Boston College professor Paul Schervish has estimated that over the next few decades elders and baby boomers will pass in excess of $41 trillion to the next generation. The Wall Street Journal has called this a “watershed event in world history”.

And while major universities and mega charities clamor for their “piece of this pie", the local church is tragically standing on the sidelines as a spectator.

Pastors and church leaders rely myopically on Sunday morning offerings and the occasional special campaign. Certainly, these mechanisms have biblical roots and provide sustenance for week to week ministry. But as universities build multibillion-dollar endowments pastors are left to survive in a scarcity mentality.

The tragedy here is not limited to reduced ministry outcome, although that is significant in a church impact context. But as we see in scripture, God will get his work done whether we stand by wringing our hands or engage and participate in this wealth transfer in a meaningful way.

The bigger tragedy might be the discipleship vacuum that we leave as a church with our members. The average American has 9% of their net worth in cash while 91% is in assets. As the church limits its stewardship conversation to offerings and cash, mega universities and charities are “helping” our church members determine how they might leave a legacy with their 91% that is represented by assets.

We are abdicating wisdom and the discipleship of wealth to secular universities who often stand diametrically opposed to a biblical value system. To the uninformed church member giving to a new science building at a college or giving to the church are in both cases giving to charity. We need to offer a perspective on how their legacy, be it small or large, can have life-changing impact for the cause of Christ.

This conversation can be hard for pastors to engage in, and so we want to crack the door open on this dialogue in a conversational video series entitled Legacy Found. The audience for most churches will be the 55-year-old and above member. The setting will be an adult Sunday school class, small group or perhaps a Saturday morning session

Our prayer is that we can help churches across the country move from being a spectator to a vibrant, wisdom-giving participant in the greatest transfer of wealth in the history of the world.