Wisdom Over Wealth: Idolizing Accumulation

This Faith in Finance podcast is underwritten in part by Guidestone. Guidestone envisions a world transformed by Christian investing. Through screening, corporate engagement, and impact investing, our investment strategies allow investors to be more proactive with their investment dollars to make a meaningful difference in the world while preparing for their financial future. Learn more at guidestonefunds.com/slash faith. All his days are full of sorrow, and his work is a vexation.

Even in the night, his heart does not rest. This also is vanity. Ecclesiastes 2.23. I am Rob West. That verse from Ecclesiastes reveals a painful truth.

Even a productive life can feel empty when our work is driven by the wrong purpose. Wealth on its own doesn't bring peace. Often it brings more pressure. But scripture offers a better way. Today, another lesson from the preacher in Ecclesiastes, and then it's on to your calls at 800-525-7000.

This is Faith in Finance, biblical wisdom for your financial journey. It's easy to admire someone who plans wisely, saves consistently, and builds steadily over time. Our culture praises that kind of discipline as responsible and virtuous, and often it is. But Ecclesiastes challenges us to ask, what's driving all that effort? In Ecclesiastes 2.18, the preacher writes, I hated all my toil, seeing that I must leave it to the man who will come after me.

He isn't condemning hard work. He's grieving that all he's built will one day be handed off, possibly to someone who won't value or steward it well. That's where sorrow begins, not in failure, but in success without peace. All his days are full of sorrow, and his work is a vexation. Even in the night, his heart does not rest.

The more we accumulate, the more we fear losing it. What promised security only multiplies anxiety. What a striking image.

Someone lying awake at night. Night, not from failure, but from success. The more he possesses, the more he worries.

Well, this is the irony of accumulation. It convinces us that security is just one more achievement away, while quietly making us more anxious the more we gain. Jesus echoes this same warning in Luke 12. He tells the parable of a rich man who reaped such a bountiful harvest that he decided to build bigger barns to store it all. His conclusion?

Take life easy. Eat, drink, and be merry. To the world, that sounds like winning, but Jesus called him a fool. Why? Because that very night, his life would be demanded of him.

Then comes the haunting question: the things you have prepared, whose will they be? What's even more interesting is the context of that parable. Jesus tells it in response to a man asking him to settle an inheritance dispute. This wasn't someone who earned the wealth. He simply wanted his share, and maybe more.

Jesus' warning is clear. A greedy heart isn't the only danger. An entitled heart is just as spiritually destructive. And that's exactly what the preacher feared in Ecclesiastes. Wealth falling into the hands of someone who didn't labor for it and may not know how to handle it wisely.

We see this all the time in real life. Many financial advisors and estate planners will tell you that inherited wealth, especially when passed down without spiritual or emotional maturity, can do more harm than good. It can fracture families, distort priorities, and erode purpose. The problem isn't money itself, it's the absence of wisdom alongside it. That's why this lesson matters.

You can save well, build wealth, and still feel anxious and unsatisfied, not because you failed, but because you expected your efforts to give you only what God can, peace, joy, and purpose. But here's the good news. Ecclesiastes doesn't leave us in despair. In verse 26, we read, To the one who pleases him, God has given wisdom and knowledge and joy. The solution isn't to stop working or saving.

The solution is to stop worshiping our work. Stop defining success by the size of your bank account and start defining it by your faithfulness. The one who owns it all. When we live as stewards instead of owners, the pressure lifts. We begin to see wealth not as a prize to secure our future, but as a tool to serve God's kingdom.

Accumulation loses its grip and generosity takes root. That's when real joy begins.

So ask yourself today: am I building bigger barns or am I faithfully stewarding what God has already entrusted to me? Am I chasing peace through my possessions or receiving it from the Prince of Peace Himself? Because in the end, peace doesn't come from what we've earned, it comes from who we trust.

Now, if you're wrestling with these questions, we'd love to help. That's why we're excited to offer our brand new Bible study based on Ecclesiastes called Wisdom Over Wealth. It dives deeper into this theme of dethroning the idol of accumulation and learning to live with contentment and purpose. This month, when you support the ministry of Faith Phi with a gift of $35 or more, We'll send you wisdom over wealth is our way of saying thank you. Just head over to faithfy.com/slash wisdom to request your copy.

That's faithfi.com/slash wisdom. All right, your calls are next: 800-525-7000. We'll be right back. We're grateful for support from Guidestone, whose diversified suite of investment solutions align with Christian values to create positive change in the world. More information is available at guidestonefunds.com/slash faith.

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Great to have you with us today on Faith and Finance. The calls are coming in quickly, but if you do have a financial question, we'd love to take it today. You can call right now, 800-525-7000. Again, that number is 800-525-7000. We'll look forward to hearing from you, and we'll head to those phones here in just a moment.

In the news today, there's more evidence of a budding buyer's market in real estate. That's right. According to a new report by Redfin, about 44% of home sales involved sellers giving buyers concessions. As the housing market starts to favor buyers, they now have more options to choose from, and that brings negotiating power. Concessions are essentially arrangements between a buyer and a seller to adjust the price or other terms of the sale for various reasons.

That could be issues discovered in a home inspection or other issues as well. High mortgage rates, home values, and economic uncertainty continue to be a drag on home sales. But with inventories rising, sellers have more competition.

So listings are now at a five-year high. According to the Redfin report, that competition is translating into more leverage at the closing table for home buyers.

So if you've been waiting to get into this housing market, I realize interest rates haven't come down as we expected they would in 2025 thus far, and they probably won't. Most economists are thinking we'll finish the year somewhere around six and a quarter. That's just an estimate. Certainly could be higher or lower than that, but that's where consensus is right now around 6.25.

So if you have the money to make that purchase, meaning you've got that 20% down payment, you're not going to spend more than 25, max 30% of your take-home pay on principal, interest, taxes, and insurance. And therefore, it fits well within your budget. This may be that. Time during this buyer's market, which is quickly emerging, for you to go ahead and enter this housing market. By the way, if you need a mortgage partner on that, our friends at Movement Mortgage would be delighted to serve you.

You can go to movement.com/slash faith. All right, let's dive into your questions today. We're going to begin in New York. Nick, thanks for your patience, sir. Go ahead.

Hey, Rob, how you doing, man? I'm doing great. Thanks for your call. Hey, you bet. Hey, great way to tee it off, because my question is actually all about mortgages and expected interest rates and.

Most importantly, I'd say the biblical principle of not being a slave to debt. And I'm just faced with some options here.

So I bought a house a year ago, did it just as you just described, thank God, where. I paid over 20%. My mortgage payment is less than one-third of my take-home pay. And we're doing pretty good. I was having in the back of my mind that I would refinance when rates came down.

And so I have been stockpiling. money in savings. Actually, I put it in T bills. While I wait, instead of putting it on the mortgage principal directly. And my question is: I'm trying to pay off the house completely as fast as I can.

Would you suggest I pause putting 15% in my retirement to accelerate that goal of? than being completely out of debt. Or should I continue to faithfully contribute towards Retirement. as well as do this at the same time. Yeah.

Boy, it's a great question. Talk to me about your desire to be debt-free. I understand that's really strong. Is that out of just a desire to minimize the amount of interest you pay, and therefore, really the financial side of the equation is the primary driver? Or is there some conviction there that you just really feel like you need to be out of debt as soon as possible?

You've thought through that, you prayed through that, and that's really the driver. I realize it could be some combination of the two, but which side would you come down on? I think you're right. It's a combination of the two. I think that, you know, like there's two types of people in this world, those who pay interest and those who earn interest.

Right. And sometimes we do both, but they work against each other.

So if I'm looking to build wealth, So, you know, I can live life like nobody else and give like nobody else in the future. I'd like to not be the type of person who pays interest. Yeah. I hear some Dave Ramsey coming through there. Are you a Dave Ramsey fan?

I am. All right. That's great.

Well, Dave's a good friend. He absolutely has. And I think he would, you know, what he would say is get out of debt as soon as possible. And, you know, I love that idea. I mean, I'm big on getting out of debt and staying there.

I think, listen, you've done a lot right, Nick. I mean, you're in a really strong financial position. I think now your opportunity, and I'll send you something that I think could be a great starting point in thinking and praying through this here in a moment. But I think you're in a position where you're probably going to or potentially have the potential to over-accumulate.

So I think it's going to be important for you to begin to think and pray through what your financial finish line is so that you can accelerate that giving. Because I think, you know, it's wise to save for the future, but I think we all have to answer the question: how much is enough? And that's both for life. Style and accumulation. And just given how quickly, you know, you've gotten yourself in a solid position here, especially once that mortgage is gone, you know, you've got your emergency fund, you're debt-free.

I suspect you're going to stay there. Just hearing that conviction in your voice, you're going to be able to sock away a lot of money and you could build that quickly. And I think quickly get to the place where you say, do I really need all this? Especially with the glide path on where you could end up when you get to that retirement season of life.

So I would say, well, let me ask this: what is the interest rate on that mortgage? That's a great question, and that's definitely a factor.

So, the interest is six and a half.

Okay.

So, if it was only like, you know, three to four, you know, I could see your point. But that's one of the driving factors is it's a high rate. Exactly.

So, I would say go after it. I probably wouldn't back down on the retirement plan, but any other surplus, including the money that was in the T-bills, I'd put that on the mortgage as soon as possible. Let's go to Texas Emmanuel. How can I serve you? I had a question regarding just like a good operating budget for business and so like To be real general, Like uh if you're spending ten dollars on marketing, uh how what would you expect Like the percentage increase would be for to make that back.

Like, if I spent ten dollars marketing and I made fifteen dollars back, right? Just keeping numbers.

So, like, what would be like a general Number percentage-wise, will be reasonable for business. Yeah, what type of business are you in, Emmanuel? Uh I'm in the trays. I'm an electrician.

Okay, great. Yeah. Yeah. So let's just take a general contractor business. And I think you could apply this to anywhere.

You know, a good general markup for a contractor business is usually in the range of 15 to 20 percent over the cost of labor, materials, and other direct expenses.

So the markup allows for you to cover your overhead costs.

So we're talking about, you know, insurance, office expenses, equipment, and generate some profit. It's, of course, based on, you know, several factors.

So, you know, depending on the industry and the location, if you're in a high-demand area or specific trades, and I would put yours in these categories, you mentioned electrical, plumbing, you know, would be the same, where the markup might be higher than just a general contractor. I would expect an electrical contractor or a plumber to have a markup of about 25% or more, you know, while you're in a competitive area.

Now, if there's lower demand. Demand, it obviously could be lower. You need to let the market dictate. But I would say, you know, in your line of work, you know, especially for smaller residential projects, you know, it could even be 25 to 30 percent. And then for a large commercial or government project, you know, it might be down at 10 or 15.

But I would say, you know, generally speaking, that 25 percent markup, you know, would be pretty typical. Does that make sense? That does, that does. That's very helpful. Thank you so much.

I really value that perspective, and I love your show. All right, thanks, Emmanuel. All the best to you, my friend. God bless you. All right, another break, and then back with our final segment.

If you have a question, call 800-525-7000. We work, we earn, we save. But is that all there is? The book of Ecclesiastes gives us an entirely new perspective on money that impacts our day-to-day lives. Faith Phi's study, Wisdom Over Wealth, unpacks life-changing biblical truths about wealth, work, and contentment.

This resource will help you grow in how you handle wealth by deepening your trust in God. Get your copy when you become a FaithFi partner with a gift of $35 a month or $400 a year at faith5.com/slash partner. Faith in Finance is grateful for support from SoundMind Investing. If you have money in an investment account, you know sometimes the stock market can seem like a roller coaster. But it's possible to enjoy both profit and peace of mind as a do-it-yourself investor, no matter what's happening in the market.

A short video webinar about that is available at soundmindinvesting.org. Financial Wisdom for Living Well.

Soundmindinvesting.org. Great to have you with us today on Faith and Finance here in our final segment today. Let's get to a few more questions to Chicago. Hi, May. How can I help you?

Yeah. I'm calling regarding a Roth IRA. I purchased the Roth with the because I do not have to make required minimum withdrawals.

Now my question is, do my children when they um inherit the Roth Do they have to make withdrawals? Yeah, it all comes down to who or to the relationship of the inheritor of that Roth IRA.

So if it's a spouse, they can just roll it to their own Roth IRA and treat it as if it was their own from the beginning. If it's a non-spouse beneficiary and they're not eligible for any exceptions because they have maybe a disability or something like that, but a typical non-spouse beneficiary, they would be subject to the 10-year rule.

So this came into place through the Secure Act 2.0 in 2022. And so typically adult children would then have to empty the entire Roth IRA by December 31st of the 10th year after your death.

Now, there's no required minimums because unlike traditional IRAs, Roth IRAs are not required to take annual RMDs.

So they would just need to make sure they take the money out completely by the 10th year following your death. And when they take it out, there's no tax on it so long as that account had been open for at least five years. I see.

Okay.

So your children not inherit this just like a cash. inheritance.

Well, they can in the sense that they can get the money out tax free, but they can't just leave it there and let it go forever. They would be subject to that ten-year rule. Ten-year rule. All right, well, thank you very much. All right.

Very helpful.

Well, I'm so glad, May. Thank you for calling today to Kansas City. Hi, Ralph. How can we help? Hi, Rob.

My question goes back to the $8,000 maximum. that you can put in a Roth IRA if you're over 50. And I was wondering if that $150,000 is combined income with your wife or if it's just your income. Yeah, it goes down to your filing status. And so if you're filing married filing jointly, which I assume you are, is that right?

Yeah. Yeah, then it would be your modified adjusted gross income from both of you. Because if you're married filing jointly, both of your incomes are being combined, and it's no longer $150,000. Then, if you're married filing jointly, you can put in the full contribution as long as your modified adjusted gross income is under $230,000 as married filing jointly. You can do partial contributions between $230,000 and $240,000, and then you eliminate the option over $240,000 a year.

Okay, well, that answers my question. I appreciate it. All right, happy to help. Thanks for your call. Cleveland, Ohio, is where we're headed next.

Hi, Kathy. Go ahead. Hi, thank you.

So I'm considering retiring at sixty five, even though my retirement age is not until sixty seven for the full Social Security. And I've heard you talk about if the longer you wait, the more the check would be and how it increases eight percent per year.

So if I would consider living two years off of my four hundred one and not touch my Social Security or not register for Social Security, I guess, would it continue to grow even though I'm not working? Or is my income what's dependent on it growing?

So, at a minimum, you need 10 years or 40 credits to be eligible for benefits. And then, your benefits are based on your highest 35 years of earnings. But if you've worked throughout your life and you haven't had a job where you didn't pay Social Security, and so throughout your working life, you were paying FICA taxes, then you've already got your high 35 in place.

So, if you stop working, there's no penalty. And in fact, you're correct. If between 65 and 67, you don't claim the benefits, then you're not going to have any kind of reduction and you're going to get your full retirement benefit, which you can find at MySSA, or maybe you already know what it is because you've been getting those annual mailers each year.

So, the fact that you're stopping work, as long as you've got those high 35 already in place, is not going to penalize you in any way. And in fact, you're correct. You will get that full benefit by waiting.

Okay.

I was concerned that the two years without income at 66 and 67, if if I had zeros for both of those years, that would decrease my high thirty five. No, it would not. It just won't replace any of your high 35 with a higher amount, but it won't knock any of them off because, again, your high 35 is only looking at your highest 35 years of earnings.

So your earnings at 66 and 67 or 65 and 66 at zero are clearly not going to replace any of your existing high 35s, but they're not going to go in there as zeros. They're just not going to be applied. Got it. Got it. Okay, that's good to know.

Thank you so much. Sure, Kathy. But folks, we covered a lot of ground today. I'll tell you, you know, as we think about managing God's money, once we recognize that God owns it all, it does come down to some very simple and basic principles.

Now, I'm saying simple. I'm not saying easy. These are harder to do than they sound. But here's these simple principles. Number one, spend less than you earn because every financial success begins with living within your means.

Second is avoid the use of debt, not because debt is a sin, but because borrowing mortgage is the future. There's real warnings in scripture around debt because it can allow us to live outside of God's provision, pay a lot of interest, and get into a real problem situation.

So avoid the use of debt. Third, have some margin or liquidity. That just simply means you have something left over at the end of the month. What's left over at the end of the month is the only thing that will allow you to fund. Your longer-term goals because you got to have surplus beyond what you're spending right now to be able to give more, to save more, or to be able to pay down debt.

So you've got to have some margin. By the way, that's one of the three key things for a healthy relationship around money in marriage: margin. It's not your income, it's that you have something left over. That's what the research says. Number four, set long-term goals because the longer-term your perspective, the better your financial decision today.

And then, five, give generously because giving breaks the grip of money over our lives.

Now, if we do those five things, does that mean we'll never be in a difficult situation? We'll never have struggles. Absolutely not. We're going to have struggles along the way. We live in a fallen world.

The key is: can we be found faithful in whatever we've found, what situation we find ourselves in? You remember what the Apostle Paul said? He said, I've learned to be content in times of plenty, in times of need. I trust the Lord because he will never leave me or forsake me. And so, our goal is faithfulness over time with what passes through our hands, holding it loosely, giving it generously, saving it appropriately.

Hey, we want to help you on that journey here at Faith Phi. That's our goal: to help you integrate faith and finance for God's glory. And one of the ways we do that is when you become a partner here at Faith Phi, $35 a month or more, as a listener-supported ministry. We're going to send you resources to encourage you in your stewardship journey, including four issues of Faithful Steward, our magazine, and studies and devotionals.

So, become a partner today at faithfi.com. Hey, big thanks to my team today: Sandy, Devin, and Jim, Taylor as well. We'll see you next time. Bye-bye. Faith in Finance is provided by FaithFi and listeners like you.