as harmless as a dove.

That word harmless is a word that literally translates not mixed, or pure. Our hearts should be pure, but our heads should have the street smarts and maneuverability of a snake. Jesus absolutely wants us to have good hearts, motives, and character in heart we are to be like a pure dove. But in our thinking and strategizing, we should maneuver deftly like a serpent. And remember the devil is represented as a subtle beast, or serpent. So when it comes to our own thinking, we should be clever and shrewd, not gullible and assuming or so heavenly minded that were no earthly good.

We have overemphasized dove-like character to the point that many Christians and

ministers are largely dysfunctional. Others have so far missed this injunction of Jesus that they have it completely backward: Theyre as mean as snakes and bird-brained! This is simply not the characteristic the Master was talking about.

Gods people should set the example for street smarts, refusing to allow the wisdom of those in the world to surpass their own (see Luke 16:8). At IMPART, weve endeavored over the years to raise specific accounting, legal, and other practical issues with the goal in mind of assisting ministers to be wise as serpents.

As pastors and leaders, we must value Jesus words to be astute, as shining lights in a crooked and perverse world (see Philippians 2:15). At the same time, we should equally value His command to be in character and motive pure, blameless, and harmless as doves. We need the wisdom of God in this hour so that we can put away flighty thinking and worldly character. Instead, we must show forth the proven, unadulterated wisdom of God to our generation.

Matt Jones IMPART Executive Editor

Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves. Matthew 10:16

Wise as Serpents, Harmless as Doves The Mentality of the Master

Life Lesson | by Rick Renner

od never intended that we let our light shine just within the walls of our churches or even our homes where we wor-ship, work, and live. In fact, He has commanded us to expand

His Kingdom by reaching out to the world around us by letting our light shine so that others can see it. Jesus Himself said, A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid (Matthew 5:14). With that one declaration, He taught us that we are to have influence beyond just our small spheres. In other words, what happens in our lives and in our churches and ministries should have a positive impact on the world around us.

Jesus also said, Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house (v. 15). That word candle doesnt refer to a wax candle like the ones were familiar with today. A more cor-rect translation would be lamp. It comes from the Greek word luchnos, a word that describes a clay lamp that fit in the palm of ones hand.

The word bushel in this same verse refers to a measuring device or a jar made of solid mate-rial used to scoop and measure grain. It certainly wouldnt make sense to put one of those lamps

underneath a bushel, because then the light of the lamp couldnt be seen. Even worse, if you kept a lamp under a bushel for very long, that bushel would deprive the fire of oxygen and eventually smother and put it out completely.

This is what the devil tries to do to us as Christians. He knows we have the power of influ-ence; he knows we have gifts, talents, faith, and enough of the Holy Ghost to change the world around us. But just about the time we begin to step out in faith to let our light shine, he says, Who do you think you are? What makes you think you can make a significant impact on the world around you? Get back under that bushel where its comfortable and no one can see you make a fool of yourself!

The Higher the Light, The Brighter the LightBut what did Jesus say about letting our light shine? He wants us to put our lamp on a lamp-stand so it gives light to all who are in the house. As I explained in Part 1 of this article, the Greek word for lampstand here is luchnia, which referred to an elevated stand on which a lamp luchnos could be placed. Once the

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Lift Your Light Higher and Increase Your Influence in the World

(Part 2)

Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Matthew 5:14-16

lamp, or luchnos, was filled with oil and the wick was lit, the amount of light it provided was deter-mined by its position. In other words, the higher the light, the brighter the light.

I also explained in Part 1 that if a lamp was simply placed in a corner, it would give light only to those nearest that corner. And if it was set on a table, it would provide enough light to illuminate everyone sitting around that table. However, if that same lamp was placed on top of a lampstand, it would provide maximum light and illuminate all who were in the room! In other words, the position of the lamp determined the influence it exerted. The amount of light produced from the lamp was actu-ally the same, but its elevated position made its light much more effective.

So what does this have to do with our ability to lift our own light higher? Once we become born again, the oil of the Holy Spirit fills us, enabling us to let our light shine. But the degree to which we illuminate and bless oth-

ers has everything to do with our faith! How much confidence and gumption do we have

to step out of the corner with our gifts and abili-ties and let our light shine before others so that the Father is glorified through us?

Hindered by a Traumatic ExperiencePerhaps I can help you answer that question for yourself by giving you a personal example of a time when I nearly allowed my light to be extin-guished. My mother and daddy had always raised me in church and put the Word of God into me, and Im so grateful for their influence in my life. I was baptized in the Holy Ghost at the age of 14, and the call of God began to be awakened in my life at that time. Then when I was 17 years old and attending college, I wrote my first book. It was about the fivefold ministry gifts, and the finished manuscript was about 220 pages long. And wouldnt you know it the entire time I was writing that book, the devil bombarded my mind with thoughts such as, Who do you think you are to write this book? Youre just seventeen years old. Youre so arrogant to think that you have any worthwhile insights about the ministry. But I

managed to push away that accusing voice, and I finally finished writing the book.

I thought my book was pretty good. I was study-ing journalism in college, and I worked in the newspaper department on campus. I was also learning to typeset, so by the time I was done, I had the entire manuscript ready to go the printer. But before I printed it, I sent it to a well-known minister in order to get his response to my work.

One day after my eighteenth birthday, this minis-ter called me about my book. He said to me, Ive read your manuscript, and this is probably the fin-est material Ive ever read on the fivefold ministry. Your book explains things about the apostolic and prophetic ministries better than any book Ive ever read. Then the minister asked, How old are you, Rick?

When I answered, Im eighteen, the man liter-ally became furious! He said, How dare you even attempt to write a book like this when youre just eighteen years old! Who do you think you are? You dont have the experience to write a book like this! (This was after hed just told me that my book was filled with more revelation and insight than hed ever read before.)

This minister verbally pounded me over the phone that day. By the time he was finished, my light was so smothered that I destroyed every copy of that manuscript I had! Then several years ago, I found a copy of the book that my mother had kept for me. As I held it in my hands, that ministers words came back to me: Who do you think you are? But instead of tossing it aside this time, I began to reread some of the pages. And do you know what I realized? Revelation doesnt have anything to do with age; it has to do with the oil of the Holy Ghost thats on the inside of a person.

Isnt it amazing how an experience like that can affect your obedience for years and years? For many years after that traumatic encounter, every time I approached a typewriter or computer to write, Id hear that minister say, Who do you think you are? And I would back away from using my gift for writing. So for a long time, that ability

just lay there under a bushel until someone else came along years later and lit my wick!

The Power of EncouragementAlmost 35 years ago when Denise and I first started out in ministry, a well-known minister invited me to speak at his church. At the time, this man pastored one of the largest churches in the United States. I was excited and nervous at the same time. I preached, and this minister liked what he heard, so he asked me to come back and teach a seminar. At the end of that seminar, he said to me, This message will change peoples lives. You need to put this in a book. Well, I had known for years that I was sup-posed to write books but the only time Id written one before had not been a very good experience!

However, that pastor kept urging me, You need to write a book! And from that day forward, I was set free to once again pursue my gift. Praise God for godly encouragement. Our words have power either to hinder others in their callings or to free them to utilize their gifts and abilities.

After that positive encounter with the minister whod invited me to speak at his church, I said to Denise, Im going to write a book. Well, back in those days, there were no laptop computers; all we had were desktop computers, and I had a Macintosh that included a bag to carry it. I took that big computer with me everywhere I went, car-rying it over my shoulder like a backpack. And everywhere Id go, Id lug that computer with me, unload it in my hotel rooms, and sit down to write.

Finally, that book was written. Denise and I didnt have a lot of money, but because Im so impacted by the way things look, I hired a good graphic designer who designed a great-looking cover. So my book had great content and a great cover and soon it was time to print it. I said to Denise, Lets print a bunch of them! So we took all the money we had and printed and printed and printed! I was so excited that I went to the printer to look at my book as it rolled through the print-ing press. I touched the pages when they were dry enough to handle. Then it was time to get it into the hands of those who needed it.

So there I was with boxes and boxes of books thousands of them. But I couldnt stop there; I had to find a way to distribute them to people who would benefit from them. Yet this is exactly the place where so many stop; thats as far as they lift their lamp. They get the books, but they dont know what to do with them. So those books end up in a basement or garage books that have the power to change peoples lives. Yet because those ministers dont take the next step, their light doesnt go very far. They might distrib-ute a few copies to people in their congregation or to friends but their light reaches just a few people around the table.

Make the Effort To Extend Your InfluenceI wasnt satisfied with touching just a few people with the gift and calling of God on my life to write so I set out to sell my books! I said to Denise, Im going to buy a full-page ad in every major charismatic publication I can find in the United States. And I began designing the adver-tisement. At the top of the ad, I wrote in big let-ters: The Book Youve Been Waiting For!

I was so excited about this advertising campaign that is, until I saw the first published ads. When I saw those words in print The Book Youve Been Waiting For! I winced with embarrassment. I remember thinking, My gosh, that is so arrogant! I was so embarrassed, in fact, that I wanted to crawl under a bushel! No one had to try to put my light out I was willing to smother it myself!

People would say to me, Rick, I saw your ad, and Id sort of hold my breath and gasp for air. But do you know what happened? All over America, people began to call in and write request-ing my book! And its the most amazing thing in 30 days time, every single one of those thou-sands of books was gone. In 30 days, my book became a bestseller.

Denise and I couldnt handle fulfilling all those book orders on our own. It was then that I hired my mother to work for the ministry; she was our first employee. After that, I was very encouraged to

write my next book! And the exact same thing hap-pened: Everyone who bought the first book wanted the second one! Then those who bought the second book also bought the third one.

Since that time Ive written more than 30 books, including bestsellers Dressed To Kill, Sparkling Gems From the Greek, and my newest work A Light in Darkness, Volume One, which was just released in January and is already its second print-ing! I receive letters and comments every day about how my books are blessing peoples lives all over the world.

But what if I hadnt lifted my light higher than the first book I wrote at 17 that became hidden under a bushel. Or what if Id only written a couple of books and then just stored them away because I didnt know how to take the next step. What if Id failed to distribute my books to those who would benefit from them and be encouraged to lift their own lights higher? I followed through on what Id written because I believed in my gift and in what God had called me to do. And I still do!

One Step of Obedience Leads to the Next Step in Gods Plan for Your LifeI believe God is using the recent publishing of A Light in Darkness, Volume One as a catalyst to help launch this ministry to a whole new level as He calls us to increase our influence and extend our light even further in this hour. But aside from that, let me tell you how the publishing of my first books also served as a catalyst to move my family and me to the former Soviet Union. Because I determined to obey God and write those books, their sales helped us make that move 20 years ago to do the work God called us to do in this part of the world and to lift our lights higher in a brand-new way.

Right now almost two decades since we moved to the former Soviet Union Denise and I are lifting our lights even higher as we obey God in establishing a permanent home for the Moscow Good News Church. Its a strategic and timely assignment, as there has never been a time in Russian history when the Protestant Church has had so much visibility and prominence. Were

so thankful that weve found a building that meets all our needs. Right now were facing a deadline to make a large payment on this facility. At the time of this writing, we have more than 80 percent of the funds needed to make the payment, and Im confident that the need will be met as we continue to step out to lift our light high in this part of the world.

Its true that one step of obedience always leads to the next step of obedience. But if were not willing to lift our lamp where we are, why would God give us another assignment or the next step to take in His plan for our lives? We have to take the gifts and talents we have and lift them up! The higher the light, the brighter the light!

What about you? What kind of impact do you desire to have on the world around you? Yes, the people in your corner and at your table need your light. But God has given you a precious treasure the Holy Spirit as well as the faith to do some-thing with the oil of the Holy Spirit within. If you will lift up your lamp by faith and by the Spirit of God, you can change your world. Others are wait-ing for your light!

I want to tell you the truth: The men and women you see who sing and entertain people arent always the best singers, musicians, actors, etc. And the books you read arent always written by the writers with the most talent. And the preachers you see on television arent always the best preach-ers. But all of these people have something that sets them apart from those who have talent yet who arent on television or in movies or who arent widely published. Successful people simply have the gumption to lift up their lights! They believe in themselves and in their gift while those who are perhaps more gifted and more tal-ented, yet who arent as successful, lack one ele-ment: the nerve to lift up their lamp so that they can extend their light higher and further.

In Part 1 of this article, I told you about the time I attended a ministers conference after hearing from government leaders in Russia, The tradi-tional church does nothing outside its four walls. After hearing that, I became frustrated at my own churchs inward thinking. But at that ministers conference, the Holy Spirit downloaded into

of operation. I had to learn to lift my lamp to give light to those peo-ple where they were.

These pensioners looked at the Soviet years as the golden years. They were promised so much, but after the fall of com-munism, they were given so little. Many felt aban-doned and betrayed. So the Holy Spirit directed me to put on a ben-efit concert and call it Golden Stars to reflect their golden memories. I invited film stars and recording stars from the Soviet years to come entertain this group for an entire afternoon. Most of these stars were unsaved themselves. When Id invite them perform, theyd ask, Whats the theme of this concert? And Id answer, Faith, hope, and love. I gave them a moral theme, not a religious one. I knew if I could get them to come do a free concert, thousands of pensioners would show up to hear them.

Most of these entertainers responded, Faith, hope, and love thats very nice; Id love to perform! And we held our first Golden Stars event. These old people whod felt so forsaken attended this concert dressed as if they were attending a gala event. Many wore their pins and medals from World War II. And for an entire afternoon, they felt valued and loved.

my brain a plan for reaching out beyond the walls of our church. We called it social evan-gelism, and in that plan, God showed me how to move beyond our church building to lift our lamp higher so that our light could be seen throughout Moscow and we could have a greater impact on more people there than wed ever had before.

My idea from the Lord wasnt very religious, but it was effective. It was the wisdom of God for our church a plan to reach senior citizens in the city of Moscow. This large people group is the hardest one to reach because by birth, theyre supposed to be orthodox, but by practice, theyre atheists. I know that sounds confusing, but to give you an idea of what Im talking about, Ill share with you something I heard one particular senior say. This man was a taxi driver, and as I got into his car, I noticed all kinds of reli-gious icons placed across the dashboard. So I said to him, I see youre orthodox, and he responded, No, Im atheist.

I replied, Then why do you keep all of these icons? How can you be orthodox and atheist at the same time? With God as my witness, he answered me, Sometimes you believe, and sometimes you dont.

You might think thats funny, but that was largely the mindset of that older genera-tion, especially around the time of the fall of communism. Most of these pensiown-ers would never darken the door of a church especially one thats Protestant, because theyd been told that the Protestant church was a sect. So if I was expecting these senior citizens to come see me, I was going to be disappointed, because it wasnt going to happen under my current system

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Five thousand pensioners showed up for that first event 5,000 people who never would have walked through the doors of our church. Then the following year, 8,000 seniors attended the event. And last year, more than 15,000 pensioners attended our Golden Stars concert! In fact, this light has become so bright that it is now the larg-est event for senior citizens in the entire former Soviet Union. Each year that we hold the concert, I stand on the stage to welcome our guests sand-wiched between a government official from the current Russian administration and an official from the Moscow mayoral office.

However, I didnt stop there. If I could gather under one roof 15,000 pensioners who were quite literally in their golden years in life, yet I didnt tell them about Jesus, what good is that? I knew I needed to take the next step. But I wondered how I could get these people to come to me to my church once a month so I could share the Gospel with them. I knew I didnt have the funds to buy them all groceries, but I knew their pen-sions were meager, so I thought, Ill start a vita-min club and give them vitamins to supplement what they have to live on. So we began doing that, and we also gave them small toiletry items and gifts of chocolate.

We began inviting these precious elderly souls to our Vitamin Club, and now we purchase vita-mins for more than 7,000 pensioners every sin-gle month! When they come, we give them the Gospel. We have a man who ministers to them in Russian every Monday night. And they call us pastor.

Thats just the fruit of one of our social-evange-lism outreaches. With this one idea given to us by the Holy Spirit, we accidentally started another church just for the elderly! All it took was some-one to take hold of the idea, have the guts to phone those movie stars, and to lift up the light!

Friend, the Holy Ghost has the key to your city. Never say that your city is harder than other cit-ies. Its an excuse, and even if you really believe it, youll be trapped inside that belief if you keep saying it. The Holy Spirit has the answer. Hes simply looking for someone whos audacious enough to believe in his calling and that he has something the world around him needs and then to boldly lift up his lamp so he can begin to give light to all who are in the house.

Jesus said that were the light of the world. Were to be like that city on a hill that has an impact on the whole region around it. If weve kept our lamps under a bushel, we need to ask God to forgive us and to help us take our lamp from underneath the bushel where we can allow Holy Ghost oxygen to spark the smoldering ash of those lamps that weve allowed to be quenched. Then once our lamp begins to burn brightly again, we must have the audacity to lift it up where it can actually give off light.

Oftentimes its simply a matter of spending extra time in prayer to press in praying until Gods creative ideas are released from within us. Those ideas come up out of our spirit and connect with our understanding. We can ask God to fill our minds with creative understanding so we can affect more than just those within the four walls of our churches.

I encourage you to ask God to help you step for-ward to lift up your lamp so you can give maxi-mum light to those around you and beyond. Ask Him for the courage of the Holy One to rise up inside you to do what you know youre supposed to do. Then once youve asked, begin to thank Him by faith that Hes showing you what you need to do and that youll hear it and obey it. Youll elevate your lamp beyond just the level of the table so that you can maximize the gift of God within and have the biggest influence on the most people. The higher the light, the brighter the light!

Gems For Ministers | Tony Cooke

Zebras, Ostriches, andCorporate Grace

hen believers think of Gods grace, they often think in terms of how it affects them person-ally. God certainly has grace for each of us individually, and

He desires that His grace fully impact every area of our personal lives. But Gods grace is not just for me; Gods grace is for we.God intends that His grace flow freely amongst His children, and He wants all of His children to be conduits, or distributors, of His grace.This is why He distrib-uted various and diverse gifts to different members of the Body of Christ (see Romans 12:4-8; 1 Peter 4:10,11).

Mutually Beneficial Grace

God designed nature to illustrate the idea of mutual benefit in what we call symbiotic relation-ships.Symbiotic comes from two Greek words meaning together living. In biology, symbiotic relationships are those in which two entities are interdependent each benefits from the other.

For example, zebras and ostriches are often together in the wild. Ostriches have a very poor sense of smell and hearing, while zebras are pro-ficient in those senses. Zebras, though, have poor

eyesight, but ostriches have excellent vision. As a result, ostriches and zebras often move together, each benefiting from the others strength. Each is able to use its strong sense to help alert the other to danger. Another mutualistic relationship involves rhinos and a bird known as an oxpecker. This small feathered friend of the rhino rides around on the rhinos back, eating ticks and other parasites off of its hide. The oxpecker gets the benefit of food, while the rhino gets pest control.

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These may be rudimentary examples, but they remind us that God wants our relationships to be mutually beneficial.

Consider what Paul said to the church at Rome: For I long to visit you so I can bring you some spiritual gift that will help you grow strong in the Lord. When we get together, I want to encourage

As a result, ostriches and zebras often move together, each benefiting from the others strength.

Editors Note: Tony Cooke covers similar life-transforming topics related to the subject of grace in his highly acclaimed book Grace: The DNA of God. This newly released book can be purchased from the TCM Bookstore on his website at www.tonycooke.org.

you in your faith, but I also want to be encouraged by yours (Romans 1:11,12 NLT). The New King James Version renders verse 12, ...that I may be encouraged together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.

Power, Unity, and Grace

The testimony of the Early Church was not sim-ply about individuals enjoying an abundant life as everyone did his own thing and pursued his own interests. Rather, we read in Acts 4:33 (NKJV) that ...great grace was upon them all. If you read that verse in its entirety, this is what you see: And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all. The verse before that says, Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul (v. 32 NKJV).

Are you catching the themes that are being high-lighted here? Power, grace, and unity. Theres something dynamic about being vitally joined to others in a corporate atmosphere of grace and faith. The more we study Scripture, the more we see that Gods purpose and plan is that His grace permeate our churches and our relationships, not merely our individual lives.

When the church in Jerusalem began hearing of Gentiles being converted, they wisely sent Barn-abas to find out what was happening. A man of lesser character might have observed these people

and gotten stuck on their non-Jewish cul-tural practices, but Acts 11:23 (NKJV) says, When he came and had seen the grace of God, he was glad, and encouraged them all that with purpose of heart they should con-tinue with the Lord. Barnabas didnt just see the grace of God on individuals; he saw the grace of God on congregations.

These newly formed congregations were vibrant and thriving. Barnabas didnt see strife, confusion, or apathy. He saw the grace of God upon these believers corporately as they fellow-shipped, worshipped, received the Word of God, and served together. Barnabas was glad because of what he saw! There was life flowing in and amongst them. Gods grace bound these believers together and energized their relationships.

Grace in Marriage

Peter described the roles and responsibilities of husbands and wives, and admonished couples to treat each other with respect and love (1 Peter 3:1-7 NKJV). He concluded his statements by admonishing the husbands to ...dwell with them with understanding, giving honor to the wife, as to the weaker vessel, and as being heirs together of the grace of life, that your prayers may not be hindered.

Relational grace can make marriages rich with the presence and the blessings of God. When cou-ples are not functioning as heirs together of the grace of life, Peter indicates that the spiritual life of the couple can be hindered, even to the point of their prayers being hindered.

Grace Is Contagious Through Relationships

One of the truths we see in the New Testament is that grace can be shared and transmitted from one person to another. Paul said to one group of believers, ...you all are partakers with me of grace (Philippians 1:7 NKJV). He told others, Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers (Ephesians 4:29 NKJV).

What an amazing thought! Grace is transmittable! Its accurate for us to think of receiving grace directly from God through His Word and His Spirit but He also has made provision for us to be conduits and distributors of His grace toward others. In short, graced people speak gracious

words and do gracious things. W.H. Griffith Thomas expressed this well when he said, Grace is first a quality of graciousness in the Giver, and then a quality of gratitude in the recipient, which in turn makes him gracious to those around.

Isaiah 32:8 (NKJV) says, But a generous man devises generous things, and by generosity he shall stand. If we adapt that principle and apply it to grace, it would seem true to say, But a graced per-son devises gracious things, and by graciousness he shall stand.

What would happen in homes if husbands and wives (as well as the kids) deeply partook of the grace of God and then released graciousness toward one another? What would that look like? This may sound idealistic, but you would see kindness, love, honor, and respect in great abundance, and I believe you would hear words of care, edification, and encouragement. Likewise, what would happen in churches if all the people received grace (and recog-nized the grace theyd already received), and then released that grace and graciousness toward others? I think it would be absolutely amazing!

Pastors are always mindful of their need to impart life to their church members. They recognize that God has called them to stand in a particu-lar office and has graced and them to impart the Word of God to those under their care. Its impor-tant, though, to remember that church is not just about one professional minister blessing others. Churches (and marriages) both work best when everyone is receiving and sharing Gods grace.

The Bible teaches that relationships, when they are functioning well, are mutually beneficial.This is why we are told:

P R O F I L E

Author and Bible teacher, Tony Cooke has been serving the Body of Christ in various capacities since 1980. His passion for teaching the Bible has taken him to more than 45 states and 22 nations. His web-site (www.tonycooke.org) reaches pastors, missionaries, and other church leaders in more than 170 nations with encouraging and help-ful ministerial resources. Tony was involved in pastoral ministry for more than 20 years and served as an instructor and Dean of RHEMA Bible Training Center. He also served for 13 years as Director of an International Ministerial Association. Since 2002, Tony and his wife Lisa have traveled full-time with an assignment of strengthening churches and leaders. In addition to being a 1981 graduate of RHEMA Bible Training Center, Tony studied Religion at Butler University and received a Bachelor of Science degree in Church Ministries from North Central University. Tony and Lisa reside in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, and are the parents of two adult children, Laura and Andrew.

1. Love one another (John 13:34)2. Prefer one another (Romans 12:10)3. Receive one another (Romans 15:7)4. Admonish one another (Romans 15:14)5. Serve one another (Galatians 5:13)6. Bear one anothers burdens (Galatians 6:2)7. Be kind and tenderhearted to one another

(Ephesians 4:32)8. Forgive one another even as God for

Christs sake has forgiven you (Ephesians 4:32)

9. Teach and admonish one another (Colossians 3:16)

10. Increase and abound in love toward one another (1 Thessalonians 3:12)

11. Comfort one another (1 Thessalonians 4:18)

12. Edify one another (1 Thessalonians 5:11)13. Exhort one another (Hebrews 3:13)14. Confess your faults one to another and

pray one for another, that ye may be healed (James 5:16)

15. Be hospitable to one another (1 Peter 4:9)16. Love one another (1 and 2 John, multiple

references)

As each of us receives grace from God, He desires that we release that grace for the benefit of others. God has not called us to be grace hoarders. Interest-ingly, the very last verse of the entire Bible reads, The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen (Revelation 22:21 NKJV). Grace is for us all, individually and corporately. Lets enjoy it in our hearts and express it in our relationships.

To Opt Out or Not To Opt Out? Choosing Your Path for Retirement

by Mark Helland, CPA

Part 2

In last months article, I addressed the very controversial issue of whether or not pas-tors should make the election to opt out of the Social Security system, and I explained what exactly this election entails and the long-term consequences Ive observed from my experience. While I attempted to present both sides of this issue, my bias against opting out of Social Security probably came through loud and clear.

In this final article on the subject, I want to accom-plish two things: (1) to further explain the benefits offered under the Social Security system so that those who make the decision to opt out can fully understand what theyre giving up; and (2) to pro-vide a game plan for those who have already made this irrevocable election.

As discussed in the last article, most people simply think that Social Security is simply a retirement plan, so its important to understand the full ben-efits that the Social Security system offers. While a full and complete explanation of the benefits offered by Social Security is beyond the scope of this article, the following is a brief list of the key components that pastors need to be aware of.

#1: Retirement BenefitsRetirement benefits under Social Security are earned over the course of a persons work history. A very simplified explanation of this process is that benefits are earned on a quarters of cover-age basis, and if an individual has paid into the system for at least 40 quarters, they will have been able to earn at least some benefit under the system.

The eventual retirement benefit is then based on a formula that is impacted significantly by the number of quarters worked and the amount of income earned. So its important to note here that even a pastor who has opted out could still potentially receive at least some Social Security benefit if he or she met the quarters of cover-age test, either from previous secular work or from non-pastoral income for which self-employment tax was paid.

#2: Disability Payments This is not a pleasant topic, as to qualify for Social Security disability benefits, an individual would have to be very disabled, essentially suffering a permanent disability. Also, my understanding is that Social Security disabil-ity often takes a long time to qualify for, and supplemental disability insurance is needed as well. However, this is still an important benefit thats offered under the system, and the amount of disability offered can be significant and are again based on an individuals history of contri-butions to the system.

#3: Payments for Dependents Again, although its not a pleasant topic to discuss, Social Security also offers monthly pay-ments to dependents upon the death of a par-ent. These payments can be critical to the sur-viving parent, as they can replace lost monthly income and/or augment life-insurance proceeds. I can speak firsthand on how important this

benefit can be. My aunt passed away nearly ten years ago, leaving her then two-year-old daugh-ter to be raised by my mother and father. Even though my aunt paid very little money into the Social Security system over the course of her life, her daughter was able to qualify for more than $1,000.00 of monthly dependent benefits. These benefits have been vital to help my parents with the costs of raising a child and have even enabled them to provide for a private, Christian school education.

#4: Payments for Surviving Spouses In the same context as the last point, surviving spouses are eligible for Social Security benefits based on their spouses employment history under a wide range of rules and qualifications. Again, these benefits are a critical financial-planning com-ponent for replacing lost income and recovering from the death of a spouse.

Ive Already Opted Out Now What?If youve already elected to opt out, you might be asking what options you now have available. As mentioned in the first article, my observations have been that those whove elected to opt out of Social Security generally havent saved enough money for retirement, nor have they taken steps to protect against disability or the loss of income in the event of the death of a spouse. My advice to you if youve opted out is, you need to take aggressive planning measures to create your own private Social Security plan that replicates the benefits Social Security offers. So its critical for pastors who have opted out to do the following:

1. Immediately Request a Benefits Statement From the Social Security Administration for Both You and Your Spouse

If you qualify for Social Security benefits, you most likely are already receiving an annual

benefits statement by mail. This statement pro-vides critically important information, such as your earnings history, level of benefits offered at different retirement ages, disability scenar-ios, etc.

2. Work Toward Having Sufficient Retirement Savings To at the Very Least Replace the Monthly Social Security Benefit

These savings could be in a retirement plan offered through your church or through per-sonal IRAs, taxable accounts, annuities, etc. Many churches do not sponsor retirement plans for their staffs, so if your church doesnt offer one, start one for yourself or talk to your business administrator about starting one. Denominational churches tend to offer pen-sion plans, but non-denominational churches rarely offer such plans. Therefore, in my opin-ion, it is incumbent upon non-denominational churches to help their pastors save for retire-ment. A good church retirement plan should also offer some sort of employer match for employee retirement-plan contributions. It is very important to note that under the Social Security system, Uncle Sam incurs the invest-ment risk and is on the hook for a set monthly benefit, whereas in your own private retire-ment plan, you incur all the investment risk, so be sure to invest wisely.

3. Set Aside the Taxes That You Saved by Opting Out, Put Them Toward Retirement and Do Not Touch Them!

On an annual basis, you should request that your CPA or tax preparer recalculate your most recent tax return as if you had been sub-ject to self-employment tax and/or had not opted out. This is a very easy calculation and will take very little of your CPAs time to com-plete. The difference between the tax liability on your actual return and this hypothetical number is the amount of tax that was saved by opting out of Social Security. This amount

P R O F I L E

Mark Helland, CPA, is a partner with the public accounting firm of Elliott, Dozier and Helland, PC, which is located in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Mark specializes in audit- and tax-related issues for church and ministry clients across the United States. Mark and his family are members at Church on the Move in Tulsa, where he also serves as a captain in COTMs greeter ministry. For further assistance from Mark on this topic or any other tax, accounting, or church audit and compliance need, Mark can be contacted via email at mark@edandhcpa.com or by phone at 918-627-2286.

should be put aside and saved each year for retirement and should not be touched under any circumstances.

4. Make Sure That You and Your Spouse Have Disability Insurance Coverage in Place

A good disability-insurance plan should cover as much of your current monthly income as possible, and you also need to be aware of the waiting period that the policy demands before benefits would begin. Unfortunately, many churches do not offer disability insurance to their staff, but it can be obtained relatively easily as a personal policy. Also, similar to my previous retire-ment-plan comment, I recommend you talk to your church to see if such a plan could be put into place.

5. Make Sure That You Have Adequate Life Insurance Coverage

Although life-insurance agents frequently seem to recommend too much life insur-ance, it is critical to make sure that you have enough life insurance in place to pro-vide for lost income for your spouse and dependent children. The amount of life insurance needed is always complicated to determine, but the key thing to remember here is that the monthly income benefit under Social Security that would normally be available for dependent children is most likely not available for pastors who have opted out. And at todays very low inter-est rates, it takes a phenomenal amount of capital to generate even moderate amounts of monthly income. For example, at a 4-percent rate of return (which is high by todays standards), it would take $900,000.00 of principal to generate $3,000.00 of monthly income.

Finally, the following are two additional ideas for pastors who have opted out of Social Security:

Create a small business. Non-ministerial income is subject to self-employment tax even if youve opted out. Perhaps you could create a small busi-ness activity that could generate some annual income. This income would be reported on a Schedule C and would be income that counts toward a Social Security benefit even if youve opted out.

Check into options if your spouse hasnt opted out. If you operate as a husband-wife pastoral team, and only one of you has opted out, there may be some planning opportunities for your com-bined salaries and housing allowance between the two of you.

Overall, there are many considerations for pas-tors who have elected to opt out of Social Security. And since planning for your financial security at an early age is critical, wise counsel is recom-mended if youre considering the important deci-sion whether or not to opt out of Social Security, as all sides of the decision should be considered diligently.

Yet if a person is going to be saved, he still must be the one to pray! If he desires to be delivered, he must receive it. If a per-son desires the sanctifying work of the Holy Ghost in his life, he must walk closely with God and desire to live pure and holy before Him. The same is true with appropriating healing or any other blessing from God: The person

who desires such a blessing must use his own faith to receive it. God gives His bless-ings freely by His grace but our own actions, atti-

tudes, and faith are directly involved in appropriating what He has freely given.

Accomplishing Your DreamLikewise, if youre going to see the vision God gave you come to pass in your life, you are going to have to get involved in making it happen. God will provide the grace you need to

achieve it, but you must partner with Him for your future to accomplish your vision.

You might be tempted to say, Well, God said it He gave me the dream so Hes just going to have to bring it to pass. But God rarely says anything of this nature without requiring some cooperation from the hearer. For example, in revealing His will to give them the Promised Land, God told the Israelites, Im giving you the land! Im giving you every place that you put the sole of your foot upon! (See Joshua 1:3.) This was not an unconditional, unlimited promise. God was saying, Its yours if you do your part! Ill give it to you, but you have to take it!

God was telling them, As long as you sit on this side of the Jordan and sim-ply look at the Land of Promise and ponder it, its not yours, and it never will be! However, if you pass over the river and put your foot on the land, Ill give that particular piece of land to you. Then as you move ahead and place your feet on additional land, Ill

Every person carries some responsibility for his success in life. In other words, no one gets a free ride that exempts him from personally putting forth the effort to succeed. Theres only one thing thats totally free in this world, and that is Gods grace grace for salvation, grace for the infilling of the Holy Spirit, grace for deliverance, grace to empower you to witness, grace to sanctify you, grace to heal you, etc. All of these bless-ings come to you as a direct result of Gods marvelous, wonderful, free grace!

Last Word | by Rick Renner

Partnering With God for Your Future

Im giving you the land! Im giving you every place that you put the sole of your foot upon!

give that to you too. Every place that the soles of your feet touch is the terri-tory that will become yours!

God Only Gives Where Were Willing To GoWhen the Lord told Denise and me to begin a traveling teaching ministry years ago, we did something that may sound rather foolish. However, at the time, not only were we convinced God had spoken to us we were also com-pletely inspired by the promise that every place our own feet tread upon would be given to us.

We had been praying and asking the Holy Spirit to show us how to get more meetings. We only had meet-ings scheduled for the following two months. So we took our great big map of the United States off the wall and laid it on the floor. Then we began to walk across the states God was speak-ing to us about, proclaiming that every place we stepped was ours!

That act may have looked crazy to others, but to us, it was serious busi-ness! And do you know what? God honored our craziness and that sim-ple act of faith! As we traveled around the country for those first five meet-ings, we repeated our proclamation of faith, and it wasnt long before we were receiving all kinds of calls from pastors in the states wed walked upon on our map.

There Are Steps You Must TakeGod does everything in steps, but the interesting thing about those steps is that we have to take them! In order for Joshua and the people of Israel to receive Gods prom-ise, they had to get up and do some walking! Sitting on the banks of the Jordan River, idly thinking about and wondering what to do or even fret-ting over the future would not bring them closer to the place God wanted them to be. They already knew the will of God, and it was time for them to do something!

There are many reasons people stay on the banks of their river, never venturing out into a walk of obedience, faith, and power. Certainly, there are hindrances that come against our dreams to oppose and threaten their fulfillment. But those obstacles are no match for the power of one word from God to move. More often than not, the biggest enemy to our faith comes from within from us and our desire to see God do something spectacular while we simply wait and see. But when we know what God has said, and we know its time to move, there is no substitute for our obedience to step out and receive the promise of God for our lives and ministries.

More often than not, the biggest enemy to our faith comes from within...

June

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