I received this question in an email recently:. I have a question about giving to charities. I have no problem doing this, and most financial books recommend giving a portion of what you earn away. Never really thought about it. Charity — in fact, altruism in general — is a very difficult concept to explain in a general sense.

The best I can do is explain in detail why I give to various causes. First of all, charitable donations are a direct reflection of my values and perspectives.

If I want to see food available to homeless people in my community, I can donate to the local food pantry or soup kitchen. If I want to fight global warming, there are plenty of organizations that are fighting for such change.

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The real question is whether you have found something with enough importance to you to speak out with your pocketbook. Second, helping others improves your self worth in many ways. The money in your pocket went towards a cause beyond what you can manage in your daily life, a cause that combined with the similar actions of others can actually bring about change in the world.

Third, charitable donations have indirect benefits. My parents would often take fresh produce from the garden there in the summer. At a crucial point in my life, this friend pushed me to do something that I would have never done on my own.

Because my parents quietly donated to that pantry, a series of events occurred that ended up with their son having an opportunity to get a college education. When the right reason comes to you, open up your wallet and see what happens. Save money and expand your travel budget by packing any one of these cards on your trip.

A comprehensive guide to maximizing rewards and getting paid back for everything you buy. Tithe, depends on if you believe the Bible or not. My wife and I tithe because we believe that to tithe is part of our belief in God, His Word and His promises. In the book, Think Rich, Grow Rich, the author says to set your goal of how much you want to make, and how much you want to give away.

People who refuse to give anything are selfish.

They may be as pleasant as possible, but they are refusing to do anything for anyone beyond themselves. While I see giving as a Biblical command, I also see it as a general principle of the universe. We should care about more than just ourselves. Of course it is very hard to justify if we live life just looking out for ourselves.

I think that, no matter how badly off we are, there is probably someone who is even worse off and our own lives are enriched by reaching out to them in even the smallest way. I believe that our first obligation is to those who depend on us, if any.

Our most basic needs of food, shelter and clothing should be covered. Then we are obligated to people to whom we owe money.

If we are fortunate enough to have disposable income left over, then saving and investing for the future should come next with luxuries trailing in last place. I believe that putting others first, always, will ensure contentment in this life far greater than any material goods we may spend our time chasing.

I believe our government is partially responsible for the horrible mess most of us have gotten into with consumer debt. They allowed creditors to prey on the weakness of consumers at the same time as allowing them to charge usurious interest rates.

Unfortunately, they are not any help at all in getting out of it. And so is the information found in this blog. You are doing a great job, Trent, a great service.

This is a very good commentary on why giving to charity is a good thing. Thank you for your well thought out comments. I give to the church because that is what I believe.

I find it hard to give to major charities because so many times others have abused their powers and reward themselves instead of the ones in need. I have become quite interested in helping those I see that need help personally. I want to give some examples, but please believe me, I am not tooting my own horn or looking for praise. The girls needed clothes, school supplies, etc. I have helped them several times. I give to these kinds of people knowing that they will never be able to repay me.

That is what charity should be about. And also, I give selfishly — because it makes me feel great when I see someone first hand that is truely thankful someone was there in their time of need. There are also some creative ways to donate funds over the longer term—donor-directed funds, charitable gift annuities which pay you fixed income until your deathand legacy gifts, for example.

The joys of pretending to help the poor: The Kiva Story

Whenever someone talks about charity I always mention kiva. This site is dedicated to linking up private lender to provid micro-loans to very small business owners in third-world countries.

I like it because you are helping how to get unlimited money on saints row 2 that help them selfs, and you get rm in stock market philippines for beginners money back interest free in months, so someone else can use it again.

I like the idea behind kiva. They are both creating something useful. What bugs me is feeling pressured to just throw money out into the universe willy nilly, just because.

Why should I struggle to live within my means, and then give money away so someone else can keep making bad decisions?

Maybe if they were raising money for a vasectomy! Charity is an expression of gratitude and humility for Christian believers. It is not because God commands generousity, it is because He has given me so much.

Giving reminds me that I am not the only one responsible for the money I have and that taking care of myself is not my highest priority. I like giving to charities, but only when I know my money is used properly. I would recommend looking at a site like Charity Navigator. Donating is great but it can be really frustrating when you find out later that your money was wasted. Is he concerned with how much is given?

While I believe it is ok to question 1 minute taxes on binary option trading, I would definitely want to explore whether there are non-financial motives or underlying reasons behind the very question itself.

Getting to financial freedom is a optionshouse day trading cash account exercise stock market cheap stocks well as a financial one.

Giving some of our income to others that are worse off than us can make us appreciate more of what we have. Having that kind of thought can make us hots home online trading system tempted by advertising and other marketing stunt. Giving to charity is not reallly connected to religious beliefs in the sense that lots of non-religious and atheist people also think that its important to give to charity.

I find it difficult to think of a good reason not to give to charity. Being unselfish is probably one of the defining characteristics of being a good person, and giving to charity is one way of being unselfish so I think that is how being good and donating are related.

I would argue that the focus should be on creating a generous spirit, not on the action of financial giving. Things like being a mentor, volunteer cleaning, etc help broaden or world view and will provide us with life empowering energy and passion. Ultimately this generous spirit will help you become more successful in life.

I have given my time and do you make money on kiva to charities in the past and will continue to do so. Is there a typical percentage? What is the justification in the books that give a percentage?

Do you take volunteered time into consideration? If, like me, you are not bothered about following old testament biblical principals then feel free to do as you please. There is an assumption in many great depression stock market simulation. It annoys me a great deal when this is not stated explicitly.

In the new testament it is taught that what ever mount you give,it is to be done with a loving heart and not to earn brownie points, so to speak.

And yes, your time contributed to worthwhile causes is equally important. Spending time working for a charitable group can give further ensight into what you are contributing as well as helping others. I cannot think of anything more generous than giving time and money to whatever is most important to you, whether it is your place of worship, a community food drive or anything else you choose.

I am completely nonreligious. But part of me thinks that I should live extremely frugally, with lots of roommates, and doing all my own cooking, and having only free entertainment such as library books, because even then I would still be much better off than most people in the world, and then I should donate all the extra.

However, another part of me is selfish. We did, and it is one of the best decisions we have ever made. Satisfaction—we get great satisfaction every month when we make the decision about who to give to. Planning—when you tithe, giving to charity is a large enough budget forex broker free vps that you begin to plan.

You ask, who should I give to and why? What are my values? My wife are very intentional in who we give to—we research the charities and are careful to give to those charities that reflect our values and priorities. I feel much better that my charity dollar is being spent well.

You become an active participant in the organization, and not a mere donor. You begin to understand how blessed you are with what you have. Whether and how much to give is a personal decision, but I have never met a tither who ever regreted do you make money on kiva decision. Us husbands are usually blessed with wives who are more compassionate than ourselves and that is often why they push more for the charity than guys.

It is sad how to make money in rs3 f2p in the U. Fewer and fewer people are giving less and less money, and where it is being given, whether to a house of worship, an animal shelter, or any other organization, the donations have dropped off considerably.

I am a full-time volunteer with Awake In America http: This will allow greater options for us with volunteers wanting to work on the site or write content for the site.

How Kiva works | Kiva

Over the past four years, getting donations has been horrible. Even in the aftermath of Katrina, most people thought first of organizations like the American Red Cross, which often is the first thing that comes to mind.

In all, we made 97 shipments to various areas of the U. While the number of individual donors has declined, it seems as though corporate donors, aka corporate sponsors, are also declining. This is a topic, sadly, that people could talk about day-after-day, and much of the time many do just that.

I would love to have someone in this world help me. I have worked 1 to 3 jobs to support my family the past 10 years, with no benefits and no vacations. Each Christmas I tell my children next Christmas will be easier.

But each year is the same, struggling to make it each week, pay bills, buy food, pay for gas to make it to work, praying we do not have any car trouble because I do not know if I could pay for a repair, making the house payment.

This year was the worst but I told my family what was important was that we spent the holidays together. No one got gifts this year. My husband was laid off the 7th of December, my employer gave me 2 weeks off for Christmas without pay, and we did not have income for 2 weeks. We ate rice and bread for 1 week. We do not qualify for any assistance because we made over the limit for the year of I have not made the January house payment because we are trying to pay everything else that we are behind in.

I have applied for a second job again. I will be 50 in March and I do not see things getting easier. I sometimes wonder if I will be working 2 or 3 jobs until I am Will I ever be able to retire or take a vacation? I know there are others with hardships to tell. I just hope for a break, that something happens that will let me have a little easier life. I am so tired. When is that going to happen? When I am dead? Is that when I will have peace of mind? Just make sure you keep a record of what was given if not cash, and if cash is given, make sure you have a receipt!

I am a Christian. Please consider me for a nice donation. I live in Botswana. My postal address is: Box Broadhurst, Gaborone, Botswana, May God bless you abundantly. Best regards Jennifer february maiden name: For me, the bottom line on charity is that if I were to refuse to pay my taxes, I would go to jail, but if I refuse to give to charity, nothing will happen to me.

Tithing was a no-brain decision for me I am pretty new at all this stuff I am a born again Christian as of two years ago. I feel that tithing keeps us obediant to God. Our father supplies all of our needs. I believe that whatever you decide will be fine as long as it lines up with the word of God, same goes with everyone and everything.

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