Missionary, Amy Carmichael, once expressed a powerful truth. You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving.
Hi, I'm Rob West. That quote reminds us that generosity isn't just something we do. It reflects who we are in Christ. So how do we grow into more joyful, intentional givers? Today we'll talk with Ron Blue about what he calls living, giving, and how that mindset can bring real financial freedom.
Then it's on to your calls at 800-525-7000. This is faith and finance, biblical wisdom for your financial journey. Well, my friend Ron Blue is a financial teacher and author who spent decades helping people learn to manage money God's way. He's a great friend and a mentor of mine. Ron, great to have you back with us. Well, Rob, always good to be with you. Thanks for asking me.
Always enjoy it, Ron. You've often said giving isn't just a financial decision. It's really a spiritual one.
Will you unpack that for us? Yeah, giving really reflects our trust in God because when we give and we give first, we're saying, Lord, you gave it to me, and I'm returning to you what is already yours, and I trust you to meet my needs. It shifts our focus away from ourselves and puts on what matters most, and that's God's purposes. And it doesn't shrink your life. It really stretches it, and it's one of the most powerful ways God grows my faith and loosens money's grip on me.
Yeah. Well, you've said that as well, and that's been something that stuck with me for a long time, is that giving breaks the power of money over our lives. Now, this idea of living giving is something you talk about in your classic book, Master Your Money.
Unpack that idea for us. Well, the idea is that you should do your giving while you're living. I say, do your giving while you're living so you're knowing where it's going. That's one aspect of that, but so many people think about significant giving at death, but they miss the joy of giving during life, and they miss the joy of seeing what God does with what they have been entrusted with and what they've given, and so I really encourage people to start giving early and not wait and not do your major giving at death. It's one way, as you just said, that you can break the power of money, and so do your giving while you're living so you're knowing where it's going.
Well, Ron, I think one of the things that I've always taken away from you and just your approach to giving is you make giving a part of everyday life. I know you make it a practice to keep some extra 20s in your pocket no matter where you go, just so you can bless somebody on your path, don't you? You know, that's the most significant giving I think that I do, Rob, is I love just giving cash to the people that I call unseen. You know, I do a lot of traveling, and so almost every time I'm in an airport and go into the bathroom, I'd look for that person that cleans the bathroom. They're hiding in a corner some place and nobody notices them, or when I check out, I'll tip the person at the gate that lets me out, or Judy just hadn't been chasing UPS drivers down the street.
She said, you need to tip that person. So that's the most joyful giving, Rob. I mean, we do our tithing, we do our giving to missionaries and so forth on a regular basis, but the giving out of my pocket feels the best, if you will.
Yeah, there's no question about it. And I know that's something that you have really appreciated. I know you've blessed a lot of people in doing that. Ron, so often when we talk about financial planning, we talk about this idea of financial freedom. How is giving such a key part of financial freedom? Well, I liken it, Rob, to having a closed fist or an open hand. And so when your fist is closed, because I'm holding on to or controlling or feeling like I own something, God's not free to put in, nor is he free to take out. And when I open my fist and hold an open hand, if I think about my money holding it with an open hand, then I'm really saying, God, this is yours. And if you want it to be used in a particular way, here's an open hand.
We'll use it that way. So it's, again, the idea giving is not because God needs it. Giving is because God wants my heart. And he knows that money is one of the greatest competitors to our love for him. And that's what he wants.
He wants me to love him and he wants to love me as he does infinitely and eternally. Incredible. Ron, thanks for stopping by today. You betcha, Rob. Thanks for asking me.
That's Ron Blue, author of Master Your Money, Buy It Wherever You Buy Books. We'll be right back. We'll be right back. Great to have you with us today on Faith and Finance. All right, I'm ready to take your calls and questions today.
Can't wait to hear what's on your mind. The lines are open, so this is the time to go ahead and get in the mix. 800-525-7000. That's 800-525-7000. We've got some lines open, but that won't last for long.
So go ahead and call right now. Before we head to the phones, in the news today, millions of older Americans lost their jobs during the early months of the pandemic. But five years later, many are finding new opportunities to remain in the workforce, according to the Economic Policy Institute's analysis of federal data. Employers are increasingly offering flexible options like phased retirement, part-time roles, and hybrid work to retain experienced employees. One lasting impact of the pandemic has been the rise of remote work, which of course allows some older workers to delay retirement. Research suggests that working remotely can reduce the likelihood of retiring early and may extend careers by nearly a year. That extra year can help workers delay claiming Social Security, which we talk about a lot here. That of course can help them preserve retirement savings. Now, not all jobs support remote work, and some large employers are pushing back toward full-time office policies. Still, many career experts say that older workers can increase their staying power by updating their tech skills, earning certifications, and highlighting soft skills like mentoring and communication and leadership, especially through strong online job profiles.
I think that bodes well for our economy without a doubt. All right, let's dive into your questions today. Again, the number 800-525-7000 you can call right now.
Let's see, going down to Kansas. Hey Paul, how can I help you, sir? Yes, thank you for taking my call. My question is about a donor-advised fund. I use that fund in order to do my charitable contributions, and so I set up the gifting online through the brokerage donor-advised fund, and it gives me options how to direct the gift. Like, I can give it to a church or other entities, but with my church I can give it to the general fund or a building fund.
It has various different options, like missions for example. My specific question today is with regard to a summer mission trip. Our church sponsors or people at church sponsor summer mission trips where people go for a couple a week or a couple weeks, and they send out letters to people, and then people like myself may sponsor them, but the brokerage website doesn't offer that kind of a detail. I'm wondering, is it legal from the IRS standpoint to contribute from a donor-advised fund directly to an individual going on a mission trip, or should it just go to the general missions fund?
Yeah, it's a great question, and that's really what it's going to come down to. Is there anything that prohibits you from giving from a donor-advised fund, and ultimately it's the donor-advised fund sponsor that has to make the gift. You're just making a recommendation, but as long as it fits within the IRS rules and regs, you know, normally they just, you know, do whatever the you request that they do as the one who opened the account. But in terms of, you know, you being able to give to a designated fund, there is not any issue with that, so long as the designated fund is used for the non-profit purpose of the 501c3, in this case the church, which it would be to fund missions, but also that you don't get a personal benefit and that you're not naming the recipient of the gift.
So I think that's where we'd come, you know, there may be an issue. Can you give to XYZ Church dash mission fund generally, and then it's used for their tax-exempt purpose and they make the decision on who gets it? Yes. Can you give it to XYZ Church dash Billy's mission trip? No, that would be, you know, where there's a personal benefit there. So I think what you need to do is, if you can't provide some sort of notation on the donor-advised fund gift on the brokerage firm's portal, then you would just want to call the church and let them know that the gift is coming and that's your intent as the donor and they would likely honor that. So I can't see any reason why you couldn't accomplish this. The IRS certainly wouldn't prohibit you as long as you meet the criteria I just mentioned. Okay, well thanks, then the church won't be doing anything wrong if they get a recommendation from me for, say, a trip to a certain country and they know that it's a two-week short-term mission trip and they'll help them. Yeah, no, I don't think there should be any issue there. I mean, normally it would be a little more broad than that, but again, I don't think there's any problem as long as you're not giving it through a donor-advised fund mechanism with the intent of it ultimately landing on, you know, for the benefit of a particular individual that you're trying to direct funds to. But if you're giving it generally to the church for a mission trip and they're ultimately selecting who the recipient or recipients are, then I think you're in the clear there.
But you're going to want to talk to the church and talk to your brokerage fund firm just to make sure you get that squared away. All right? Okay, thank you. All right, God bless you, my friend.
We're going to go to Texas next and welcome Tony. Go ahead, sir. Yes, sir. Rob, enjoy your program.
I had a quick question. I'm faithfully paying off a credit card after the death of my mother and it's like 320 something a month. Which option do I stay with that?
Well, obviously I'll stay with that. My wife is willing to help me once she finishes her credit card to help me pay it off. Or should I roll it over and open up a with a transfer of balance?
Just wanted to get your the wisdom on that. Yeah, I appreciate that. What is the total amount that you have, Tony? About a little less than eight grand. Okay.
Yeah. So if you're over and this isn't anything magic about this number, but just my experience is that if you're over 4000, it does make sense for you to use what's called the debt management program. And basically, what would happen is the debt would stay right where it is, except the accounts would be closed, and the interest rates would be dropped. So whatever you're paying today, they're going to be adjusted down to somewhere between depending on the creditor, usually zero and 8% could go as high as 12. And the combination of you making now a level monthly payment through a debt management company, and those lower interest rates will allow you to pay that back 80% faster, and you can prepay it. So if you know your your wife has pays off some other debts, and now you all have more money to allocate over to accelerate this even further, you can absolutely do that. And our provider there is Christian credit counselors.org Christian credit counselors.org.
They've worked with 1000s of our listeners, they're amazing. And they really are godly folks that just want to see God's people out of debt. The reason I like that Tony better than a balance transfer, even though you might say, Well, why wouldn't I just get the 0% for 18 months, and then jump to another one. Number one, it typically because you take the pressure off my experiences, you just don't stay as focused on paying it off. The second reason is there's going to be a charge right up front of somewhere between two and 3% of the balance. And so, you know, if you've got $8,000, and you're paying 3%, I mean, that's, you know, 250 bucks right off the bat that you're going to have to pay before, you know, you start paying off the debt. So for those reasons, I just would prefer you not to do the balance transfer game.
Just get this over to Christian credit counselors and they should be able to take it from there. Thank you, sir. God bless you.
All right, thanks. We appreciate your call. We're going to take a quick break folks back with more after this looks like we have two lines open 800-525-7000 encouraging you, taking you back to God's word and helping you make financial decisions in light of biblical wisdom. That's what we do on this program each day.
I'm Rob West. Stick around. A lot more to come just around the corner. Discover what truly lasts. Request your copy of the wisdom over wealth study with your gift of $35 or more by going to faithfi.com slash give healthcare is complicated.
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Learn more at chministries.org slash faithfi. Thanks for joining us today on faith and finance 800-525-7000 is a number to call. We probably have room for in addition to those holding one to two more calls. If you have a financial question, go ahead and call right now 800-525-7000.
Let's see out to Oregon. Hi Jane. Thanks for your patience. Go ahead. Thanks for taking my call. Yes ma'am. I'm confused about this so I hope I don't confuse you in the process.
Okay. I sell on eBay and I haven't done my taxes for 2024 yet and some couple of months ago when I was starting to do them, eBay had a flag up there and I think it said something like 1099k is ready or something like that k or something. It may have had more letters after it and so I click on that and it says I didn't make enough money to have that.
What does that mean? I mean it's obviously money that I made. Do I have to add that to my social security or do I not have to add it? Is it going to be the same from now on? I went online and all they do is confuse me more but something said there were different amounts or intimated that there were different amounts for different years to come.
Can you clean that up a little bit for me? Yeah so essentially you know it sounds like you're getting it's the 1099k that would have your 2024 sales. Yes you did and so you had some sales activity but it sounds like maybe you didn't meet the IRS threshold. They would normally issue a 1099k if your gross sales exceed five thousand dollars would be the typical way that that would happen or if your state has a lower threshold.
So it sounds like their system flagged that you didn't qualify because your sales perhaps were below five thousand and no other you know triggers applied. But even without that 1099k you have to report all taxable income from eBay on your 2024 return and you know it's probably not a bad idea for you to have a professional look this over you know if you're casually selling personal items like clearing out your you know closet it's considered hobby income you know you would report your profits you know on your 1040 schedule one is other income but you know if this is more of a business you know with intent to make a profit then you'd report the the net income on schedule c but you do need to you know track your sales you can use the their hub their sellers hub for that and then download a transaction report regardless of whether or not you get that 1099k. Okay okay and that's what I wanted to know they were not clear on that when I was trying to find it on irs.gov or whatever it is. Okay got it yeah I mean the the key is you know whenever you have income you need to report it it may or may not be taxable depending upon what you've earned and what other income sources you have. Okay well that's what I thought but the way the way they've approached me like you don't need it I'm going what all right. Thank you so much god bless you Jane appreciate you being on the program.
Let's see to Tennessee Patricia how can I serve you? Um I'm taking early retirement and I understand that I can only make twenty four thousand three hundred in on income this year and it looks like I'm gonna go over that just a little bit so I was wondering how did they tax that do they tax anything over the twenty four thousand three hundred or do they tax the whole thing? Yeah and so you're talking about social security? Yeah. Yeah well essentially what what you're talking about there is so there's the penalty that reduces your benefit temporarily you will eventually get that back in the form of a higher check once you reach full retirement age but they're going to reduce your benefit for one by one dollar for every two dollars you go over that threshold so that's the first issue is the penalty and then there's the issue of whether or not your social security benefits are taxable and that has to do with your total income which issue are you calling about today the penalty or the taxes or both?
I guess both. Yeah okay and so so that do you understand that issue around the the temporary reduction in the benefit so every doll every two dollars you go over that threshold you're gonna you're gonna they're gonna reduce your benefit by a dollar now that threshold goes up in the in the last year before your full retirement age but prior to that it's a dollar for every two dollars you go over but again that's temporary because when you get to full retirement age you will get that back in the form of a higher check until you've been repaid and there's not a direct schedule for that it's probably going to take 10 years or more to be fully repaid back but you will eventually get it. So they're they're going to take back anything over the twenty four thousand three hundred but not the whole twenty four thousand? Yeah so anything beyond that threshold the twenty four thousand they're going to reduce your benefit by a dollar for every two dollars you go over. Okay did they take it out of the social security check or do they do that at the end of the year with taxes? No they're going to reduce the check after they see what your total you know once you exceed that threshold and you're reporting your income and they're getting you know as they get that and they determine you've gone over then they're going to start withholding it automatically from your check. Okay can I ask one more quick question about passive income?
Sure. How is passive income added in with your social security? Is it taxed at the same rate? Yes well so you're talking about in terms of the total taxes you'll pay you know the taxes on income on social security have to do with something called combined income and so combined income is your adjusted gross income from wages and investments plus non-taxable interest plus half of your social security benefits.
So that then you've total all that together and that's your combined income that will ultimately determine what percentage if any of your social security is taxable the most you'll have is up to eighty five percent but in terms of passive income you know the the non-taxable interest and the AGI you know passive income normally when somebody says that they're talking about rental income or dividends and interest or capital gains all of that increases your AGI so it would be factored in. Okay I appreciate your help thank you so much. All right God bless you thanks for calling today. Well we covered a lot of ground today. Hey before I let you go let me remind you if you're looking for an advisor that shares your values we recommend the Certified Kingdom Advisor designation. 1,500 men and women across the country have met the high standards in character and competence but they've also been trained to bring a biblical worldview of financial decision making to their professional advice. They've also had pastor and client references. You can find a CKA in your city when you head to faithfi.com and click find a professional that's faithfi.com and click find a professional. I hope you'll come back and join us next time on faith and finance when we go back to God's word and look for biblical wisdom for your financial decisions. Faith and Finance is provided by FaithFi and listeners like you.
