Accounting News and Notes

Missions are much more than just a good week. They involve long term planning which goes on for months and visits which can cover many years of efforts. Family missions are a life changing family event from which your family will never be the same. Gone from the technology, which often binds us, team and family members are able to focus on being the hands and feet of Jesus Christ. However grateful for life changing family dynamics a mission trip provides, it is geared towards the needs of others. To that end we are approaching the Navajo people in Pueblo Pintado to see how we might help assist them.

Many people from the Duluth, GA area have been involved in missions for more than ten years. This year, the mission focus has been on:

• Vacation Bible School and Sports Camp for children four to eighteen years of age consisting of Bible stories, arts & crafts, outdoor games and sports and fitness.
• Adult arts and crafts and ministry at both the high school and senior center.
• A community night including food, music, bingo and carnival games & prizes
• Construction service projects at a local church, local home and the community senior center

This years mission was predominantly different from several perspectives:

• We hope to build deeper, more interactive long term relationships with those in the community
• If needed, we want to help in whatever way we can to assist the local community in working together to strengthen the community spiritually, in deed, and economically
• We did begin to build bridges to the local churches introducing ourselves into the community with the specific goal of bringing churches together focusing on what unites us, involving local churches in next years work with involvement in vacation bible school, devotions and adult bible studies, support local churches by making donations through them to the Pueblo Pintado children bringing local pastors together to give children book bags, school supplies, and Christmas gifts and boxes.

A group of us in Duluth, GA would like to help in “partnering” with the community and possibly offering assistance if assistance if desired/needed to help

• Assist in setting up local new businesses while focusing on bringing talent, resources, and training
• Work with the Pueblo Pintado chapter house, local schools and any other church or para church organization interested in improving the local business climate and per capita income of your residents with the specific goals of adding infrastructure (water, electricity, roads, and vocational training).
• To bring a fire station to the community.

For those who are so inclined we are seeking those who would desire to partner with us to assist the Navajo people in Pueblo Pintado with the specifics of the above and from all we ask for your prayers and Godspeed.

On the IRS web site link below you can find information about year to date filings of 2007 tax returns and collections thereof current through this tax year. There you will learn that U.S. corporations pay roughly one-third of the total tax bill that individuals pay. There have been approximately 138 million personal income tax returns filed year to date versus only 2.5 million corporate returns. Payroll tax returns total approximately 31 million returns filed with the IRS with roughly $850 million being collected. Although estate taxes have been in the news a tremendous amount receiving a dis-portioned amount of coverage over the last ten years, only $24 million has been collected on estate returns year to date. 

There on www.irs.gov you can also learn that only thirteen thousand of the filed corporate returns had assets of over $250M or 76.2% of the returns filed for the 2005 tax year. THe median filed return for personal returns for 2006 reflected an AGI of $31,987 and if you had adjusted gross income of over $108,904 you were in the top ten percent of taxpayers nationwide. You can also learn much more about taxpayers and their varying demogrpahics including that number of taxpayers who had AGI/Adjusted Gross Income of over one million dollars was 355 thousand as well as that California was the state who had the highest number of million dollars income earners with 52,590. To learn more visit http://www.irs.gov/taxstats/article/0,,id=102886,00.html

I am following up regarding our mission trip of last week. I am excited about working within all aspects of the community and focusing on issues of what unites us “The Good News of Jesus Christ.” We are exhorted by the Apostle Paul to practice excellence in all things and it is to that end we are striving to bring to the Navajo people a multi-faceted approach to improving the spiritual, emotional, and economic lives of your community.

We have just had an incredible trip and many of us are deeply committed to see what God will allow us to do to help. There is no doubt that with the support of the local pastors in the community we will be much more in helping the Navajo people as well as assisting the local churches in strengthening their position with your people. We want to come alongside local churches uniting them in bring resources, a unifying presence, and support. Some of our initial thoughts include:

-Gaining local pastors  joint involvement in next years mission trip specifically Vacation Bible School and adult Bible study.

-Gaining local pastors  joint involvement in giving out to the children book-bags at the start of the school year we have left for this purpose.

We believe we can do much more for the kingdom by working together than we can ever do apart and we want to partner with you to Bring the Good News of Christ and support to you to the Navajo people.

If you read all the doom and gloom accounts about our economy it is enough to make you want to gab your security blanket, stick your thumb in your mouth and take a long nap and try to just forget about it! So how bad are things right now and what should we do about it to protect our assets?  First off are we really on shaky ground?  What is really going on?  Historians say that all nations go through cycles. In terms of cycles we as a nation seem to have been fat, dumb and happy for a long time.  We have experienced unprecedented prosperity.  But you can’t run trade deficits forever.  Personally you can’t spend more than you earn forever and not even the US Government can run deficits indefinitely and get away with it.  Where are we in our cycle?  Once you get past prosperity then comes apathy.  After apathy comes bondage.  Could that be financial bondage for us? So what should we do in view of the current uncertainty?  We need principals to live by.  If we spend less than we make personally and require our government to do the same, then we will be on solid ground.  If we don’t expect the government to do too much then that is good.  But this is most important: it says in the Bible that blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD.  There is a definite link between our trusting God and honoring Him as a nation and being blessed because of it.  If we trust and honor Him then we won’t have anything to fear.  But if not then we won’t continue to enjoy the prosperity which He has given us.   God says, “If My people who are called by name will humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land.” Let’s hope and pray that we don’t have to experience a total economic meltdown before we get our priorities right and put God first and trust Him alone!  To discover how your can protect your business and personal assets contact Mr. Scott Singletary, Vice PresidentBB&T at 678-762-5667.

In estate planning, it’s important to understand how your property will pass with a will…and without one. You need to know what a will will and won’t do. A will…WON’T change the terms of other assets. For example, the people you’ve listed as beneficiaries on your life insurance and 401k plans will receive those assets, no matter what the will says.Is it a good idea, then, to put my spouse as primary beneficiary and my kids as secondary? Sometimes, but not always. For retirement benefits, having your spouse listed can have advantages. Listing children who are under 18 can be a problem: do you really want the 5-year-old to inherit the house? Children over 18 will have access to the entire amount of the funds immediately, which may not be in their best interest.WILL control real property, some of the time. If the property is titled with “survivorship” rights, it will pass to the other(s) automatically. If it is not held with such rights, or if it is one person’s name alone, a will controls that property.Is it a good idea, then, to add someone on title with “survivorship” rights to avoid probate? Not really. Such a transaction is fraught with unfavorable liability and tax implications. Better to have a good estate plan in place that dictates how the property should be handled.WON’T keep itself up to date. As important as it is to have a will, it’s equally important to keep it up to date. Annually, you should review the fiduciaries listed, the status of any specific items listed in the will, your financial situation (for possible tax issues) and the status of your beneficiaries.Is it a good idea, then, to write small changes directly on the will itself? Absolutely not! This could void the will in its entirety (in Georgia), and could cause litigation. Call your attorney and have it done correctly.WILL be more effective if its contents and location are known to those closest to you. Be sure to either discuss it with family members or keep it in a well-marked file with other important documents.Is it a good idea, then, to keep it in my safety deposit box? Perhaps not. Most banks have strict policies about who may have access to safety deposit boxes after the owner has died. Check with your bank and, if it sounds like their policy will cause undue stress on your family (for example, if they require a court order for access), consider keeping your documents in a fire-safe in your home.WON’T take effect before you die. It’s good to remember that a will does not provide guidance for disability or incapacity. Those situations are best addressed in powers of attorney (for finances and medical needs) or a living will.Is it a good idea, then, to have powers of attorney in addition to my will? Absolutely! The power of attorney will control what happens until you die, then the will takes over.WON’T let you avoid probate. “Probate” is the process that the will goes through in the court system post mortem. In some states, it can be expensive and lengthy. In Georgia, however, it is a relatively simple process that is not very expensive.Is it a good idea, then, to try to avoid probate? Possibly. Georgia is not a state where probate avoidance is key, but there are other reasons to possibly establish a trust or put in place other probate avoiding vehicles.WILL make your wishes known. Dying without a will leaves surviving loved ones with a mystery; even if you think your wishes are known, without documenting them, it is guesswork for your loved ones.

Creating a good estate plan documents your wishes and gives your survivors the gift of knowing they are doing what you would have wanted as far as distributing assets. Is it a good idea, then, to write down what I want for my burial/cremation, funeral, and other similar arrangements? Yes! While such details do not always have to be in the will itself, it is a great idea to document as much as you can about where your assets are and what you would like for a memorial service.To learm more how you can protect you and your family contact Wasdin & Oki Law today.

As I write this our family is on a mission trip to the Navajo Indian reservation in New Mexico here in the United States. Though perhaps not as glamorous as many other mission trip destinations abroad, the mission trip here is just as needed. It would surprise many American to know that right in our own country people are living without running water, electricity, and most all of the modern conveniences we take for granted. Many here do not even own their own land but instead lease it back from the federal government. Dirt floors and homes with no windows are the norm and are very commonplace. Most all of the population is well below the poverty line with drugs, alcohol, and gambling grabbing most of the populace’s money and resources. There is hope here and that is why we have chose to come to the desert of NM.

This week will we bringing Vacation Bible School, Adult Bible Studies, Activities for the Senior community, Community night where we invite all of the community in for food and games, a movie night with a Biblical theme and much needed help with construction projects helping those with materials and assistance to churches and those who are invalid who most desperately need a helping hand.

This is our third family mission trip. I have found them an invaluable way to put aside the Ipods, cell phones, and to step away from the video games and to think about those who are less fortunate. Family mission trips have proved the most effective way to get our children out of their boxes, serving others, and working along with other Believers.

We are here for two main reasons. First, we are here to tell of the good news of Jesus Christ and to give to others just as he has given to us. Secondly, we are here to serve and to befriend the Navajo people who give us so much in return by allowing us to become part of their world for a blessed week. Pray for out trip and our journey and that we would be the hands and feet of God as we jointly serve Him.

In the Matchless Name of Christ.

As our economy still trends toward uneasiness it is time to continue to stay the course while putting good and wise practical business applications to work. Refreshing yourself daily with these words will assist you in riding out these current economic times.

Stay the Course. When times get rough we are apt to sell a good stock and invest in another which does not have the same economic potential. Often the desire to “do something” needs to be tempered with wise and judicious counsel. In tough economic times and now more than ever it is critical to stay the course not letting ourselves in getting caught up in short term financial decisions. While looking ahead we can hope for an anticipate better times and all decisions should be processed with a filter of what condition our economy is presently in.

Investing. Now is a grand time to invest in the stock market. Many portfolios are down over 10% just this past month alone making stocks a much better value than they were just thirty days ago. For those businesses who have excess cash flow being generated it is a great time to look to invest heavily in the market as gas prices and gloom and doom forecasters scare the market even further down. Accordingly today is one of the best opportunities you will have to get bargain sales prices on blue chip stocks and good mututal funds.

Good things happen. Good things happen to those who make the best of the way things turn out. With a down market there are many things going on creating opportunities in the marketplace which otherwise would not have existed. Although many will buy in psychologically in the gloomy forecasters prognosis, today is a great time to buckle down while focusing on what works and plan for a solid return to a good economy. Most forecasters beleive we are in a extended trough which is primarily being fed by fuel prices and the housing bust. Although these sectors are important the rest of the U.S. economy remains strong. Though workers and businesses alike will need to worker harder, smarter, and longer this is a great time to re-focus and re-direct on what works making your financial future all the brighter.

Stay tuned.