The Economy: Searching for Answers

It’s July 4th and all’s well—I guess.   I don’t want to give a hearty amen to this statement because I have been reading Business Week.  So many questions, yet so many incomplete or less-than-hearty answers.

Have you noticed the lack of commitment by all the business experts?  Here’s an example, “All this austerity will pay off—eventually.”  Or Jack and Suzy Welch’s answer to the question “When will this *@&^ recession end?”  They answered, “How about sometime in 2010?  The problem with being more precise, you see, is the mixed picture out there.”

I would agree with that.  But just give me a straight answer.  I want to know whether the stimulus plan is working—plenty of hemmin’ and hawin’ when it comes to an answer to this question.  How many more banks will fail?  It depends on how you define “fail.”  Is there any hope for the automobile industry?  Maybe if they can come up with new and exciting products.  When will unemployment stop rising?  We may be near the bottom of readjustment, so we should see this trend slowing.

There is one question from this issue of Business Week that reveals where the American public seeks an answer.  They are seeking their answer from the White House, which may indicate that we are drifting toward increasing reliance on our federal government to solve everything.  The question:  “What one issue would matter most in your presidential vote?”  Over 50% of the respondents to the Pew Research Center poll answered, “Economy/Jobs.”  Moral values rated, but only at 10%.  Compare these figures to the same poll in 2004.  Terrorism/Iraq/Afghanistan garnered 36%, the economy 21%, and moral values 27%.

Of course the economy would rank higher in this year’s poll.  And it would seem reasonable for Terrorism/Iraq/Afghanistan shrinking to 8% as we move further away from 9/11/01.  My concern is the shrinking emphasis on moral values.  Just take a look at some of the moral issues we see around us, in particular among political leaders.  If we can’t have politicians who know how to act responsibly on a personal level, then we likely will not have politicians who can address major issues with the economy in a responsible manner.

We need men and women who will serve this country with dignity, that will set a proper example for the next generation.  Yes, the economy is perhaps the most significant issue of the day.  But let’s not throw out our morals.  This might just be the time when we consider that the really important things in life are the intangibles.  Our lives will be the richer for it.  Oh, and happy July 4th!

Are Jobs the New Assets?

Time Magazine, along with other media giants, deserves credit when they get our attention.  After all, isn’t that what communications is all about?  In the March 23 edition, the headline read “10 Ideas Changing the World Right Now.”  I looked at the headline curiously, wondering if the ideas would solve all of our economic issues or if they were just speculative enough to prompt further analysis from experts and amateurs.  If you are curious, check out the article to see where it leads your thinking—here is a link.

At the top of the list, Number 1, was this:  Jobs are the New Assets.  Was this supposed to make us feel better about the dwindling property and investment values we see around us?  Or was this a step toward some economic theory about human capital?  Maybe it’s a little of both.  It’s probably time to get out your Econ 101 book and revisit the section dealing with human capital.

The idea deserves merit.  Jobs define us, they give us an identity.  No longer will I look at my balance sheet for purpose in my life, I will look at each day with a job as something precious.  Is this too much a short-term perspective?  No, I think this thought contributes to the long-term notion that jobs represent the best assets a company holds.  If you have jobs, you have production.  If you have jobs, you have billable hours.  The corporate world lacks this long-term perspective when it rewards risk-takers with large bonuses at the expense of a steady, perhaps slower view that rewards dedication, dependability, and long-term value building.

Part of the next generation’s challenge with jobs will be to protect their human capital.  Don’t overlook the fact that skills require development.  Education helps.  An apprenticeship makes sense.  You can’t sit around in coffee shops day after day and expect to develop your human capital.  Get up and get moving toward some vocational outlet that intrigues you and maintains your interest.

Another thought about protecting your human capital’s worth:  stay healthy.  Years of smoking and drinking age you quickly.  Look at someone who does this stuff for 20 years and you’ll see the wear and tear on their physical bodies.  The scary part is not what you see, but what you don’t see.  Statistics from the Urban Institute in early 2009 show that about a third of all Americans develop some health-related limitation in their fifties and sixties.  As a result, many workers do not retire on their own timetable.

Some of the next generation seem to think they can ignore healthy habits.  It is strange, but many of those who call themselves “green” and seem more concerned about global warming than they do their own bodies probably lead the way in unhealthy habits.  The “greenies” tend to ignore their need for rest and use drugs and alcohol like they are necessary parts of a balanced diet (please excuse this short rant).

So, if you are your best asset, take care of yourself.  The next generation awaits.

Generational Trends in Giving to Religious Causes

By far, the largest amount of charitable giving in the United States on a year-by-year basis is to religious causes. So, should we be concerned if we see shifts in certain factors surrounding this area of philanthropy?

Maybe so. The alarm sounded with the recent release of a study by the Indiana University Center on Philanthropy indicating generational changes in giving to religious causes. The story goes like this—baby boomers give less to religious causes than their parents did when they were the same age, and members of Generation X give even less. Accompanying this trend, younger people attend religious services less than their parents or grandparents. According to the study, the decline in giving may result from the decline in attendance at religious services.

Believe it or not, this is a trend that all charities watch. The reason—givers to religious causes tend to give to more groups of all kinds. If giving to religious causes declines, a potential shortfall results in giving to other groups as well.

Another barometer to watch is the annual report on philanthropy called Giving USA. Here we see that total dollars given to religious causes increased over the past 40 years, but expressed as a percentage of total giving in the U.S. religion’s share has fallen from near 46% to 32%. In fact, giving to religious organizations showed the lowest growth of all the many subsectors of charitable giving.

So, what’s up? I’m not an expert, but there are some concerns that I think we all as ministry leaders and believers should try to remedy.

First, I wonder if we have gotten away from the biblical view that possessions play a role in our spiritual development. Scripture makes it clear that the way a believer handles their possessions reveals much about their hearts. Are ministry leaders preaching and teaching this? Some may say “yes” but some also have embraced such a seeker-sensitive mindset that they might be afraid to emphasize stewardship with their congregations or supporters. As put in a new book edited by Wes Willmer, Revolution in Generosity, ministry leaders may focus on the transaction with the believer rather than on the transformation of the believer when they give. Transformation should be the focus.

Next, I wonder if all these years of capital campaigns and stewardship drives are catching up with us. When the church or a ministry spends a great amount of time in this mode, it causes the preacher and other leaders to behave like development officers of a large nonprofit organization. This could de-emphasize the biblical message about stewardship to the detriment of the long-term development of devoted stewards. The bottom line is that ministry leaders should stick to teaching what the Bible says about stewardship, about the transformation of the heart that reflects where we are in our relationship with our Lord. This is a sure way to make an impact on the finances of the organization.

Finally, I hope we can address the generational issues that are sure to arise regarding stewardship. Are we teaching biblical concepts of stewardship to the younger generations? Is there a difference in how these generations behave in giving because they have more demands for their income? I thought God demands it all, because it is His anyway. There is an upcoming generational shift of resources that will be huge according to current research. Are we showing these younger generations how they can make an impact for Christ now and how they can lay up treasures in heaven? The next generation, and the generation after that, will reflect the values that we have left them and that we have taught them. It is time for ministry leaders, church leaders, and mature Christ followers to take the lead in conveying biblical stewardship to the next generation.

Let’s practice what we preach.

Google-ing John 3:16

You all have felt it. It was just a matter of time. Years of surfing the internet has finally caught up with us. Yes, I am talking about the effect of spending massive, cumulative amounts of time online on our brains.

For me, I can think back into the 1990s at some point when the web enticed me into its massive reserve of available information. I had been a library junkie all my life, leafing through pages of information about places and things I enjoy for long periods of time between the stacks. Now thanks to the internet, I could search volumes of information with mere clicks. Pretty soon I got to be very good at this and could ramble through web page after web page without processing anything but key words from the pages. Now, I must confess, these days the web has become the conduit for lots of the information that flows into my mind.

I found a concern over this online information processing in a recent article, “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” by Nicholas Carr, in the current issue of The Atlantic. Carr says that his past decade on the computer rendered him unable to concentrate, that perhaps the neural circuitry of his brain is remapped and his memory reprogrammed. Further, Carr says he used to be able to immerse himself in books and long articles, relishing the narratives of these talented authors; however, today he becomes fidgety and cannot endure any extended amounts of time reading. Huge amounts of research can be done in little time, a boon for writers like Carr, but this form of “power browsing” mimics a form of skimming, i.e., hopping from one source to another source and retaining only small snatches of information.

This may have implications for future generations of Christ followers. Young believers, and some not-so-young believers, today spend huge amounts of time plugged into something, whether it be the internet, cellphones, blue-tooth devices, all making some folks look like human cyborgs. Even text messaging is a hybrid, cyborg-ic form of communication with its short, pithy remarks and lack of care over spelling and form. Our imaginations can run with this stuff and cause us to worry over the technological advances that supposedly have made our lives easier and more advanced. The web has woven something, and I think it is our brains. There may be an appearance of wisdom, but something is lacking.

Is there any wonder that fewer today are reading their Bibles? (Check out the Barna polls). We know that God’s Word is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16), but how can it be if we are unable to meditate on it, dwell in it, and talk about it coherently. Have we been reduced to a mish-mash of gray matter that cannot process even one book of the Bible without losing focus? It is time to counter this trend and return to the tried and true methods of observation, interpretation, and application of God’s Word so that our faith, which is more precious than gold, will be refined and be our one constant in a day of rapid change. God’s Word is a lamp for our feet, and a light for our path—it is not merely a hyperlink to heaven in this cyber age. We may be just one step away from the New Revised Google Version of the Bible.