Love Fort Wayne April Podcast featuring: Rudy Mahara II of National Christian Foundation

On this episode, we sit down with Rudy Mahara to talk about biblical generosity that goes deeper than dollars and gets practical about how givers, churches, and nonprofits can move together for real Kingdom impact in Fort Wayne. Rudy shares his story, why collaboration matters, and how microchurch and faith-driven work can reach people who would never walk into a sanctuary.

Transcript

Why Churches Work Better Together

SPEAKER_01 0:00

And ultimately, what I love to see, and I did I saw this some with my work with LifeWise, is the churches in Southwest Allen all together have pretty much said, what can we do? It's not, it's not my own little bubble. It's not my own walls. It's how do we make this work? And so you have multiple sites where kids are learning and hearing the gospel. You have um donors from churches who are pitched in to help see this happen. And I think once a church can get away from this, it's our four walls, to hey, where do we fit in this big picture of kingdom movement? I mean, I'm getting chills right now thinking about it. It is beyond powerful.

Welcome And Meet Rudy Mejara

SPEAKER_03 0:48

Hello, everybody. Welcome back to the latest episode of the Love Fort Wayne podcast, the April edition. We're excited that you have joined us today. We've had some great episodes to start the year with, and I am joined by a good friend of mine, my co-host, Mitch Cruz. Mitch, how are we doing? Wonderful. How are you? Man, I'm doing so good today. Uh, and we're excited because, man, we always have great guests, guests. Um, we're blessed by that. We have got another one today. Rudy Mejara is here. Rudy, how are you doing?

SPEAKER_01 1:15

I'm I'm so blessed to be here and to be asked to talk about something I love and uh specifically love Fort Wayne. I think this is just a great community, the convening, as you like to say. So I'm just honored to be here.

SPEAKER_03 1:26

Yeah, thanks. Thanks for the pub right away, man. We have to have you come back every couple of months. We like that. Yeah, yeah. So we're here to just chop it up with Rudy and talk a little bit about National Christian Foundation, but there's some other things that are dear to your heart. You love this community, you love this region, uh, you love the Lord, you love leadership, and we're about those things here on the podcast. So we're excited to chat with you today. And we we just want to start with you. Tell us a little bit about yourself and your story and even what led you to this point in your life and career.

SPEAKER_01 1:55

Yeah.

Rudy’s Story From Army To Finance

SPEAKER_01 1:56

Um, so I actually was born in Lafayette, so black and gold runs through the blood, um, which this uh this early this spring, late winter, the IU Hoosiers did okay. So that's fine. Congratulations to you all. Um but no, actually grew up in Fort Wayne from a very young age, and my father has had a hand in some uh nonprofit organizations and creating that. So I've just kind of been around really great things and and through my my tenure. Grew up in homestead, married my high school sweetheart. Um before that, we were dating in high school and then spent a small stint in the army. So I got to uh go take a tour of Iraq in 2003, which was uh eventful, and then got home. She stuck with me, and she was actually praying while I was gone about our relationship. We're both barely out of high school, we're not talking marriage, and God laid it on her heart pretty, pretty hard to say, hey, stay with stay with Rudy. And we've been married now 21 years and have uh three kids. My son is 16 and my twin daughters are 13. Okay. So very, very blessed in that regard. Uh got a chance to out of college. I went to Bethel for my ministry degree. So I'm a Bethel College grad, kind of like you. Yep, co-pilots. Um, we got out of got out of that, and I wasn't really sure what I wanted to help with people, like a parachurch organization and work with people, uh, specifically in consulting or counseling. And through that process, my father was in financial planning as an independent financial advisor, and I said, well, that could be kind of fun. And so got into that with my dad and learned a lot. And through the course of of working through that, my favorite parts of working in financial planning were were walking with people through generosity or with people who who maybe didn't have the means to be generous, but really wanted to grow to that spot. And uh God has led me to a place here where I get to still keep my certified financial planner design. I still am in that world. I work with all the advisors I used to work with um here at National Christian Foundation. I couldn't be more more excited for the work I do.

SPEAKER_02 4:02

Amen. Did you have an aha moment where a defining moment where you felt led to the National Christian Foundation? Or could you look back and see it was a series of steps that got you there?

SPEAKER_01 4:13

It was a series of steps. And it was funny because the aha moment was um, I wasn't really looking at a transition. Um, I had actually gone from planning, uh, got to work at Brotherhood Mutual, fantastic company. Um, really loved getting to be a part of something they were building there at the time. And uh it was just interesting because I wasn't looking, but when the job description came across my desk, it was this, you know, it was one of those things like you don't want to hope in your heart that you get it, because like if you get let down, you know, and I'm looking at this and I'm thinking, this would be outstanding. They if they wanted, you know, looking for people who love people who can work with people of means, of generous um, you know, appetites, but then also looking at um caring about kingdom stuff and getting more dollars to kingdom and a financial planning background would be good and 10% detail oriented. And I was like, that's that's it, that's it for me. And since then it's been just a it's been a delight. We have a great team here in Indiana. Uh we'll get into NCF a little bit, but um really just do a lot of great things to try to encourage generous communities and uh mobilize resources by inspiring biblical generosity.

SPEAKER_03 5:23

Yeah. Well, you know, even before we get, because I do want to ask about your role as, you know, the regional director and vice president, but like you, you talk about this heart of generosity, and those folks you know firsthand, serving though that demographic, like people with uh ministries or or nonprofit outreach, like this is a really hard season. Oh, yeah. It's a hard climate. Um, I can only imagine like what are you learning in this season, in this climate about um, you know, that end of things where ministries and nonprofits are really they're trying to find their way and stay steadfast in this thing that God has called them to. And at the other end of it, like donorship is down and giving is down. And so maybe that's a tie-in to your role and what you do and how National Christian Foundation comes alongside.

SPEAKER_01 6:11

Yeah. Well,

Serving Givers In A Tough Climate

SPEAKER_01 6:12

and and it really is because I work in a really unique spot. I cover northern Indiana where um I ultimately serve the giver. So these are people who um, you know, are wanting to grow in their generosity, wanting to learn what is a giving strategy for me, what organizations do I care about? So I'm working to serve them, but every one of them has a as a charity or something that they love. So I work with charities to work with them to say, okay, do you know that you can receive gifts that aren't just cash? You can actually receive business of a interest of a privately held business. Like there are things they just don't know that that exists. So I work with them, but every giver also has financial advisors, CPAs, and attorneys. And so I kind of work in this amalgamous blob of generosity, all to try to mobilize resources. When people give through us, they're not giving to us, they're giving through us.

SPEAKER_02 7:01

And so we get to Boy that's uh that's an illustration. Right.

SPEAKER_01 7:04

We have, I mean, when our if our mission is to mobilize resources by inspiring biblical generosity, when people give to us, our mission is to mobilize that and get that to the front lines. And so, yeah, you're right. Naturally, I see the spectrum, and it's really interesting because everybody wants, you know, God's wanting us all to take our next step spiritually. What is that? And when you look at somebody of great wealth and socioeconomic status, you know, somebody who doesn't have great wealth might look at that and say, they have everything, they, you know, they have all this. But when you get to know people like that, they're still wrestling with the same stewardship discussions. And if God has blessed me like this, well, how do I make sure that I I'm doing it right? How much should I give? How do I invest my kids? I don't want to give my kids so much that they get, you know, and uh there's just all of these things that happen on one side, but then you swing to the other side. You're looking at a ministry who, you know, I work with a lot of great, we have so many great charities and ministries here in town. Yeah. So many good ones. And I look at the budgets that they run, and I'm thinking in my head, this is one of the parts that's kind of delightful but frustrating. It's like, I'm serving the giver and walking to them spiritually, but if they knew that a five, six-figure donation would move the needle for you know, mothers experiencing homelessness and pregnancy, like how I and so it's really great to kind of work these lines and balance this out to say ministries and charities are trying to do their best to be obedient. People of great wealth are trying their best to be obedient. How do you walk between that and be a um a convener? Yeah, as you like to use this word of how do you bring people together in the name of Jesus for the name of Jesus? And and I I love getting to do that. I get to have some really fun conversations. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 8:53

You know, in your financial advisory background, that there are emerging markets. Do you see those in nonprofits? Would you say like that smaller nonprofit really has a bright future and they're they're figuring out how to stretch every dollar? Do you like do you see that?

SPEAKER_01 9:12

That is a really good question. Because when you look at the life cycle of like a nonprofit, I think Allen County, what we have like 1800 nonprofits in Allen County. Uh, when you look at the life, normally nonprofits start off because one person had an idea, had the heart, had the passion, and they're gonna go do it and they're making it happen. Well, eventually it grows beyond their they need to bring on a board and they need to bring on staff and maybe somebody who can be more of the and so I do see that growth pattern. There's a lot of great organizations I can name now that are sort of at that crossroads. Um, as far as an emerging market, or you know, you look at um organizations that are working very specifically that have a lot of upward mobility, I am amazed at the people who are doing work in homelessness and recovery. Um, and I think you see homelessness and homeless situations kind of on the rise in in our community. And and I know the rescue mission really well, but they work so well with other organizations who are also doing things that maybe the rescue mission doesn't do as well, or you have um maybe a specific type of homelessness. There's an organization I work with that, again, I mentioned pregnant mothers who are in a homeless situation and they've elected to keep their child and not so what do they do? And so you see all these groups working together, and I think that togetherness, I think that working together to look at people that need to be served in our community as individuals who are made in the image of God, they have dignity. Let's care about them, not just the numbers. We can do three hots in a cot, we can we can throw resources at, but what would it take for a community to actually grow the individual down the line? So I'm not sure if that answers your question. Oh yeah. But I I see that and I see recovery mental health. I mean, we're we're recording this here at Remedy Live, and they've done such a good job of addressing mental health in a fun and engaging way, if you can say, uh, those topics. But they really there's just so much happening. Um and I my heart is to say, okay, how do I get them more money? How do we get them more resources? And a lot of times, people of wealth and socioeconomic uh significance, you know, to have somebody to walk with them that isn't going to be asking for money to help direct uh conversations and advice, I think that's a really unique part of what I get to do in the line of work I get called to.

SPEAKER_02 11:40

You mentioned

Church Collaboration And Collective Impact

SPEAKER_02 11:41

that collaboration's a strong value, and we're seeing more and more of that, I think, in in ministry. How do you collaborate with the church? How do you see your work connecting with the church and and what's your role there?

SPEAKER_01 11:53

That's a really good question. And it's it's a good question because the the you have charities that are doing mission, uh not that churches aren't, but you have charities that I mean are addressing a very specific thing. And you have churches that are really serving a congregation and a group. And um it's interesting because when churches are looking, they're looking at how do we how do we minister to our people, how do we grow in the community we're planted? Um, and that also takes dollars too. I mean, that does take space, it does take so there's needs that a church has, but you're seeing this growing, um, I don't know what the word is, this this growing movement towards, okay, we have things that are happening in the community. If I'm gonna give a dollar, does it go to my church or does it go to this organization doing this thing? Again, another one of those things that somebody who and who has a heart to give, they're wrestling with. And um, so what does the Bible say about tithing to a church? What does it say about generosity to this? And ultimately, what I love to see, and I did I saw this some with my work with LifeWise Academy. I was part of helping get that started in Southwest Allen, is the churches in Southwest Allen all together have pretty much said, what can we do? It's not, it's not my own little bubble, it's not my own walls, it's how do we make this work? And so you have multiple sites where kids are learning and hearing the gospel. You have um donors from churches who are pitched in to help see this happen. And I think once a church can get away from this, it's our four walls, to hey, where do we fit in this big picture of kingdom movement? I mean, I'm getting chills right now thinking about it. It is beyond powerful. You can go to a different church address and know that if you're being obedient to God and you're walking with your people, you can still move the needle along with other churches and issues in Fort Wayne that that God has a heart for too.

SPEAKER_03 13:50

Yeah. So I mean the stuff you're saying is absolutely fine. This is so good. Well, this this is you know, we know each other well enough that this is the the heart that we share in the context of, you know, content that you're sharing is aligned with our hearts. You know, I I think uh about just simply the the compound word of collective impact. Right. If if the if the church would recognize and and agree that she is united and even be diligent in staying faithful to the Spirit and in the Spirit, as it's talked about in Ephesians 4, then um, you know, we would see more collective impact, less need within the city because the church can meet the need. So you're talking about all these examples of togetherness, these examples of folks that serve the unhoused or the undersheltered or the um those who are in need with food and security to even uh make an evangelistic difference within schools when churches and nonprofits and even those who attend those churches um say that we can make a collective impact. In fact, we've been called to the collective impact. Uh we can see an uh an amazing difference. But I I do want to, I mean, you t you've talked about in different ways and even straightforward about uh kingdom um stewardship and kingdom generosity.

Biblical Stewardship That Changes Priorities

SPEAKER_03 14:59

Like, can you hit on that a little bit more? Because we again we talk about those uh that may have more means and they still have this heart of, well, Lord, if I'm aligned with your heart, I'm gonna give generously with what I've been given. And then you also talked about there's some that they don't, and they still have this heart of kingdom generosity and a culture that is about being generous to myself and not so much to other people. For sure. How are you seeing the kingdom generosity trend? Just step in in the season when we need it.

SPEAKER_01 15:30

Yeah, and it's funny because when we talk about the kingdom, we're looking you know, when Jesus starts talking about it, it's kind of backwards. The first will be last. Like, what is that even what does that even mean? Like, I mean, how do you how do you start? So you see so many things when Jesus is talking about when he's bringing his kingdom in. And I think uh a good example would be it was not wise financial advice for the widow to give up her last two coins. A financial advisor, a certified financial planner in the first century is not gonna tell this woman, hey, you should put it all in there. But Jesus looks at it and says, This woman gave out of her out of her um not having enoughness, and she is given more than so. Jesus sort of turns it on its on its head. And so if I'm looking at being obedient, I don't have to give at a billion-dollar level for my Lord to be pleased and happy with what I do. I can give in my own stewardship and and even if it is that dollar, um, maybe it's not even giving a dollar, maybe it's saying, I can't give a dollar, but you know, I can go play in the music class at the rescue mission on a Wednesday, and I can help get hang out with guys and and and or I can volunteer and do something else. What can you give for the betterment of the kingdom that when Jesus looks at you says, I'm proud. Well done, good and faithful servant. Some of us have, I mean, I'm gonna give it a different level than you and then Mitch. I mean, it's just kind of the but that's not a bad thing. I should be cheering you on in your generosity. I should be cheering you on. How can I help you grow in your generosity? And you're doing a great job. And Love Fort Wayne does an incredible job of this kingdom side because how many churches support the prayer room and in Love Fort Wayne? Almost a hundred.

SPEAKER_03 17:15

Yeah, lots of different organizations, yeah. People right.

SPEAKER_01 17:17

We're having discussions where the Catholic Church here locally and the Protestant Church are actually having dialogue together in ways that, man, you'd think post-Reformation that wouldn't here we are. I just I get so excited, especially with how much I love this community of seeing God do these things. Um don't limit what you think generosity can be purely because of what your bank account says. If Jesus says it, he means it. Take him at his word, prayerfully consider what he's calling you to give, and he might even ask you to give to where it hurts a little. And it's not because I'm prescribing that you give so much, so much. It's because, no, God, I want to be obedient to you, and I've made this an idol. I want I want the extra um four ounces of steak it out back, you know. I want the extra nice, I want all these things. It's like, no, God, I it might hurt. And if it's gonna hurt, it actually means you're probably doing it right, but it also means it's probably good to be walking with people as you're going through it. And where can people walk together in generosity? That's what we're

Microchurch And Reaching The Hurting

SPEAKER_01 18:21

trying to create.

SPEAKER_02 18:22

I remember in high school introducing an army ranger, and he gave one of the most powerful talks I'd ever heard in my life to that point, and he made a statement I've never forgotten. He said, There is no commitment without sacrifice. And uh that must flow through who you are with everything that you've done with your life, and you've even started a microchurch in your home.

SPEAKER_00 18:48

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 18:49

Can you tell us about why that started and then what you have learned about community and discipleship through that?

SPEAKER_01 18:57

Yeah, well, and that is um that is fun, and I have a heart for that. And um, when I say microchurch, it is a microchurch. So we're not talking like we're um, but what's really interesting is I actually got into this about when I started with NCF, and uh it was a pastor from Avalon who um kind of suggested that I read Starfish in the Spirit. And it was basically written by um the guys that came out of Kansas City Underground, it's this organizational structure of if you look at a spider, uh, it looks similar to a starfish. But if you cut the head off a spider, you have a dead spider. If you cut the head off of a starfish, you have two starfish. So, what is it about the nuclear level about or molecular level about multiplication that can that can grow something beyond just and so when you look at some of our church structures, and we've seen it, if if a head pastor passes away or there's a moral failure or something happens and that person is removed, what happens to the church? Can it still thrive? Can it still work? Can it still multiply? And so that just got me thinking down this path. Come to find out, I'm at a national conference talking with these guys, and it was it was a trip. And they asked, Where are you from? I said, Well, I'm from Fort Wayne, Indiana, home of Sweetwater Sound, and oh yeah, actually just bought up because we talk about sweetwater. But I said, We got a guy who we just trained in Fort Wayne, you should go talk to him. And I'm like, Okay, come to find out. We have, I think it was a group of five, six, ten, ten of us who, as I start talking about a lot of people have a heart for this sort of micro church. And and what I when I talk about what a micro church is, it really is a disciple-making movement that kind of I don't know what the best way to, it's a disciple-making movement that allows church and fellowship to be done outside of four walls of a church. And what I mean by that is my neighbors will never walk into the walls of a church. But they'll sit on my back patio and they'll eat brisket and we can talk about Jesus. Um, and out of those conversations and say, hey, well, let's talk a little bit more about it. Nowhere am I trying to get them down the road to come to my, like, hey, let's go to this big event at the church. Not that those are bad. And that's what I need to also be very clear on is um my church that I spent a lot of time at, there are some great churches in our community. I'm not saying every church should close its doors and do micro. I'm just saying if you have that apostolic giftedness and you are having conversations with people who you live, work, and play with that don't know Jesus, start the conversations and have confidence that you can actually start a discipleship method right there with that group. And by not, if it's funny because for my wife and I to say, Hey, ours that started at a campground. We have a seasonal site there, and I was telling about this concept, and they're like, Hey, we should do one of those here. I'm like, Okay. So we start doing it. We did Sunday mornings, we're having church, and we have people who have not been to church in fifty years because they were so hurt by something. We have another guy who he's a huge man and he's got tattoos all over his face. And the first time I met him, I thought he was gonna like murder me. No, the guy is the biggest sweetheart. And he we'd sit and talk about Jesus. They would never walk into a building. So I think just the ability and and guilt freeness to be able to say, you know what? I'm gonna go and we're gonna we're gonna call this meeting church. People like that. Say, hey, well, yeah, we're gonna go to church and it's gonna be at Rudy's place, and it's gonna be um, and if they ever wanted to go to an actual a bigger congregation, well, let me connect you. Yeah, I'm not trying to build my own thing. Like, well, let me connect you. This one's really good. If you really have a heart for this and this, man, you really gotta check out this group. Um, that group of us that were kind of all walking through this together, we're cheering each other on and we're learning from each other, and we're just trying to figure out how to do this. And what's really cool is if I can't, if somebody can't meet on a night that I get together, man, you gotta go meet. You gotta go meet this person, yeah, go meet this person. Um, and it just I think it's a lower uh threshold engagement for people who are willing to have conversations about Jesus, but honestly are really skeptical, hurt, and and um and church hurt's a real thing, unfortunately. And and so I think people who if they love me and they know I love Jesus and they're willing to talk to me, well, let's just start there. Yeah, it's so good.

SPEAKER_03 23:23

So yeah, it's the it's the missional walk. Um, again, we've we've talked about this before on the podcast, Mitch. You know, it's inviting people to the table as they are, which is just a whole lot like the savior. And so I think he's he's he's pleased in that. And I I love the I love that we live in a place where, yes, someone can go to, I'm gonna use the word traditional. Yeah, they can go to a traditional church model and experience uh and have an experience the love of Jesus, have an encounter with Jesus, experience community, get plugged in, and also at the same time, they can be on somebody's back porch, they can be in their driveway or living room with a follower of Jesus that they're comfortable with and in their hurt and in their pain experience the exact same thing. And so to have these levels of doing church and being a part of the church and inviting people to the Capitol C what it means to understand and be a part of Church Capital C in so many different sectors makes our community unique. I think about we have 400 churches in this in this city yet, and and that's beautiful. And we have almost a dozen, it sounds like folks that you're aware of that are hosting micro churches and missional communities uh in their home. It's a it's a beautiful thing, it's a beautiful passion. But I think it meets you, it it it it speaks to who you are in regards to relationship with people. I'm not surprised by that. I I

Faith Driven Business As Quiet Witness

SPEAKER_03 24:41

know you also have a heart for faith-based entrepreneurship. And you know, how uh, in your opinion, how is you know, entrepreneurship and business, uh business leadership, like how does that impact kingdom uh when you have faith leaders who are saying, man, God's placed this thing in my heart that He wants me, I've got this entrepreneurial drive to start. How are people utilizing that for kingdom impact?

SPEAKER_01 25:03

That is a neat thing. I get to kind of sit in my seat and see. Um, what I think is so cool about that, and if you're following, if anybody's followed the the you know, the faith-driven uh entrepreneurs, faith-driven investors, they built curricula. It's if I'm leading a company or if I'm starting a company and I'm operating with biblical principles, the people who work for me and around me, they don't need to know, they don't need to go to church. They don't need to know that in my mind I'm operating with biblical principles and biblical ethics. I'm just gonna do it. And you do that and you start seeing, you know, are do they work with integrity? Are they treating people fairly? Are they treating people who are are at a you know lower or different are they treating them with respect? Are you uh can you see generosity manifest itself? Like there's ways to go when you're building a business. It's hard enough as it is to scrape it together, but when you start doing people can see what and they talk about this at Global Leadership Summit a lot. It's like you got to kind of be the change you want to see in the world. And I don't need your permission to act with biblical values, to act the way Jesus wants, you know, love am I patient? Am I kind? Do I envy? Uh, do I keep records of right and wrong? It's like, am I acting in love or not? And that is transcendent. And so I think when you see businesses who are doing it, not that all Christian businesses are successful, um, or that you have to, but I think when you see the mark of somebody who's uh operated with that type of openness and conviction without even having to say that that's why they're doing it. Some do. So I got a chance to visit with Hobby Lobby um a few months ago, and it was just amazing to walk through their home office and see, you know, from the top down, Dave Green, how they go about, and it's all faith the whole way. Um, but there's some businesses I know that aren't as bold about it, but you know something's different. You know something's different. And um, I think it's also kind of easy to I'm a Purdue guy, and you know, the IU quarterback is a believer, and it's kind of say, well, I love my brothers, you know, they may not be so how do you root for rivals? How do you cheer for those? Uh how do we cheer each other on? You know, if you're doing something in uh HVAC and I'm doing something over here with um, you know, manufacturing, how do we work together and cheer each other on uh and encourage one another? I think that's I think it's where again the big seed shirt starts to really take root. And um, you know, I can love brothers on other teams, it's fine. It's fine. It's fine.

SPEAKER_03 27:31

At least the well, the world knows it now. So that's it's a great beautiful example.

SPEAKER_02 27:34

It's true. First Peter 4 10 says each one of us should take whatever gift we've received to serve others. That's good. Faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. God sends it in, we send it out, and he multiplies his heart in others doing that. I think generation and generosity come from the same root Latin word that means to multiply like kind. So God just wants to multiply his generosity through us.

SPEAKER_00 28:02

Right.

SPEAKER_02 28:03

And I think a lot of times when we don't want to be generous, there's a direct correlation to the fact that we don't see God as a generous God.

SPEAKER_03 28:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 28:14

Um how have you experienced that in what you do for the National Christian Foundation?

SPEAKER_01 28:20

Yeah. Well, when you think, you know, for God so loved the world that he gave, gave is the the verb in that sentence. It's not love. I mean love is important, but for he so loved that he gave. I think what I start to see that happen is most people who are giving, you know, faithful givers, their net worth, you look at their pie of their net worth, only 10% of its cash. Yeah, five to 10% is cash. The rest of it is business interest, it's stocks, it's real estate properties, it's retirement assets. And so when I think when you if I'm really gonna give my you know heart and my balance sheet to God, is it possible to unlock that 90% of stuff? Because most charities receive 90% cash. So you almost think like, well, if a person's net worth is 90% not cash, but charities are only receiving 90% cash, there's this whole side of someone's you know balance sheet that's barely touched as far as what I can give. The hang up is that people don't know how to give that 90%. And

Unlocking Non Cash Giving Strategies

SPEAKER_01 29:26

so, yeah, when you talk about multiplication, you you you think about, hey, if I'm gonna give a dollar, what's that gonna look like um and how's that gonna multiply? Well, think about have you ever thought about tithing on the appreciation on your home? Have you ever thought about, you know, an appreciated stock that you can actually, you know, not pay taxes on that if you were to gift it to an entity directly? Same thing with real estate or even privately held businesses. And so when people start thinking about a multiplication strategy of their own finances when it comes to business, if you've built a business, you've built it be and you're successful because you have that knack of investing, of of making more out of something. If you have a mindset, it's not just for me to retire and live happily ever after. If I grow this business, I can actually grow my giving and I can make an impact to a passion that God's given me in my heart, it opens up the whole door. Now we're giving 90% of our bouncy, not just that 10% sliver of cash. Um, and so that's an example of of real world what I get to do. I get to sit down and have those conversations. And you think if you're gonna give you know 20% of your company that's worth $20 million, you probably don't want to do that through a 1-800 number. And so they put people like me in the field, and NCF has 30 affiliates across the country that that do what I do uh to help people, you know, mobilize resources by inspiring biblical generosity. It's good. It's good.

Do The Next Right Thing

SPEAKER_03 30:50

It's been a really rich conversation, Rudy. I mean, definitely. Uh we wind down our conversations by we just we we love asking our guests if you think about yourself now, your journey with the Lord, and and everything you've even shared with us. Go back to young Rudy, maybe getting ready for the army, Rudy. What would you what would you tell him now?

SPEAKER_01 31:10

Oh man, you even told me you're gonna ask this question. I didn't put as much thought into as I should. Um I think I think I would tell young Rudy, I would say, um, do the next right thing. Take the next right step. Um when when the Bible talks about lighting our path, he's not saying like he's gonna have the end figured out. Because where I'm at now is only a conglomeration of all of the events that he's put into my past that I can I could work in finance and I could work with nonprofits with Brotherhood Mutual and serve the church in that way. I I could never have dreamed that I could be working in this capacity in the way I do today. And so I think, especially young people with their lives in front of, they want to have it planned out. Let's go, let's charge the hill. And if I don't get into that college, then then it's do the next right thing because he has it sort of laid out. And when you look back, you're gonna be blown away at the way he put the pieces together to do something you actually really love to do. Um, and so you know, I think that would be a lot easier for me to have told myself before deployment is like, hey, this is gonna be a bummer, okay? This is gonna be um, but I'm gonna do things through this that um you're gonna look back and say, God is good. Yeah, and I got to live it.

SPEAKER_03 32:30

Yeah, think about your story. You're going, and you you started by saying, and I had a wife, now wife, that was praying for me the whole time I was going like game changer. Game changer. Every every piece unto the the story that he's written, right? It's good, huh, Mitch? It's phenomenal. Yeah, so good. Thank you so much. Well, thank you.

SPEAKER_01 32:49

Thank you for having me on. Again, I cannot say enough nice things when I talk about Love Fort Wayne with all the people I work with, our our South office, and they can't believe that we have something like this in town. And they they didn't pay me to say this, but I I I love that there is a convening entity that stretches so many different things. And so keep up the good work. Thanks for letting me be a part of this. I have a lot of respect for what you guys are doing.

SPEAKER_03 33:13

Absolutely. Thank you, Rudy. That means a lot. And yeah, man, it means a lot that folks would tune in uh every year uh and have us share some stories of people that we know and love and the difference they're making here in our community and beyond. And so we hope that you enjoyed this episode. I invite you to go back into the episode, take out the nuggets, the gems that meant a lot to you, that touched your heart. Uh, and we look forward to joining you the next time on the Love Fort Way podcast.