Laziness vs. Rest

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Create your free Faithful account by going to faithful.com and click sign up to begin receiving weekly wisdom in your inbox. Dr. Richard Swenson, author of The Overload Syndrome and Margin, writes that we must have room to breathe. We need freedom to think and permission to heal. Our relationships are being starved to death by velocity.

Hi, I'm Rob West. These days too many of us are physically, emotionally, mentally, and financially overloaded. So we'll look at rest from a biblical perspective today, and then we'll take your calls at 800-525-7000.

That's 800-525-7000. This is Faith and Finance, biblical wisdom for your financial journey. Well, the room to breathe that Dr. Swenson writes about is called margin. It's taking a break before you break, so to speak. For many people, there just isn't enough time or money or energy left at the end of the day to recuperate.

And then everything starts again at full throttle the next day. Unfortunately, a no margin lifestyle can have serious physical and financial consequences. Let's take sleep, for example. According to the Sleep Foundation, nearly half of people in the U.S. have trouble sleeping, and around one third of adults sleep less than seven hours each night. Chronic sleep deprivation can lead to expensive health problems, including diabetes, anxiety, obesity, and heart disease. Not only that, but research from the RAND Corporation shows that more than 2% of U.S. gross domestic product is lost due to workers' lack of proper sleep.

Perhaps you find things moving too fast in your life. Working late nights and weekends might seem necessary. But burning the candle at both ends is ultimately unproductive. You'll find that exhaustion leaves no energy for the most important things, your relationships with others and with the Lord. Now, don't get me wrong, God calls us to work for our families, for his kingdom, and for the community. We work to pay the bills, to give, to save, and to invest.

It's part of how God made us. But work isn't all there is. We need to rest sometimes too. You know, rest is God's idea just as much as work is. On the seventh day of creation, God rested, not because he was tired, but because his work was completed. God blessed that rest and called it holy. Later on, keeping the Sabbath holy was enshrined as one of the Ten Commandments. Obviously, God puts a premium on rest because we need it. We need the time and the space to be with the Lord, to reconnect with friends and family, to relax, enjoy God's creation, exercise, take a few deep breaths, and to sleep.

Technology makes it easy to work from anywhere at any time. But just because we can doesn't mean we should. Margin in work means getting enough rest so that you can do your job as unto the Lord with purpose and energy. Staying late at the office or skipping vacation days might make you look like a go-getter, but stress and broken relationships are a high price to pay for professional progress. Now, perhaps I need to point out that there's a difference between getting proper rest and being lazy. Laziness is choosing not to do what you're supposed to do, or only doing the minimum to get by. According to the Bible, laziness is sinful. In his first letter to the Thessalonians, Paul tells the church to warn those who are idle and disruptive. The suggestion here is that being inactive can lead to mischief. You've probably heard the saying, idle hands are the devil's workshop.

We can see this effect all over our culture. In 1 Timothy 5, Paul emphasizes other dangers presented by idleness, including a tendency to gossip and to lead others into sin. In other words, idleness, unproductiveness, and laziness open the door for harmful habits. Laziness is also the opposite of industry. In Proverbs 31, the woman of noble character works hard to take care of her family, run her business, train her workers, and provide for the poor in her community.

Verse 27 confirms that she does not eat the bread of idleness. Hard work produces success, while idleness results in loss and trouble. Laziness can also mean spending too much on things that don't matter, like scrolling endlessly through Instagram or shopping online instead of finishing chores around the house. At its core, being lazy is failure to take care of responsibilities. A stern example of this comes again from Paul in 1 Timothy 5-8.

Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. If laziness is a temptation for you, turn to Jesus in prayer. So whether your problem comes from working too hard or hardly working, perhaps it's time to restore the margin in your work and finances.

Do your work as unto the Lord as God's word advises in Colossians 3-23. All right, your calls are next, 800-525-7000. We'll be right back. to explore a new way of investing that aligns with your values.

More information is available at oneassent.com and by clicking Analyze My Investments. Thanks for joining us today on Faith and Finance. All right, it's time to turn the corner to whatever you have on your mind financially today. We'd love to hear from you. The number to call is 800-525-7000.

Let me slow that down. We've got lines open. We're ready to take your call. 800-525-7000. You can call right now. Our team would love to hear from you. We'll get you in the queue and get to as many questions as we can today, whether those are lifestyle related, maybe it's your long-term investments or trying to build up that emergency fund so you can deal with the unexpected, which should be expected, right?

The only thing about uncertainty is that it's certain. And so we plan for that in an emergency fund. We typically recommend three to six months expenses. Well, how do you go about building that? Let's talk about it. What about giving wisely? We talk often about donor advised funds and charitable distributions, qualified charitable distributions. Well, we love to think about ways that you can give more and any of these topics are in play today. We'd love to hear from you. Again, the number 800-525-7000. Let's dive in today. We're going to begin in Texas. Hi, Julie. Thank you for calling.

Go ahead. Yes, I would like to find out where to go to have a trust made. My husband and I are 77. We currently have a will, but we want it changed and we don't have much money. Yeah. And tell me about the idea of establishing a trust in addition to the will. Do you have a good sense of what you're trying to accomplish there? Yes, we want to change the will.

I don't know. Do we need a will and a trust? I've heard that a will can be contested, but a trust cannot.

Yeah. The will, as long as it's done in accordance with the laws of the state and, you know, you have a fairly simple situation, which it sounds like you do, you would have no problem just using a will. It would go through the probate court. You'd name a personal representative who would work with the probate court to settle any remaining expenses or debts that are a part of the estate and then distribute the assets accordingly. Having a valid will for most people is all you need because anything that you have in your estate would be covered. Often you'll have things that would be handled outside of the will. So, for instance, if you had life insurance with a named beneficiary or you have a retirement account like an IRA that has a beneficiary named on it, those would go directly outside of the probate process. But anything that doesn't have a named beneficiary would be distributed according to your will. And although there's a little expense involved, a few thousand dollars probably, and some time, although it can be fairly quick if it's a simple situation, you know, that should be enough. But keeping that up to date, Julie, I think is important.

And that was one of the things that you mentioned that you might want to make some changes to it. If you did put a will in play, excuse me, a trust in place, you know, that does allow your assets to be handled not only outside of probate, meaning the probate court wouldn't be involved. And so therefore it's a little more efficient and expedient, but it could allow your property or assets to be handled by a trustee prior to your death in the event that you were incapacitated.

And so, you know, that is one benefit. It also could allow you to distribute assets or property beyond your life if you wanted certain things to be passed at certain triggering events, like somebody reaching a certain age or you wanted them to receive an income stream as opposed to the individual assets. That's where a trust can be helpful.

But if you really have a fairly simple situation and, you know, the trust is unnecessary, then you'll save a couple of thousand dollars, you know, without having to put that in place. But if you either want it to be private, you want to keep it out of the probate court, you want to have a little more control over it. That's where a revocable trust can be helpful. In either case, Julie, whether it's updating your will or putting that new revocable trust in place, you would want to visit with an estate planning attorney, preferably somebody who shares your Christian values. And if you don't have one, what I would do is contact a certified kingdom advisor there in Texas and ask for a referral. They all would have one that they work with and you could just say, I listen to faith and finance and I would like to be connected with a godly estate attorney and they could absolutely make a referral to you.

Before I tell you where to go to find a CKA, do you have any questions or thoughts on anything I've shared? I don't think so. Okay. Now, a will always goes to probate. Yes, it sure does.

It is the document that tells the probate court how the assets are to be distributed and that would be in conjunction with the personal representative who would be the one helping to settle the estate. Okay, so I go, you would recommend going to what kingdom advisors? Probably just go to our website. I mean, both will get you to the same place, but I'd go to faithfi.com.

That's faithfi.com. And right there at the top of the page, Julie, it'll say find a professional. And if you click on that and indicate that you want an attorney, if you don't see one in your area, then you could just go click on investments or financial planning. Put in your zip code, you'll see a list of the certified kingdom advisors that work in that area. And then if you call them, they would be able to give you a referral. Okay, so certified kingdom advisors.

Yes, ma'am. CKA is the only financial services industry designation for men and women who've met the high standards of being able to bring a biblical worldview of financial decision making. And they've had a pastor and client reference, they've gone through university-based training, proctored exam, statement of faith, code of ethics.

I mean, it's a pretty high bar. And then this would be a trusted professional that could get you connected to that attorney locally. Okay, great. I appreciate it so much. Absolutely, Julie. May the Lord bless you and we appreciate you being on the program today. 800-525-7000 is the number to call. It's 800-525-7000. Let's head to Texas. Hi, Jonathan.

How can I help? Hey, Rob. Thank you for what you do here. A couple of years ago, I had a capital gain and my income from my job was below the limit for the 15%. I should have gotten taxed to zero on it, I thought, when I went in, but they taxed me on the complete capital gains as if that was adjusted growth income for me. So I wonder what your thoughts were on that. It was a stock sell and it was held over a year. So I'm a little bit mystified.

I got goosebumps. Yeah, I would check with your CPA. I mean, I would always defer to the tax professional's judgment. What I can tell you is for this year, you know, based on the way it is this year, you'd have to look at what it was for the year in which you sold it. But in 2024, a single filer can earn up to $47,025 in taxable income by subtracting the greater of either the standard deduction or their itemized deductions from their adjusted gross income. That's your taxable income and you can earn up to $47,025 in taxable income or $94,050 for a married couple filing jointly and still pay 0% for long term capital gains. And so I think it would be worth going back and talking to your tax preparer about that and just see, you know, why it was that you had the gain that you or the tax that you paid. Wow.

Yeah, that would be huge. Okay. Well, thank you so much for your advice. Okay. See what happens. All right.

Absolutely. And again, I would always take that advice from the CPA. So let's see what he or she has to say with regard to where you go from here. And there may be something in your situation that's different or that causes you to have to pay the tax. And so you'd want to get that counsel before you do anything.

Good news is if there was an error, you can always file an amended return and get that back. Hey, Jonathan, thanks for being on the program today. We appreciate it. Folks, this is Faith and Finance biblical wisdom for your financial decisions. Eight hundred five two five seven thousand.

We'll be right back. What's most important to you when it comes to choosing your financial adviser, someone who's aligned with your biblical values? How about someone who will take the time to explain your options? Certified kingdom advisers are professionals who meet high standards and competence and integrity and have been trained to offer biblical financial advice.

To find a certified kingdom adviser in your area, visit faith.com and click find a CCA. Did you know the average person walks nearly 2000 miles a year? Now, think about the millions of children around the world who risk disease and miss out on opportunities simply because they walk those 2000 miles without a decent pair of shoes around the world. Buckner Shoes for Orphan Souls provides access to health, education, hope and opportunity through the gift of shoes.

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We're ready for you right now at 800-525-7000. Perhaps you're out and about driving, but you can get to a safe place to stop and ask that question you've been wrestling with. Maybe you're at home or at work or listening on the treadmill as you work out. We'd love to talk to you about whatever you're thinking about in your financial life today, whether it's your lifestyle staying on budget. Maybe it's paying off that debt that you can't seem to get rid of.

Maybe you're having trouble communicating about money in marriage or you want to give wisely. Perhaps it's navigating the market, whatever it might be, you can call right now. 800-525-7000. That's 800-525-7000.

Lines are open. Let's go to Texas. Hi, Becky. How can I help? Hello.

Thank you so much. I have a new husband, four months. We are senior citizens, both of us, and he has some retirement money in addition to a 401K. And we would like to do house repairs or buy a house together or whatever. My question is my tax accountant had talked to us about money market accounts and as an option. And my husband is concerned about new foreign information for us. We've never done money markets before.

So can you give me like a Reader's Digest version of money markets and what's good about them? Yes, I'd be happy to. First of all, congratulations on your new marriage. That's fabulous. Four months. I'm thrilled to hear that. A widow for 17 years. Thank you. Okay. Yes, ma'am. Well, I'm delighted the Lord has allowed you to find someone to marry.

And may the Lord bless you as you all endeavor into that new and exciting journey together. A money market account, Becky, is essentially a savings account. Now, it could have debit card or check writing privileges on it, but it's essentially a savings account. And deposits are insured by the FDIC. So this is the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, which just essentially means that it's backed by the full faith and credit of the United States government. The reason they're popular is these savings account, these money market accounts often, you know, offer higher interest rates compared to regular savings accounts. Now, they're similar to what you would see with a high yield savings account from an online bank. So it's a great place for you to, you know, sock some money away. And, you know, because you have that banking, you know, backing of the U.S. government and because you can have some check writing privileges on it and so forth. It's, you know, can be a great place for you to park some money. But again, it's very similar to a high yield savings account or a CD, although with the CD, you lose access to it temporarily.

Does that make sense, though? And did you have any specific questions on it? Yes, you have. Are you getting small interest while it's in money market? Oh, absolutely. You are getting interest. Absolutely.

All along the way. And so, you know, it would be similar in terms of the yield to a high yield savings account. And usually it's credited monthly. OK. OK. Because I just left one of my banks and they were giving me the sheet on four months, six months, 11 months CDs, but I know you don't have access to your money when you do that, you know, until the time is up.

That's exactly right. And so I think, you know, that's why at least right now you can do pretty well with money market or savings, you know, because the yields are pretty high. I mean, you can get in high yield savings right now, you know, five percent. I mean, if you were to go to Bankrate.com, that's Bankrate.com, click on high yield savings. What you'd see there is at least half a dozen online banks that are offering at least five percent. And this is FDIC insured, you know, five star rated institutions.

You could link it to your checking account electronically and then you'd be able to move money back and forth and take advantage of it. Now, as rates come down, those are going to fall with it. And so if you're looking to lock the money up a little bit longer, the problem right now with CDs is if you get out beyond a year, you're going to start to see that rate come down pretty quickly. And that's where something like if you want to tie it up for, let's say, 10 years, you could look at a 10 year Treasury bond paying four point six percent. You know, their money's guaranteed as long as you don't try to sell it during the 10 years, then you're going to get your full amount back at the end of 10 years from the government. And they're going to pay a four point six percent along the way, credited, you know, every six months. So that would be another option. But again, that's a that's a 10 year lockup versus the high yield savings, which is available to you any time. Yeah. So if we needed to take a few thousand out for house repair or whatever, we wouldn't be penalized or 30 percent, whatever. Yeah, with the savings. Exactly. It's completely liquid. So it's available.

And that would be the case with the money market or the high yield savings. OK, well, all right. You've been great. I enjoy your program.

Everything you got on the air here. Thank you so very much. Well, you're welcome, Becky. And thank you for that. Those kind words. And again, congratulations to you and your new husband. All righty. Let's go to Louisiana. Hi, Stuart.

How can I help? Yes, sir. I just want to say, enjoy your program.

Appreciate you. I have I have a few questions, but actually in the preference for consideration of time, I just asked the first one for a person that's in their 70s, still working, has money in 401K and in savings. Given all the rumors going on, everything you see in the news about devaluation of a dollar, et cetera, et cetera.

Would it be something to consider to spend that money now on something of value such as properties or whatever, as opposed to letting it sit there and wait and see what happens? Yeah. You know, here's my take on that, Stuart. I mean, do we have some challenges?

Absolutely. We've got approaching one point eight trillion dollar deficit. We've got sky high and higher inflation. We've got a lot of national debt that's running up. We've got some macro challenges with we're not having enough babies to replace the workers that are retiring.

I get all of that. And yet I would say the U.S. economy is still the strongest and biggest. The resiliency of the American worker is incredible.

You know, I don't think there's anybody in our rearview mirror today that could replace the reserve currency of the dollar just because there's no one that's trusted on the global stage like we are, despite our challenges. So I'd stay with a properly diversified portfolio. I love real estate. So I'd make that a part of your plan.

But I'd still have a mix of stocks and bonds and cash in high yield savings and other investments. That's, I think, the best approach, despite the things you mentioned. Hey, call back anytime. Unfortunately, I'm out of time. I'd love to talk more about this and your other questions.

Well, folks, that's going to do it for us today. Hey, if you haven't checked out our new study, Rich Toward God, it's available on our Web site, FaithFi.com. It's a perfect resource for a small group to unpack this really profound and powerful parable in God's word found in Luke 12 that finishes with this idea of what does it mean to live rich toward God? Hey, let me invite you to be a monthly partner of ours here at FaithFi as a listener supported ministry. We can't do this without you. You can learn more at FaithFi.com slash give. That's FaithFi.com slash give. Thanks to my team today.

Robert Youngblood, Jim Henry, Devin Patrick and the entire team here at FaithFi. I can't do it without them. We'll see you next time. In the meantime, may the Lord bless you. Bye bye. Faith and Finance is provided by FaithFi and listeners like you.