The Finish Line Podcast Dana and Bill Wichterman, Givers and Impact Investors, on Using 100% of Their Income for the Kingdom (Ep. 104)
Dana and Bill Wichterman have a long history of generosity. From the onset of their marriage, Dana and Bill have practiced financial stewardship, always living below their means. Even in a one bedroom apartment with no vehicle to drive, they budgeted a specific amount they could use for spontaneous generosity, and trained their children in Spirit-led giving.
Their collective backgrounds in missions, politics, and poverty alleviation have given them a passion for impact investing, allowing God to use their money to see real change in the world. Recently the Wichtermans reached their net worth finish line, recognizing that they need nothing else for themselves. Yet the joy of giving drives them to continue in their careers simply to have more to fuel God’s Kingdom. Dana is a senior advisor to the Impact Foundation, and she and Bill had some amazing insights to share about giving, stewardship, investing, and the importance of Christian community in the generosity space.
Major topics include:
- Their unique backgrounds and stories of coming to faith
- How they learned financial stewardship
- Thinking through an accumulation finish line vs. an income finish line
- A long term view of maximized generosity
- Budgeting in view of their callings together and individual
- What is impact investing and how they got involved
- How to look for impact an returns in your portfolio
- Strategically praying for your investments to change the world and bless people
- The blessing of community among Christians stewarding finances
- The importance of hearing other people’s stories
- Bill: “The more you understand the nature of the Gospel and its implications for your life, the more you get the implications of generosity.”
- Dana: “Once we set a finish line, I entered into an abundance mindset.”
- Dana: “Now that we’ve reached our finish line, it makes our work that much more joyful. Now it’s like why would we ever want to retire? We want to keep generating this amount so that we can give.”
- Bill: “It’s so fun to help change the world with your money!”
- Dana: “You have your Holy Spirit radar up for needs that you couldn’t possibly anticipate, but you know you have to cash to give to that when it comes.”
- Dana: “We can’t meet every need around us, but there are certain needs that have our name on it. And when our name’s on it and then God provides, there’s such a joy with that.”
- Bill: “Most of the time, you possibility for world change is greater with for-profits, especially in poverty alleviation.”
- Dana: “I believe that God made us all in His image to be creators. We’re either builders or backers, founders or funders. So if we’re all doing what God calls us to, the success of it isn’t so much on us. It’s the faithfulness that’s important.”
- Dana: “It’s to God’s glory that He’s transforming us from selfish, self-absorbed individuals into more of the Family likeness which is more and more generous.”
- Bill: “What do we have to boast about? We’re only giving what we’ve already been given.”
- Dana: “Sacrificial giving can actually become very joyful over time because it has become part of your DNA as God is transforming you, and then it doesn’t feel sacrificial anymore. His burden becomes light, but only over time.”
- Dana: “One person’s generosity doesn’t have to look like another person’s.”
- Impact Foundation
- Crown Financial Ministries
- Noble Story Co.
- Sunshine Nut Co.
- Scatter by Andrew Scott
- Operation Mobilization
- The Steward Investor Masterclass
- The Gathering
- National Christian Foundation (see our interview with President Emeritus, David Wills)
- Generous Giving (see our interviews with cofounders Todd Harper and David Wills and CEO, April Chapman)
- Journey to Generosity (JoG) with Generous Giving (see our interviews with cofounder, Todd Harper and CEO, April Chapman)
- The Finish Line Community Facebook Group
- The Finish Line Community LinkedIn Group
Matthew 25:14-30 | Parable of the Talents
2 Corinthians 9:7 | A Cheerful Giver
Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
If you have a thought about something you heard, or a story to share, please reach out! You can find us on Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn. You can also contact us directly from our contact page. If you want to engage with the Finish Line Community, check out our groups on Facebookand LinkedIn.