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Finding financial freedom isn't ultimately about getting more. It's about learning to trust God with what you already have. Hi, I'm Rob West. When it comes to money, we often focus on strategies and tools. But the true path to freedom starts much deeper in the heart.
Today, Ron Blue joins us to share how aligning our finances with God's wisdom can bring lasting peace and clarity. And then it's on to your phone calls at 800-525-7000. That's 800-525-7000. This is Faith in Finance, biblical wisdom for your financial journey.
Well, our guest today is my friend Ron Blue. He's co-founder of Kingdom Advisors and a leading pioneer in modern biblical financial stewardship. For more than five decades, his books, teaching, and leadership have helped shape how countless individuals and families approach money with wisdom and faith. And, Ron, it is always a joy to have you here.
Well, thanks, Rob. It's always good to be with you. Ron, as we get started, you often remind us that true financial freedom begins with surrender, not strategy.
So, help us understand what you mean by that.
Well, you know, all behavior ultimately flows out of a belief system.
So. Uh, if we recognize that God owns it all as a belief and as a practice, that perspective changes every financial decision because now you're dealing with His resources and not your resources. And surrender removes that pressure to perform or control outcomes. I often tell people. You know, if God owns it all, you can't lose anything.
You've already given it to him, so it should eliminate some of the fear. And invite peace because we know that if God is the owner, He's also the provider. And it turns money from a fear-based issue into really a faith-based issue. God, what would you have me to do with your resources? Wow, that is well said.
You know, you've walked countless people through their financial journeys, Ron, and I've always appreciated how you've led with principles in your teaching. And it really just simplifies money issues. But what is it about money that leads so many of us to overcomplicate this issue?
Well, I think when we think about money, we think about knowledge instead of what we really should think about, and that is wisdom. And so we confuse wisdom and knowledge, thinking that if I have the knowledge, I'm acting with wisdom, and that's not necessarily the case. Scripture gives us really simple, universal principles And principles never change.
So when you practice principle-based decision-making, you're practicing something that will not change with time. And it also simplifies everything and can remove that fear that we so often experience. And it really gives us confidence. It gives us freedom. It gives us peace of heart and mind.
When we understand, God owns it all.
So that's a pretty important decision to make, and it's a faith-based decision, and not. A knowledge-based decision. Yeah, that really is the beginning point for everything. Ron, you mentioned fear. How does fear influence the financial choices we make?
Well, I think everybody has the question: will I ever have enough? And if I do, will it continue to be enough? And that's really. kind of a fear-based thought. And our Lord says, be content with what you have.
But fear causes us to focus on what we don't have. instead of what God has provided. And it fear leads to paralysis and it leads to impulsive decisions. And it's a real misunderstanding of who God is. Matthew six, thirty three says, Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and then all these things will be added to you.
And if you read above that, in that passage, food, clothing, shelter, everything that we need, God will provide. And we trust him. And as we trust him in our giving, in our saving and in our spending, Uh we grow in a sense of confidence because we are confident in an omnipotent, mighty God. We've got just about 30 seconds left. You mentioned giving.
How does a lifestyle of giving help lead us into financial freedom?
Well, the way I illustrate it is with an open hand. If I hold everything with an open hand, allowing God to put in what he wants to put in and take out what he wants to take out, that is the key to financial peace of mind. And my experience, Rob, is that the only way to break the power of money is to give. It's an unnatural thing to give, but when we do, we're saying, God, I trust you with what you've provided, and I'm using it for your purposes, and it breaks that power of money. And frankly, Rob, it's the only way to break the power of money in my life is to give.
That is exactly right. Ron, thanks for your time today. Enjoyed it. Folks, we're going to take a quick break, much more just around the corner with your phone calls. We'll be right back.
I was in ministry full time, and I was always looking for a way to integrate my faith with this new industry around money and finances. This is Mark. He is a Certified Kingdom Advisor. As a CKA, one of the best things I offer my clients is trust in knowing that they're working with a professional that understands their values. And I think in all of the different challenges that clients go through, if we can go back to trusting in God, then He'll make the path straight.
You can find an advisor like Mark at findacaka.com. Children across Malawi, Uganda, and Zambia are suffering, but you can help break the cycle of poverty for these kids, their families, and entire communities. FaithFi and Cross International are teaming up with you this month to provide 250 children with life-saving resources like food, clean water, education, and the gospel of Jesus Christ. Brighten a child's future today at faithfy.com slash cross. That's faithfi.com slash cross.
Um So, thankful to have you with us today on Faith and Finance. I'm Rob West, and I'm ready to dive into your questions today on anything financial. The number to call is 800-525-7000. We've got some lines open that probably won't be the case a little later in the broadcast.
So, call now with whatever you're wrestling with in your financial life, and here's our promise to you: We'll be hopeful and encouraging as you invite us into your story, always pointing you back to scripture so we can look at money through the lens of a biblical worldview, that we're managers or stewards of the King of Kings resources, that God has a lot to say on this topic.
Now, it's not that He needs our money, He owns the cattle on a thousand hills, but instead, it's what He wants for us. He knows, and it's clear in God's word that if we allow it to, money will compete with God for first position in our lives. Our culture reinforces this idea that our self-worth is equal to our Our net worth.
Well, we just know that's simply not true. Our identity is rooted in Christ. God is our ultimate treasure, and money, well, it's one of God's good gifts that we can use to provide and enjoy, but also to bless others around us. And that comes through our generosity. But I realize you have practical daily decisions that you're wrestling with in your financial life.
And so each day on this program, we tackle those together.
So call right now. What are you waiting for? 800-525-7,000. I'd love to talk to you today. Let's dive in.
Tennessee, Sharon. How can I help? Yes, my son was looking to buy a home and he found a place. but it isn't eligible for a mortgage because of the condition of the home.
So the owners have offered to let him do a rent to own contract. where he works on the house and gets it to a condition that it he could then hopefully get a mortgage on it. My concern is what are the pitfalls of that? And how can he if he's in a contract to rent to own, Will he still be able to get a mortgage? Are there restrictions on that?
Because he's going to be putting a lot of work 'cause the house is in, you know, in a lot of disrepair. He's going to be putting a lot of work in during this time. Yeah. Well, this situation has a lot of red flags. There's no doubt about it.
And so your son does need to proceed with caution. A rent-to-own can work, but only if the contract protects him.
So right now, the risk is on him and the benefit is on the seller.
So first of all, can he get a mortgage later if he signs a rent-to-own contract now? Yes, for sure. You know, being in a rent-to-own agreement doesn't prevent him from getting a mortgage later. The lenders don't really care about the lease itself. But he won't be able to get a mortgage on a home unless the property is legally his or the contract gives him the legal right to purchase.
He also can't get a mortgage if the house isn't livable or has people still occupying it. It has to be safe. It has to be lender approved. It has to be vacant. It's got to meet the FHA and conventional guidelines.
So it's going to have to be repaired before the lender will issue the loan, which means the contract has to protect him if. He does repairs up front. Second, I would say: you know, the danger signs are he's doing repairs on a home he doesn't own.
So, if the seller changes their mind or sells it to someone else, your son could potentially lose everything he's put in. And at the end of the day, if the house never becomes livable enough for a mortgage, He may be stuck in this situation continuing the rent without the ability to get a mortgage on the home because it's going to have to meet that condition being put on it by the lender. I would also say, you know, if the seller has debt or liens or any kind of legal problems, your son's investment of the repairs could disappear as well. And so that's really challenging.
So I would think the way to do this, which again, it certainly has risk, but he wouldn't want to sign anything without a real estate attorney reviewing it. And make sure that the purchase option has a clear price and timeline and what counts as livable condition and a locked-in price that can't be changed later. And it probably needs a clause giving him credit for repairs.
So, you know, every dollar he invests in renovation should be counted as either rent credit or maybe a purchase price credit. And then there needs to be a refund clause because if the seller backs out, he needs to be reimbursed for the repair costs. Does that all make sense? It does.
So he needs what the best way to do that was have a real estate attorney look over a contract because they're going to go to an attorney, but it's her attorney. and do a contract. I just want to make sure that he's protected. I don't want him to put all that work into it. You know, and then maybe couldn't get a mortgage.
And what if they're, you know But maybe there's something they can And that. You know, agreeing that that's my big concern. But so a real estate attorney and make sure that in this contract they have a price and a timeline, a locked-in price. Credit for repairs. I was trying to make notes really fast.
Yeah. And then, you know, I think also that the proof that the seller actually owns the home free and clear would be important. You know, and yeah, so I mean, those are the big things that I would want in there. And then a refund clause, which, you know, if the seller backs out, he gets reimbursed for the repair costs. I would also say he really needs his own real estate attorney that is paid by him that can represent his interests.
So whatever rent-to-own agreement is created by the seller's attorney should be reviewed by an attorney that he retains. And it's not going to take a whole lot of time. It shouldn't be terribly expensive, but I want somebody who's, you know, obligated to him to protect his interests in this. Yeah, that's what I want. That's exactly what I want.
I don't want to see him. put all this into this and then something happened and it's just because he wasn't aware. He you know, because he thought maybe he was safe because they sat in front of attorneys. Yeah, exactly.
So I think you're on the right track here. And it shouldn't be hard to find a real estate attorney that he could engage for the purpose of just reviewing the contract and, you know, redlining the agreement to say, no, we need to change this or we need to add that and make sure that his interests are protected. But, Sharon, I appreciate your call today. Thanks for being on the program. Lord bless you.
800-525-7000 is the number to call. Let's go to Chicago. Lisa, go ahead. The crap. Hi Rob, thank you for taking my call.
Sure. My husband and I, we are a blended marriage. We have adult children and we're working on our estate planning. And we were introduced to a trust, the AB Trust. for uh are you familiar with the AB Trust?
I am, yes?
Okay.
So I'm just wondering what kind of pros and cons on that and is it something that might not benefit either one of us? What would there be comparable to that that would kind of have security in our children getting their inheritance? Yeah. Yeah, it's a great question. And I'm not an attorney.
You do need an attorney to kind of help you walk through the various options here. I mean, essentially, the A-B trust, in the most basic terms, is the A part of the trust is the survivor's trust.
So the surviving spouse controls that portion. And the B portion of the trust is the bypass trust where it's locked in for the deceased spouse's beneficiaries, often their children.
So the surviving spouse can access income and sometimes principal, but can't change the beneficiaries.
So it protects the kid's inheritance, even if remarriage happens and if long-term care is needed or family dynamics shifts.
So that's not the only way to handle this, but it is certainly a way to handle it. But you need, I would say, an estate planning attorney who really specializes in blended families and asset protection. I hope that helps. Thanks for your call today. Back to the phones after this break.
As the leading advocate for the Christian financial industry, Kingdom Advisors serves the public by promoting the integration of a biblical worldview across every aspect of the financial services industry. And we serve a growing network of thousands of Christian financial professionals, equipping and empowering them to carry biblical financial wisdom to their clients, peers, and community. For more information, visit kingdomadvisors.com. That's kingdomadvisors.com. We are grateful for support from Praxis Investment Management.
Since 1994, Praxis has offered investment products designed to meet practical needs for everyday investors seeking to steward their assets consistent with their desire to promote positive social and environmental impacts. Praxis aims to bring a faith-based approach to ETFs, mutual funds, multifund portfolio solutions, and money market accounts, reflecting their 500-year-old Anabaptist Christian faith tradition. More information is available at PraxisInvest.com. Great to have you with us today on Faith and Finance. Participants your calls and questions.
Let's head right back to the phones: WKES Florida. Cindy, go ahead. Hi, Rob. Um, I am 68 years old. In fairly good health.
My landlady is 82 and she just recently started declining. She has two children that live out of state, don't want the house. That I would come with. You know, I live in, there's a separate two houses on her property, and I'm in one of them. And so my son said, Well, maybe you should take some of your money.
And I know this sounds awful, and I'm not bragging, please. I got plenty of money. Um, I don't have any bills except for that, you know, that rent. And um I have the point. provided for my kids, you know, and grands and all that stuff, but He says, you need to start looking out for yourself.
And if she dies. You don't have a guarantee. It's not written in her contract. that I have a place to live. And he's suggesting that I buy my own house.
Am I too old for that? You know, it really comes down to, I think, preparing for housing stability in retirement. Not necessarily trying to guess what your landlord might do in the future.
So at 68, housing security is an important financial consideration. And so I wouldn't be able, you know, I wouldn't assume that you'll automatically be able to buy her home. You know, even if she wants to sell it to you, the home may go to heirs or they may want to sell it on the open market. The house could be sold quickly to investors. I mean, there's a number of things that could play out here.
So I wouldn't count on that. I would say, you know, yes, you should start saving now. And I would say, you know, think about the future down payment and the moving costs and so forth. And, you know, should you invest the money instead? I think, you know, as long as you have enough set aside to buy that home whenever you decide it's time, you know, to move on.
And if that time comes and buy something of your own, I wouldn't want to have all that money locked up in the market where, let's say, two years from now, there's a recession and the market's down 20 or 30% and you're having to sell it at a loss. I would want to make sure that we carved out maybe bucket one, which is your housing fund, where you've got enough for the Down payment and the moving expenses in the first month, and the deposit, and a cushion. And then, bucket two becomes your long-term investments beyond the housing cushion where you don't have to be concerned about pulling that money out prematurely. Does that make sense? It does, it does.
So should I also be Putting this, and I've heard you talk about this on the show before: insurance for an old folks' home, a nursing home. Um you know, is that a wise investment at again at sixty eight? And no, we're not promised our health or our brain. Sure. What are your if you don't mind me asking, what are your total investable assets?
You mean how much do I get a month? You know, how much do you have on your balance sheet?
So, investment accounts, retirement accounts, all together. Oh, probably around $100,000.
Okay.
Yeah. You know, I think the challenge is that these policies are so expensive. And there's no guarantee that, in fact, most of them increase regularly. And a lot of people that have bought them years ago are having to drop them because they've seen dramatic premium increases for the long-term care insurance, and they just can't afford them anymore. And I think, in your situation, you know, with $100,000 in assets, you know, you're going to need to probably, you know, because if you need full nursing care, that could run you $100,000 easy.
And I think the premium on that long-term care insurance policy is going to be really cost-prohibitive. And so, as a result, I would probably just plan. To keep what you've got invested. And if you ever needed it, you would just go to a Medicaid-approved facility. I mean, you could look into it, but you'd need to have $500,000, $700 a month to put toward a policy like this.
Oh no, no, that, yeah, that's. I didn't realize it was that wild.
Okay, well, thank you so much for your help. This is um. Uh you know I'm encouraged, very encouraged.
So I'm gonna start stuffing money aside and, um Get me a house here shortly. All right. Thank you, Cindy. Lord bless you. We appreciate you being on the program.
Bloomington, Illinois, Maggie. Go ahead. Hey, Rob, thank you so much for taking my call. We have a question. We inherited some money.
From a family member, and the trust took out the first RMD, and we understand we have 10 years. to spend the rest of it Are we able to do that qualified charitable gift? Or are we not able to do that because we're not 70 years old? Yeah, you do the qualified charitable distribution is only available for somebody who's at least 70 and a half, regardless of whether these are inherited IRA funds.
So it would not be available until you get to that point.
So as you pull it out, and you're right, you've got that 10-year window as a non-spouse, it is going to be recognized as income. And it's generally why you want to do it a little bit each year so you don't create a massive tax liability in higher tax brackets in that final year. Even though in that final year we'll probably be retired and be in a lower tax bracket. Yeah, I mean, it's a good question. The unknown is, I mean, how far off is that?
Is this nine plus years away? Um, no, it's probably closer to five or even less.
Okay.
Yeah, I mean, the challenge is we don't know what the tax structure will look like. I mean, we've made these tax cuts permanent.
So long as another administration and Congress doesn't undo that.
So you're right. I mean, it would be worth looking at with a CPA and doing some planning to say, okay, if the tax brackets remain the same and we just play out what you expect your income to be each year, the CPA or accountant could run some estimates on kind of what that most effective strategy is. But I think just given some of the unknowns, you may be better off at least taking a portion of it between now and year 10. If you wanted to wait, because to your point, your income is going to fall pretty dramatically. It may work out and allow you to keep it in a tax-deferred environment and continue to grow it for the next five or six years.
But you're going to want to get more conservative as you approach that 10-year mark anyway because you have to take it out and then pay the tax on it.
Okay, thank you.
So I hear you saying we're not able until age seventy to do the charitable, and then we just need to work with an accountant to determine when would be the right time to take more than the required minimal. Yeah, that's right. And if any, and to your point, because you'd be entering retirement at that point, the CPA may say you're free to leave it there for the full five plus years whenever that 10-year mark comes. But that would come out of the planning, so I think that's wise. And yes, the QCD, you do have to be 70 and a half regardless of this being inherited.
Thank you so much for clarifying.
Okay, we appreciate your call. God bless you. Hey, big thanks to my team today: Pat, Sandy, Devin, Jim, and everybody here at FaithFi that makes this possible. I certainly couldn't do this without them. Have a wonderful day.
Come back and join us tomorrow. We'll see you then. Bye-bye. Faith in Finance is provided by Faith By and listeners like you.
