The majority of donations received by the World Mission Prayer League come from individual donors and congregations. These donations allow the Mission to function financially, but in addition to that, we believe that each donation is accompanied by an amount of prayer which cannot be measured. For the past few years donors have had the opportunity to give in two other significant ways.
Thrivent Choice℠
Each year Thrivent gives away millions of dollars to Lutheran organizations. In the Thrivent Choice℠ program, a portion of Thrivent’s charitable funds – called Choice Dollars℠ – is distributed to Lutheran organizations at the direction of Thrivent members. Eligible Thrivent members are awarded Choice Dollars℠ periodically through the year, in amounts between $25 and $2,500. They may at that time direct their Choice Dollars℠ to the Lutheran organization of their choice. Last year $27,900 in Choice Dollars℠ were directed to the World Mission Prayer League. Choice Dollars℠ can be directed on the web at thrivent.com or by calling 1-800-THRIVENT. If you own a Thrivent financial product, you are probably an eligible member.
IRA Charitable Rollover
An IRA Charitable Rollover permits an owner of an IRA who is 70 ½ years or older to transfer up to $100,000 directly from your IRA to a qualified charitable organization such as the World Mission Prayer League. The transfer counts toward your minimum required distribution for the year, which may reduce your income tax liability for the year.
Here are some things you should know about the IRA Charitable Rollover:
- You must be 70 ½ years old or older to qualify.
- A maximum of $100,000 can be given in a single year.
- Transfers must be made directly from the IRA to the charity; only the IRA trustee or custodian can transfer the gift. A donor should not withdraw the funds and then contribute them to a charity.
- Transferring funds from your IRA counts toward your required minimum distribution for the year but does not count as income to you, thereby reducing your tax liability at the end of the year. For that reason this contribution does not qualify as a charitable deduction.
If you think you may be able to take advantage of either of these methods for giving but have additional questions, please contact the WMPL Business Office for more details: 612.871.6843; business@wmpl.org.
In August we were able to pay all of our missionaries 100 percent of their target allowance. We used $45,680 from the General Fund to meet these needs, leaving a balance of $48,994. Our Benefits Fund carried a balance of $282,182 at the end of August. Thank you for your support!