Dealing with Non-Cash Assets
Business profits are often tied up in buildings, equipment and vehicles, so it takes some creative thinking (and prayer) to decide how best to "honor the Lord" through your business. A good example of this can be seen in farming. A farmer may say, "I hardly made anything this year," when, in fact, he added a combine, a new tractor, and another barn. The return was there, but it was in noncash assets. So how can you give in such a situation? The answer for many Christians is to give a partial ownership in the business. That way, as the business prospers, so does the Lord's portion.
Stanley Tamm is a good example of this. He developed a successful company called U.S. Plastics and deeded a portion of his company stock to a foundation established to do the Lord's work. If a dividend was declared, the foundation got its share. If the company is ever sold, the foundation will get its equitable portion. In the case of real property, such as buildings, trucks and so on, tithing may be as simple as assigning the Lord's portion of the property to your church or other ministry. Through the use of nonvoting stock, a company owner can do this without diluting his or her authority or decision-making ability.