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Now, let's dive into the podcast. What if your greatest disappointment wasn't a setback, but a setup for something greater? Hi, I'm Rob West. We have a powerful message to share today. Tim Tebow tells us how God can use our most painful moments to actually move us forward.
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. I recently had the chance to sit down with Tim Thibault, star athlete, author, and founder of the Tim Thibault Foundation. He's, of course, experienced great victories, a Heisman Trophy, and a national championship, always with eye black, showing John 3:16.
But he's also experienced low points, like all of us. And today, we focus on how God used his setbacks effectively for kingdom advancement. Let's listen to the first part of that conversation. Tim, I want to talk about setbacks. Obviously, you've been in the midst of some of the highest highs in athletics, and yet we recognize that we all have setbacks.
Now, for most of us, setbacks happen kind of behind the scenes. For you, some setbacks are on a national stage.
So, I'd love to talk about one that I remember from 2008 really well. And it was that season that started strong, and then you hit old miss. Take us back to that. I can still remember vividly. That press conference.
Oh, man.
Well, thanks for bringing that up. Only one of our worst days, worst games, but that's fine. Um. Honestly, that setback was so personal to me because I believed and I still believe it was my fault. As a leader, as the quarterback, not just from a performance standpoint, but from a leadership, from a culture, from a focus, from a mindset.
It was my fault. And after the game, and part of the problem was we thought, oh, we're good enough at any point, we're going to come back. Like, okay, we're winning. But then we kind of took our foot off the pedal. They came back, made some big plays.
No, but it's okay. And so then at the end of the game, we go right down the field, score a touchdown. Boom, we're going to go to overtime. For sure, we're going to win. This is over.
And then we miss the extra point. I want to talk about another setback, and that was a little more recent. It was the year you got cut from the Jags. I'd love for you to take us back then because I know that there's some folks listening today that are in the midst of their setback and they're trying to trust God and they're trying to find God's heart in this. And in that setback that you had, God was redirecting you.
And I think often when we have a setback, it's because God's setting us up for something else. I totally believe that, Mr. Rob, so much. And I get to play one preseason game and then the next day I get cut. And I know all these truths, Mr.
Rob. Just how many was I actually practicing? Probably not that many. It was about my ego. And Right around that same time is when um We decided to pull out of Afghanistan.
And we had friends, partners, community that were serving there, and it was crisis and chaos. And so. We decided we need to step in even more into that fight. And I had the opportunity to fly to a country in the Middle East to also be a part of serving. And you know, if you had asked me, I would have told you, hey, my identity is in Christ and all these right answers.
But was I actually practically living? Was that oozing out of my being? And the answer is probably not.
So we fly over there, and right when we land, we go right to a refugee camp, and we're having the opportunity to serve. And it really is chaos. I mean, people have been trampled, people are dying, people are fighting for their lives. There's kids, and I mean, literally babies, young kids that are searching for their family, that don't know if there's any family in there. There's parents that are looking for their kids.
It is a very chaotic situation. And we get the opportunity to minister there for a while and then. Uh I just prayed honestly for the first time. Saying God, I'm sorry, but thank you. Thank you for letting me get cut.
Because if I wouldn't have been, if I wouldn't have signed with the Jaguars and if I wouldn't have been practicing and I wouldn't have gotten cut at that moment, I would have not had the freedom to be able to fly to do what I know I'm called to do most in my life, which is care for the most vulnerable people. I wouldn't have been doing that. I would have had another event. I would have been doing this. I would have still maybe been playing baseball.
It would have been a lot of other things. Sure. But God knew in His sovereignty, No, I'm going to put you here to then pull you out so that you can do what I have called you most to do, which sometimes, Timmy, you forget. And maybe if we reframed our mind of this isn't a setback, but it's actually God setting us up for what He's calling us for, what He's equipping us for, it would change everything.
Well, that's just one part of my conversation with Tim Tebow. Up next, we'll explore the heart behind the Tim Tebow Foundation and how He's living out God's calling in a powerful way. We'll be right back. If you love what you hear on this program, there's even more waiting for you at FaithFi.com. Explore podcasts, videos, articles, Bible studies, and devotionals, all designed to help you see God as your ultimate treasure and money as a tool to advance his kingdom.
Pursue wisdom, practice generosity, and steward God's resources in a community with others who share your faith. Visit FaithFi.com to take the next step in your faith and financial journey today. That's faithfi.com. Feeling burdened by credit card debt? As faithful stewards, we are called to manage our finances wisely.
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We're back. I'm Rob West, and this is Faith in Finance. We're picking back up with my conversation with Tim Thibault. If you've ever faced failure or felt stuck in a setback, what he shares next will encourage your heart. Here's more of that conversation.
Well, I know Tim Tebow Foundation started years before that, but it has blossomed into something that is just incredible. I'd love for you just to share for a second your heart behind Tim Tebow Foundation and some of the work that you're doing now.
Well, it was really born from the opportunity I had when I was 15 years old to meet a boy in the jungles of the Philippines who was born with his feet on backwards. And because he was born this way, he was treated as less than insignificant by many, even as cursed. And he was a throwaway. But I knew that day that he wasn't a throwaway to God. But I also felt like God was pricking my heart, saying, sort of in a sense, like, okay, if you know he's not a throwaway to me, then what are you going to do about it?
Yeah. Not what you're going to say, or not, you're going to go tell somebody in a testimony, or go back to church and say, I met this boy. No. What are you actually willing to do about it? And it was also a time when I just knew I was obsessed with sports.
I loved it. We had just been able to win a state championship, and there's, you know, and I had the chance to do some cool things in sports and win some championships, be some MVPs. And it was a sense of kind of this is what I was created for that game. And there on that mountain with that boy, it was like God was reframing it. Oh, no, no, you thought you were created for that MVP?
No, no, no, I have a more important MVP that I created you for. It's not the most valuable player awards, it's the most vulnerable people. But, Timmy, which one are you going to chase after more? Which one do you care about more? And I'm so grateful for God's kindness because He's had to remind me of that many times in my life.
But that was the heart of it. And then when I graduated from the University of Florida, the first thing I did was start the foundation with the mission statement, just thinking about that boy to bring faith, hope, and love to those needing a brighter day in their darkest hour of need, to sum it up, to fight for people that really can't fight for themselves. Just thinking about that boy. And that was the heart of it. And that's something we're so fortunate to try to do now all around the world and right here in our backyard is fighting for God's MVPs, the most vulnerable people, because we know our God has a heart for every single one of them.
And we know that he's nearer to the brokenhearted. And that means we should be too. It's powerful. I know you all are doing some incredible work. I can't wait for our audience to be able to explore what's happening here.
Tim, I want to give you an opportunity just to talk to that person right now who's in the midst of their setback. They're not on the other side of it yet. And yet it's an opportunity to trust God and perhaps to see that God might be redirecting them to somebody else. What would you say to that person? Do you really believe that God works all things together for good to those that love him and are called according to his purpose?
Do we really believe that?
So, if you love him right now, wherever you're listening to this, do you really believe that God can work that together for good? You see, sometimes we compartmentalize this and we're like, man, it's going good.
So, God's working all things together for good. But that also means that somehow God's working our worst moments in our life for good. And by the way, only God can do that. We can't do that. And we don't know his plan.
We don't understand. We can't comprehend. And man, I'm so grateful that he's a God that I can't understand or comprehend because his thoughts aren't our thoughts. Yeah. His ways aren't our ways.
And I'm so grateful because they're so much better. Because if he was a God that I could understand, he wouldn't be the same God worth serving. But he's not a God that we can comprehend and understand. But, man, do you know what one thing that we cannot comprehend a little bit is his love for us. Because we've been able to see that in the cross.
We've been able to see that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. We can see his love because he put it on display for all of humanity to see that he would take on the sin of the world on our behalf, on my behalf, that he would be the ransom, the propitiation, the payment that satisfies for us.
So when we can't understand how he's doing all of it, we get to trust the heart of who he is and what he's doing because he has demonstrated that.
So I might not be able to see the whole plan of how God's working, but I know that he is because his promises are the same yesterday, today, and forever, because he's the same yesterday, today, and forever.
So I get to believe, even though I can't understand it, I can't comprehend it. I know that God is working. Hey, that loved one that's fighting this disease. I know that God is working. Hey, that setback.
Man, I know that God is working. Hey, that heartbreak. Man, I know that God is working. And I also know that when he's working, he's also near to me when I'm brokenhearted. And I think those are things that are so important.
Like, let's just not take God's truths and promises when we feel like it, but let's soak it in so that we can carry it through everything. But here's the question: Is so many listening to us right now have to think about what are they chasing? Yeah. Right. And are they pursuing a life of success or significance?
How have you thought about that? I think about it like this. Success is about us, significance is about other people. Are we going to be more successful or significant? But you know what's cool about God's economy is He lets us take our success, and it's not even really ours, but He lets us take it and turn it into significance.
He lets us take the platform or relationships or resources or opportunities or connections and turn it into things that really matter. Yeah, like we have that chance, opportunity, and I believe responsibility.
So, all of us could take our success and turn it into significance. But will we? Yeah. But will we? Or will we use it for me, for us?
And does it mean that we can't have fun and laugh and do some fun, nice things? But will we really turn it into ways where our success means other people's lives are different? Like, will this win of this company or will this win of this investment? Is the only person's life that's different, mine? Or will a lot of other people rejoice?
You know, I don't remember the reference, but Proverbs somewhere says the. When the righteous flourish, the people rejoice. You know, so when you're listening right now, when they have that success, are other people rejoicing? Because they know not just their life is different, but the world is different. Like, will we really take our success and turn it into significance?
And by the way, it's it's easy before you get there to say it's really hard in the moment to do. Right. Well, I mean, I thought I was going to tie this, but I don't know if I really want to do that now. That's right. Can I write that, Check?
You keep adding the zeros to that. It gets hard. Yeah. But will we do it? Will we start with the mindset before we even get there?
When I get there, I'm going to do it. And then when I get there, I'm going to do it even more. Because what we really believe in the truth of investing in eternity versus just investing here. Yeah. So let's then unpack that a bit more.
When you think about money, what's the framework in which you think about what God has entrusted to you and how to use it for kingdom advancement? I think the start has to be with, do you really believe it's yours or do you really believe that it's just borrowed for a moment? I think it has to start there. If we believe that it's ours, then it means that we believe we've earned it or we've done something for it. When we believe that it's been borrowed for a moment, then I can live with open hands about it and I can say, okay, this isn't really mine.
God, you've entrusted me for a time to use this for good. You know, when we look at stewardship, it comes from the Greek word oikonomia. And a steward back in the day was just someone that was put in charge of a house manager. They were put in charge of taking care of it.
So that when the owner would come back, things would be in their place. And when our owner comes back, will they be in place? Were we good stewards? Did we take care of what he has entrusted us with? Yeah.
If we extend that then, Tim, to investment, obviously you've been given a lot of thought to return on investment. And yeah, we're looking for great risk-adjusted returns, but it's more than that. And we can think about that ROI concept and much better. Bigger ideas, can't we? I think we should.
When we think of ROI, the status quo is it's a return on investment. But what if we took it another step and it was an ROI that was a rescuing of image bearers? Wow. And I mean that spiritually by hearing the good news of the gospel. And because I believe the greatest reason why Jesus came down to this earth and lived a life we couldn't live but die to death we deserve to die was on a rescue mission for you and me and for all of humanity.
That's right. What an incredible way to wrap up our conversation. That was Heisman Trophy winner and former NFL quarterback Tim Thibault, now fully focused on advancing God's kingdom. Your calls and questions are coming up next at 800-525-7000. I'm Rob West, and this is Faith and Finance, biblical wisdom for your financial journey.
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Reflecting their 500-year-old Anabaptist Christian faith tradition. More information is available at praxisinvest.com. Hey, thanks for joining us today on Faith and Finance. I'm Rob West. We're taking your calls and questions today at 800-525-7000 to Tampa, Florida.
Louise, how can I help you? Thanks for taking my call. I love your show. Thank you. I wanted to know.
We are A condo, and we're moving out because we want to rent for different reasons for a while. And I didn't know I mean, we will probably by the sale make like one hundred thousand dollar profit. I didn't know if it would be better to sell and invest or if we should hang on to this property and rent it. Yeah, it's a great question. It comes up often, and I'm glad you asked because you do need to think through this.
You know, the reasons to rent it out would be an ongoing income stream, the potential for the property to appreciate. You know, it's a way to diversify outside the stock market because we want to diversify among stock types, but we also want to diversify among asset classes.
So, you know, you have a little bit in stocks, you have a little bit in real estate, it keeps you more diversified, like the book of Ecclesiastes talks about. But you have to deal with tenants and maintenance and vacancies, and local rents may not always cover the mortgage and taxes and insurance and HOA. And you'll have to depreciate the taxes later if you sell.
So, you know, I think the question to ask yourself is: first of all, will the rent cover all of your expenses? The mortgage, the HOA, the insurance, the taxes? Taxes, the repairs. That's the first question. Second is: is the condo in an area with a strong rental demand?
The third question is: Am I willing to manage a rental or hire a property manager? Like, do I want to continue to have to do that? And, you know, that's kind of a part-time job. And you just need to be able to take all the things that go along with that. I think the fourth question is: do I have a reserve fund for repairs and tenant turnover?
Meaning, if I have a gap in a renter from one to the next or if they damage the property, and then finally, long-term value, do I believe the property will appreciate over the next five to 10 years? If the answer to all of those is yes, well, then clearly it's a great idea because you know you can cover your expenses, there's strong demand, you've got a reserve, you think it's going to appreciate, and you're willing to be a landlord.
So, you know, those would typically be the things I would be looking at. But what your thoughts. No, that's good because there were certain things I considered like the taxes increase and certain things, but I didn't really consider like will it appreciate because condos don't appreciate as much as houses. And their HOAs keep on going up.
So that's something really to think about. And also, you know, I mean. To also have that reserve as the turnover of the rentals and the renters and the reserve fund and all that.
So, no, that's perfect. It gives me a few more things to think about before we make the decision because I thought, I know we could sell it, make some money, and invest it.
Well, I think the other thing is, you know, if you've lived there as your primary residence for two out of the last five years, you could sell it without any capital gains. You know, if this is a seller's market because there's high demand and the housing market is still fairly strong right now, this could be a great time for you, you know, just to go ahead and lock in your profit. You know, if you move it to a stock market type investment, maybe with a certified kingdom advisor, now all of a sudden it's a much more passive investment. You're getting the growth and the compounding of the investment growth, but you're not having to deal with the call in the middle of the night or a, you know, a toilet that won't flush, those kinds of things. And then that's the other big one, which is, you know, do I just want to reduce complexity and stress?
Because selling it would be a much simpler option. And then finally, a lot of people say the reason that I don't want to continue is I would rather be debt-free. And, you know, maybe I've set a goal to pay off debt completely. And that, you know, is driving my decision to go ahead and sell.
So, you know, there's two sides to it. And part of that is a financial equation. Is this makes sense financially on paper? The other side is lifestyle, goals, your values, what you're looking for in this season of life, whether or not you want to try to simplify and reduce the overall complexity or whether you're comfortable continuing to be a landlord.
So I think as you think and pray through all that, Louise, you'll come to the right decision. Right. Well, thank you so much. This has been very helpful. Good.
I'm so glad. Listen, thanks for your call today. We appreciate it and call anytime. Let's go to Mississippi. Hi, Larry.
Go ahead. Thank you, Rob. I appreciate your godly wisdom. Thank you, sir. Hey, I had a question.
My wife has a beneficiary IRA at a value of one hundred eight thousand dollars, and she's always been required to take a distribution on it. My question is, what is the difference between a beneficiary RA and a conventional RA, especially as how you can manage it? And I will say she is turning sixty two in November. Does that change anything?
Well, there is no difference with regard to how you manage it. They can all hold the same investments. The main difference comes in just in terms of the rules with regard to how the funds have to come out.
So, normally with a non-spouse beneficiary IRA, and this has changed several times recently with the law, but generally, I think the latest is those funds, in most cases, have to be depleted or withdrawn completely within 10 years of the account holder's death. And so, that would be the main difference. But in terms of the investments they can hold, you know, you basically have unlimited options in that beneficiary IRA in the same way you do with just a normal non-beneficiary traditional IRA.
so depleted.
Now it's been over ten years since her father passed away, and it was It came from her father.
So it's been over 10 years. And when you say depleted, how do you mean depleted as far as it needs to be Taken out of the account. and taxes paid on it. Correct, yeah, because as the money comes out, as long as it's not a Roth IRA, that money would have to be then paid. You have to pay tax on it and move to a non-IRA account.
And so, generally, and this is where I'd check with the CPA just to make sure, because depending on what year he died and what the tax law was at that time, currently, you know, there's in most cases a 10-year window to withdraw all the assets from the account after the original account owner's death. This is known as the 10-year rule, and it applies to designated beneficiaries, except for certain eligible beneficiaries. And so, you know, some of those would be minor children or spouses. And so, that's why it'd probably be good for you all to check with a CPA just to go over the situation and understand just kind of what rules are in place right now to be able to withdraw that money and then pay the tax on it.
Okay. Thank you. Yes, sir. Appreciate your hand. Absolutely.
Thanks for your call today. Let me say thanks to my team today. I certainly couldn't do this without the entire cast and crew here at Faith5, but certainly today, Devin Patrick, my producer, Jim Henry providing great research, and Sandy Dickinson handling our phones today. Have a wonderful day, and we'll see you next time. Bye-bye.
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