“Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.”
The mission of IWS has been sustained through the generosity of its donors who sense a calling by God to support this graduate school focused on the renewal of Christian worship, educating Christian leaders across the globe. Since our establishment in 1999, IWS has been blessed with the ability to build not only a school, but also a generous community of loyal supporters. Due to the ongoing generosity of our faithful donors we have been enabled to educate over 400 graduates who come from more than 60 denominations, almost every state in the U.S. and 24 other nations. Each week IWS students and graduates impact over half a million people worldwide through their worship leading and teaching.
Legacy Giving
By the year 2052, $41 trillion (that’s trillion) in wealth will be transferred from one generation to the next.1 In spite of this looming intergenerational transfer of wealth, over 70% of Americans do not have a current will! Without a plan to pass on your personal assets, you and your estate are left at the mercy of the IRS. I encourage all those in the IWS community to employ long-term estate planning to maximize your legacy to your loved ones and to your charitable interests. I also strongly urge you to seriously consider IWS as one of your priority charitable interests. Deferred support like estate planning can leave a Kingdom legacy with an impact that spans multiple generations. This kind of gift is often the single most significant act of generosity toward God that most of us will ever perform. Let your hands be your executor instead of the government!
A bequest is a simple way to create a legacy which generously provides for the future of IWS and demonstrates love and support for the advancement of our mission. Your inclusion of us in your estate planning ensures your gift will have enduring influence and impact. Your attorney will need to revise your will or add a codicil to be sure the bequest is left to IWS, and a copy of the bequest provision or codicil will need to be sent to IWS for our files. Those making a bequest will be invited to become a member of our Legacy Circle.
—Henri J. Nouwen, A Spirituality of Fundraising
For more information on bequests or other planned giving options, please visit the planned giving area of this website, contact me at email, or call the IWS office. Your support of the ongoing mission of IWS is absolutely critical to the work of real spiritual transformation through worship.
Thank you for your partnership and commitment to the God’s work in and through the Robert E. Webber Institute for Worship Studies.
The Lord be with you,
James R. Hart
President
Photo of Henri Nouwen by Frank Hamilton, courtesy Wikipedia and used according to the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License
1 Mukul Verma of the Boston College Center on Wealth and Philanthropy in “Abundant Future” (Download Paper [PDF])