No More 4% Rule?

For a quarter of a century, it was carved in stone, a rule that retirement investors rested their golden years on. It's the 4% rule, but now it's no more.

You know, it's always disconcerting when something you viewed for years as the unvarnished truth turns out to have some flaws. Today, Kingdom Advisors President Rob West shares that revelation with us and will take your calls and questions at 800-525-7000. Jot that down.

800-525-7000. I'm Steve Moore. No more 4% rule. That's next on MoneyWise Live. All right, Rob. For folks who understand the 4% rule, this news will come as surprising, but for listeners who may not be familiar with it, well, explain it for us.

Well, sure. It first appeared in an article written by financial advisor Bill Bingen way back in 1994. The idea was that if you wanted to guarantee your retirement savings would last at least as long as you do, you would have to adjust your budget so that you never withdrew more than 4% a year from your investments. That was the safe maximum amount you could spend. You would then adjust that number upwards each year to allow for inflation. And for more than 25 years, financial advisors have encouraged investors to use the 4% rule as the rule of thumb, if you will, when they're planning their retirement.

Okay. How did this Bingen fellow come up with this rule? Well, he says 4% was actually based on what he calls the worst case scenario. That was someone retiring at the worst possible moment up to that point, October of 1968, just when the stock market reached its peak and was ushering in a lengthy bear market. And just when a decade of very high inflation was beginning, those combined factors demolish the purchasing power of retirees. So the rule took all of that into consideration, a long bear market and runaway inflation.

By withdrawing a maximum of only 4%, retirees would be assured that their retirement assets would last 30 years. Okay, got it. All right. But now, Bingen has changed his tune? Yes, maybe because the worst possible scenario rarely happens. He says that if you take another starting point other than October 1968, the results are quite different. Factoring in times when stocks were cheap and inflation was low, a retiree could have withdrawn a lot more than 4% annually. He now says the average, and keep in mind the word average, the average safe withdrawal rate was around 7%. And I don't know that I'm comfortable with this, but could have been as high as 13%. Ah, that's a huge difference.

Almost too much to believe, really. Well, keep in mind, yeah, that we're not recommending someone withdraw that much because there's no way of knowing the actual amount you can withdraw without hurting your principal until the year is over. But to your point, Bingen's numbers are credible because all of his calculations are actually based on a conservative retirement portfolio with 30% in the S&P 500, 20% in U.S. small caps like the S&P 600, and 50% in bonds.

Now keep in mind, when you get to this season of life, some people may have more like 70% in bonds and only 30% in stocks, so that would make the numbers come down a bit. Okay, well fair enough. But if he's throwing out the 4% rule, he has to replace it with something, I presume. So what's he saying the rule is now?

Well, you ready for it? I don't know whether we need a drum roll or not, but the new rule, according to Bingen, there it is, 5%. That's how much he feels retirees can withdraw annually from their savings without fear of running out of money. And Bingen says he uses the 5% figure for his own retirement planning, which is always good. Wow, really? 5%?

That's it? Not a very big change. Well, not in percentages, but in dollars, it could make a difference. Let's look at a retirement portfolio of, say, $300,000. The difference between a 4% annual withdrawal and a 5% annual withdrawal is $3,000 or $250 a month.

That amount could be significant for a retiree trying to buy groceries or Christmas and birthday presents for the grandkids or even more giving perhaps to the local church. Hmm, okay. So what's the bottom line here? What do we come away with? Well, to be honest, I still like the 4% rule. There are many unknowns and we don't know how successful the Federal Reserve will be at preventing inflation in the future or deflation for that matter or what stock prices will do in the future. But we do know that 4% is safer than 5% for annual withdrawals and I think that's what most people should plan for. So I would just say keep your expenses low, save as much as you can and try to stretch this out and make it last as long as you can. Okay, I don't mean to be offensive in any way, but I'm just thinking in my head, Mr. Bengan himself must be getting along in years now, but I don't know.

We'll find out and we'll be right back. The financial wealth you leave behind could be the best thing that ever happened to your loved ones or the worst. In Splitting Heirs, Giving Your Money and Things to Your Children Without Ruining Their Lives, Ron Blue explains why it's important to make these decisions now instead of forcing your heirs to do it later.

Splitting Heirs will foster a real appreciation for the precious resources that God has entrusted to you. And it's available when you click the store button at MoneyWiseLive.org. If you're investing for retirement or any other goal, you may be wondering if it's possible to enjoy both profit and peace of mind no matter what's happening in the market. Sound Mind Investing has a short video webinar on that topic at SoundMindInvesting.org. SMI has helped tens of thousands of Christians learn to be wise and faithful stewards in the area of investing.

Profit and peace of mind no matter what's happening in the market at SoundMindInvesting.org. Helping you connect with your grandchildren. Here's Ken Canfield for Grandkids Matter. Blake is a friend of mine who focuses on preparing his children and his grandchildren for the three most important decisions in life.

These can help keep us on track as grandparents. Decision number one, where will I spend eternity? Will your grandchild accept Christ as Lord and Savior?

Nothing is more important. Number two, how will I invest my life? Help your grandkids become kingdom builders devoted to eternal pursuits.

Number three, if I choose to, whom will I marry? This will have a huge impact on many areas of your grandchild's life. Even if we don't see our grandkids every day, we can reinforce these important values and help guide them.

You can get more great tips and inspiration from our website at grandkidsmatter.org. If the heavy burden of debt is robbing you of freedom and peace of mind, Christian credit counselors can help. We're a nationwide nonprofit credit counseling organization that has helped over 300,000 individuals in the last 27 years get out of credit card debt 80% faster while honoring that debt in full.

To learn how Christian credit counselors can help you, visit christiancreditcounselors.org. Or call 800-557-1985. Hey, nice to have you with us. And in case you hadn't checked, look at your watch. It's Friday, if I'm not mistaken. And well, you know, I like Friday, Rob, because sometimes, just occasionally, depending on the position of the moon in the sky, we have something called the Friday vibe. It's hard to put your foot on, hard to put your thumb on, but it's just something that happens on a Friday that makes it always interesting, sometimes quaint, sometimes impactful. Nonetheless, it's Friday.

The Friday vibe. I'll be on the lookout for it. Let me know if you see it.

It comes in under the door quite often, so keep an eye there. 800-525-7000, if you'd like to talk to Rob today about anything financial, 800-525-7000. Bottom line, Rob, we were talking about how much you can take from your retirement fund and still have enough left over to help you make it through retirement. Of course, it would be helpful if you knew exactly how long you were going to live, and none of us really know that. But still, authorities are suggesting that 5% is a realistic number, and you're pretty good with that? Yeah, you know, I would still opt for the 4% that we've used historically, but when you say the authorities, I mean, this is the authority. Mr. Bingen himself is the one who came up with the 4% rule, and so perhaps we should take his advice, and he's just saying that based on the way he designed this being really the worst case scenario, sky-high stock market leading into a lengthy bear market, sky-high inflation, you put all that together and 4% is the number.

He's saying what's more realistic is something perhaps more like 5%, but hopefully it just gives you a little more peace of mind if you need to take just a bit more than 4% will allow. Well if Mr. Bingen is really the authority and you're just parroting what he says, why don't we have him here? Why are we talking with you? I totally agree.

Not that it isn't fun, but, you know, if he's the authority. Makes a lot of sense to me. All right, Jim, Jim's our guy in the background who really does all the heavy lifting. See what you can do about getting in touch with Mr. Bingen, right? I'm getting the high sign.

I think that was the high sign, yeah, okay. Wausau, Wisconsin, and Jean, how can we help you? Hi, thank you for taking my call. I need a little advice because you are God-based. My husband and I got married later in life, and I found out now that I have MS.

So I don't want anything that he owned before me to have to be used for any medical bills. I did talk to a disabled couple, and what they did is they got divorced, made sure the spouse got the house and most of the money, and then she became the caregiver. What is your advice for us, please?

Yeah, wow. You know, it's a difficult situation. I'm so sorry to hear about the medical situation. I would say, first, let's ask the Lord to intervene here, miraculously.

He's the great physician, and we'll join you, Jean, in praying that he brings a touch to your body and brings healing. You know, I think the second thing is, as believers, our witness for Christ has to be the priority. And so, you know, in my view, it wouldn't honor God to hide assets from the government or a nursing facility if you need care in the future under Medicaid. Certainly, in my view, again, not getting a divorce in a situation like this.

You are correct, though. States set the rules for Medicaid eligibility, and in most states, Medicaid applicants' pension, 401k, IRA, and other retirement assets will either be considered, Jean, an asset or as income. If it's an asset, it counts against, of course, the asset limit.

If it's in a payout status and generating income, then it's considered income and counted that way. Typically, in the majority of states, a healthy spouse is allowed to have up to $126,000 in savings. But I think given the situation here, it would be worthwhile to visit with a godly estate planning attorney, somebody who could help you understand the various tools and vehicles that are out there, whether it's an ABLE account or a, you know, a trust, special needs trust, something like that, that could be used very appropriately.

And, you know, it could be used to, within the law, allow full access to these funds and still full availability to Medicaid without providing any, you know, reduction in that benefit. But I think at the end of the day, I wouldn't be comfortable with moving things around in a way that either wasn't supported by the law or you getting a divorce just because, you know, really under the Lord. I think once you've been joined together, we need to honor that. So I think we need to just ask the Lord to bring wisdom here. And I do think giving getting the counsel, Jean, of a godly estate planning attorney who can look at the various tools that could be used in this situation would be a next step. I encourage you to connect with a certified kingdom advisor there in Wausau, ask for a referral to a godly estate planning attorney.

And you can find one of those professionals by going to our website, MoneyWiseLive.org. Just click find a CKA and you can interview at least two or three. Gene, we will be praying with you and your husband about this. We're so very sorry to hear about this situation, but we'll pray that God really gives you guys wisdom and direction and good health going forward.

Thanks so much for your call. And Rob, this isn't the first time we've received calls like this. And generally, they're well intentioned by husbands and wives.

They do intend to stay together as husband and wife. They're just trying to find a bit of a loophole. Not sure, you know, how God honors something like this or even if he honors it, but it's one of those touchy situations, huh? It is.

It's challenging. And I think, as you said, well intentioned, trying to protect God's assets. Remember, it's God's money and you were the steward. But the good news is that God is your provider, right?

No one else. And so he said, I can be trusted. So I think whenever we follow his principles and we do this, we approach handling God's money with the right heart attitude. God will honor that. And this situation certainly is not out of his control.

He controls everything. Amen. All right. Continuing on, by the way, here's our phone number. We're taking your calls on any financial topic today. Love to hear from you. 800-525-7000.

Elgin, Illinois. Linda, what's on your mind? Good afternoon. Happy Friday.

Thank you. I have a collection agency that has called me three times, including less than an hour ago. It's regarding supposedly a medical bill for $173. I'm not aware of any bill. And I have asked them to send me something in writing. The second gentleman told me that he would.

That hasn't happened. And the gentleman today, when I told them that I have asked for this in writing, he goes, fine, we'll see you in small claims court and hung up on me. What are my rights in this area?

And how can I resolve this? Well, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, Linda, does spell this out. And, you know, I don't think there's any exceptions in terms of a state where you don't have to be notified in writing first.

I believe you do. So if someone calls you about a debt without first giving written notice, snail mail would typically be the way that it is sent to you. I wouldn't respond at all.

And I certainly wouldn't give out any information. You know, there are many scammers who pose as collection agents to try to trick you into paying money for debts that have already been paid cancel or what might be more likely even in this situation is debts that don't even exist in the first place, especially if this is not an account you recognize and one that you've never had any information on in the past. So I would encourage you not to respond unless somebody can furnish you something in writing. One option would be, Linda, that you could pull a copy of your credit report from each of the three credit bureaus, because you can be assured that if you have a debt out there that's been sold to a collection agency, it would have been reported to at least one of the three bureaus in just about every case. So go to annualcreditreport.com, pull a copy of your credit report from each of the three bureaus, see if you see something out there. But at the end of the day, if there's nothing there that's causing a red flag as an old account that's been charged off or sold, certainly past due and delinquent. And if nobody can provide you documentation as to what's there after giving notice, then I wouldn't give it a second thought. In fact, I would be quick to disconnect that phone line and hang up on that person who's telling you this information.

At the end of the day, though, if you want to know very specifically your rights, you'll just want to Google Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which spells out everything you need to know. Linda, thank you very much for calling in today. We hope that you're able to get that rectified without any additional angst in your life.

Thanks very much. One more before the break, Tampa, Florida. MJ, what's your situation? Yes, my husband and I received a settlement on an auto accident and we paid off the rest of our debt and now we have about $40,000 and we're not really sure. We did our tit percent tithe and we're not really sure what to do with it now. We have IRAs, both my husband and I, that we maxed out each year and so we're just kind of looking for a place to put this money either for a long term or if something was to come up within the next couple years that we could purchase with it.

Yeah. Well, I think that's really the key here, MJ, is deciding what is the purpose for this money and if you really don't have clarity, I would just park it until such time as the Lord makes it clear. Perhaps there's some additional giving he wants you to do. Maybe a need will present itself that you and your husband just have a real conviction that you want to be able to respond to. Having that money ready to go, liquid and available would be key and by parking it, I'd use an online savings account.

They're paying only about a half a point right now, whether you go to Marcus or Ally Bank or Capital One Three Sixty, a point five percent interest, but it's protected, it's safe, it's accessible and you can link it right up to your checking account. I would, though, begin to pray about this. Ask the Lord to give you some wisdom here as you begin to set some God given goals beyond the long-term savings and defining how much is enough for retirement savings, which you said you're fully funding and beyond an emergency fund of three to six months expenses. Really, the only other options are additional giving or other savings goals, whether that's being able to buy a new car for cash down the road, putting it away for a child's education, something a little bit more medium term and depending on the timeframe, that will then determine the investments, but I wouldn't invest it unless you have at least a 10-year time horizon.

And we'll be right back. This is Money Wives Live. Do you know if you have enough? Enough money? Enough house? Do you know how much is enough? If not, Ron Blue can help with his book Master Your Money, a step-by-step plan for experiencing financial contentment.

Learn how to save, invest, and give wisely, how to create a long-term financial plan, and how to get out of debt. You'll find it all in Master Your Money by Ron Blue, available when you click the Store button at MoneyWivesLive.org. P. Bruce 4-12 says, For the Word of God is quick and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword. Here's Beth Moore with a quick word. I want you to look with me at Isaiah 40, verse 28, because it's another inclusion of this particular Hebrew name. Chapter 40, a verse is going to help us understand when we would most accurately call upon God by the name El Olam.

This is a clue right here. It says in Isaiah 40, verse 28, Isaiah 40, verse 28, Do you not know, have you not heard, the Lord that's going to be Jehovah? You'll see it in all caps in your NIV or in many of your other translations. The Lord is the everlasting God, El Olam, the God from everlasting to everlasting, creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary and is understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.

In other words, he's contrasting that he cannot grow tired. In case anybody needed to hear this, God is not tired of you. So every now and then I think, I know I have annoyed you to death over what I'm about to bring to you. You know, Beth, you would have, except you can't kill me. Goodness knows you'd have killed anybody else.

I've said over and over that on my tombstone, if it was going to be accurate, it should read, God got tired and let her die. You know what I'm saying to you? I am a lot of work. God and I have a lot of drama. Do other people know what I'm talking about?

We have a lot of drama, but he's not tired. You've been listening to Beth Moore with a quick word. The online experience is now available at BethMoore.org. Join Beth for Now That Faith Has Come, a study of Galatians at BethMoore.org.

See you next time for another Quick Word with Beth Moore. Money and life run on the same track, but unfortunately, sometimes it seems like your money is heading in a different direction from your goals. In Never Enough, Three Keys to Financial Contentment, author Ron Blue helps you to break down all your financial options to a basic four and then shows you how to keep it all chugging along in the right direction on the same track. Never Enough, Three Keys to Financial Contentment, available when you click the store button at MoneyWiseLive.org. You know, a good starting point if you're trying to manage your money, manage your finances according to God's will and God's principles in your life, a good place to start is to remember that God owns it all, not just a percentage of it, but God owns all of it. And then he gives it a large portion of it to us to manage. And that's what the principles in his word are all about. And so, like I said, if you're wondering about how best to manage what he has, how to spend it, how to save it, how to give it, how to invest it, start with that principle that God owns it all. 800-525-7000 Chicago, Illinois. And Ruth, we appreciate your patience.

What's on your mind? Thank you so very much for your help. I am undecided as to what would be the best way to go. I was thinking about giving the qualified charitable distribution from Mayara, but I understand that I don't have to take it this year.

So I was wondering if it would be better to go ahead and donate it to the church or just leave it and take the amount that I would have donated from my checking account. I see. Yeah. Sure.

Yeah. So with this year being a little unusual in that you don't have to take the required minimum distribution, it is slightly different. I think the key here, Ruth, is you want to get the best tax benefit because that's going to mean that the ministry has the opportunity to receive as much as possible. And if this is money that you're not needing now or in the future, meaning unless something changes and something comes out unexpectedly, then I think it's still a great opportunity for giving, even though the required minimum distribution is not needed this year. So I'm thinking that still a great opportunity for you to make a gift to your church directly out of the IRA using the qualified charitable distribution, because this is money that will be taxable at some point down the road if it's not used in this way. And so I think especially with some of the appreciation that we've had in the stock market, ironically, despite the year that we've had, the market is up significantly and you can still make a qualified charitable distribution this year, even though the RMD is not required. So I would stay right on the same path.

Does that make sense? It makes sense rather than taking it from my checking account and leaving the money in the IRA. Yeah, I mean, you could go either way. Obviously, if you have money that's sitting in checking that you don't have earmarked for any purpose, it's not money for emergency savings or money that you need for something else. You could leave the money there. But I would say, given the year that we've had and some of the uncertainty that might be coming down the road, hanging on to that cash and taking it out of appreciated investments makes a lot of sense to me.

So I would probably opt for the qualified charitable distribution and hang on to your cash. Thank you so very much for your valuable information. Okay, Ruth, God bless you and thanks for listening. Thank you very much. Eric is in Chicago, Illinois, and you want to help your folks out a little bit, huh, Eric?

Yeah, I was hoping to. They are retired. They're in their early 80s and they own their home, but it needs a lot of improvements, new roof, plumbing, electrical, et cetera. I am looking for the best way to finance because it's more money than we could come up with on our own. And so I don't know that a HELOC is even a possibility or are there government grant loans, something that would help a retired person solely on Social Security?

Sure. You know what I would look at because it does vary even by state. I'd start with HUD.gov, H-U-D.gov, and then I'd look at state and municipal websites for local programs.

There are programs for low-income elderly folks to make home repairs. And so I would start there, use the HELOC as the home equity line of credit as a last resort. Eric, God bless.

Thanks very much. Investing is more than just returns. It's an expression of who you are and what you value. Does the way you invest your money reflect your identity as a Christian? At Eventide, we design investments for performance and a better world, so you can invest with a confidence to reach your financial goals while remaining true to your Christian values and commitments. We call this investing that makes the world rejoice. More is available at investeventide.com.

That's investeventide.com. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I couldn't have had the procedure I needed without CHM's help sharing the bills. That letter from a member displays Christian Health Care Ministries' purpose to glorify God and serve His people.

CHM is the original non-insurance voluntary health cost sharing ministry, enabling its members to share the cost of each other's medical bills. Call 800-791-6225 or visit chministries.org. Hi, my name is Ro, and I'm a communications major at the Moody Bible Institute. The Moody Radio Verse of the Week is found in Micah 5, 2 to 3.

But you, Bethlehem Ephrath, though you are a small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from old, from ancient times. That's Micah 5 verses 2 to 3, the Moody Radio Verse of the Week. Uplift, our online source to let you be among the first to know about all things Moody Radio. Sign up to receive Moody Radio's free monthly e-newsletter, Uplift, delivered straight to your inbox. You'll get exclusive stories, helpful articles, and updates on what's happening at Moody Radio. And we've just re-energized Uplift. Now there's even more to discover each month. Subscribe today.

Go to mymoodyradio.org, mymoodyradio.org. How did you feel the last time you made a not so good decision? As Pastor Andy Stanley points out, our decisions are like the steering wheel of our life. And so you get decision making right, you get life right. In his new book, Better Decisions, Fewer Regrets, you'll learn five critical questions to apply to every decision you make so you can feel confident you're getting it right.

Request your copy with any gift to MoneyWise of $25 or more at MoneyWise.com. Vice President Mike Pence says the Food and Drug Administration could approve the first COVID vaccines the week of December 14th, with the first wave of Americans being vaccinated in all 50 states within 48 hours of that approval. Fire remains high, the danger of that amid unpredictable wind gusts and dry conditions in Southern California. Crews are making progress against blazes that have burned several homes and have injured two firefighters. The biggest blaze in Orange County is Silverado Canyon, only 10% contained. California Governor Gavin Newsom says most of his state will likely be under new stay-at-home orders within a day or two.

On Wall Street, stocks remain higher, the Dow up 181 points, the Nasdaq 67 points higher, and the S&P is ahead 24. This is SRN News. You know, here we often talk quite a bit about the importance of getting out of debt, how to develop a spending plan, aka a budget, the importance of having an emergency fund, having within your means, all those things easy to talk about, but sometimes a bit more difficult to do, at least kind of long distance. However, if you're face-to-face with someone, often they can walk you through these concepts in a quicker, better, easier way. And now a great way to do that is to connect with a budget coach. And an even better way to do that is to visit our website, MoneyWiseLive.org. You'll find lots of useful information there, including if you click on the tab, connect with the coach, and then you can find out how to do that, how to do that, speak to them directly, either online or through your telephone. So just visit MoneyWiseLive.org to connect with the coach, MoneyWiseLive.org. Let's go to Lorraine, Ohio, WCRF.

And Miguel, what's your question for Rob West? All right, God bless. Appreciate you guys. Well, I'm married 15 years and we have five children, a home for three years and vehicles and all that that God blessed us with. But I'm 39.

I'll be 40 in February or willing. And the company that I'm with now, basically it's a 401k program called Principal. And they spoke to us about it. I'm liking it. But I know that's not going to be enough for my kids and stuff.

God forbid. So it happened to me and my wife, to me. I want to leave something for my wife and kids. And I'm looking for, can't find like nothing that can help me with stock and stuff and wonder if you guys know any sites or books or a guide, basically, that can help me to learn this a little bit more and start investing in stuff like that for my family in the long run. Yeah, very good, Miguel. Well, I love the direction you're on. I love the fact that you're participating in this 401k now with a systematic contribution. That's going to be the very best way to build wealth over time because it's coming right out of your paycheck, pre-tax, being invested and will grow over these next number of years as you press toward retirement, which is probably 25 years or more down the road. Beyond that, you're already thinking about how you can build something to leave an inheritance and perhaps do some more giving now and in the future. And so I think investing is certainly something we see modeled in Scripture. And as stewards of God's resources, we should be thinking about how to put our money to work. And really, historically, the very best place to do that in a passive way is through a stock and bond portfolio that's well diversified with a long time horizon. But getting wise counsel, specifically, biblically based wise counsel as it relates to how you do that, the real practical side of investing is another great idea, Miguel.

So let's do this. I want to send you as our gift today something called the Sound Mind Investing Handbook. And I think it's exactly what you're looking for. It'll give you all of the principles but also the practices of how you actually deploy an investing strategy for the long haul in a way that's God-honoring.

So again, it's called the Sound Mind Investing Handbook. And Miguel, if you hold the line, our team, actually, Amy, our producer today will grab your information. We'll get that in the mail to you. Make sure you get that before Christmas.

Yeah. Miguel, this book is about two inches thick, but don't let that scare you off. Lots of wonderful information.

And the great thing is, is that they've written it for the average person, the layman, not the sophisticated investor necessarily. So lots of good information there, all of it based on biblical principles. And I think it'll help you and bless you. Thanks very much for your call today. You stay on the line for us to talk to you off here.

Bernette, Texas. Randy, how can we help you, sir? Afternoon, gentlemen. Hi. Hi there. Thank you so much for, thank you for all you do. Appreciate you.

Discovered you guys earlier this year. I need help. I need advice.

I'm hoping there's hope. I'm 55 years old. Came to faith late in life and also got responsible with money late in life.

Was very irresponsible. I have very little savings to speak of before coming to Christ. I didn't save at the age when I should have saved and only started getting serious last year. And I've got about $4,000 in investment retirement account with Timothy plan. I've got a 401 case with my job, and I've only got about $10,000 in savings in a regular account. I'm concerned since I'm retiring in less than 10 years, a little over nine, that I won't have a viable, livable retirement even if I start getting serious now.

Is there any hope for a guy like me? Oh, absolutely, Randy. You know, here's the bottom line. As you begin to purpose yourself to follow biblical principles, meaning you limit your lifestyle, you define enough, you live generously and hold everything loosely, trust God as your provider, invest systematically, living well within God's provision with contentment. It's amazing what God will do. Now he's not a cosmic vending machine where we give and he automatically gives it back financially.

He can bless us in any number of ways. But what we know to be true is that he is our provider and he said this is the one area you can test him when it comes to giving and managing your money biblically based. What we know to be true for sure is that you put yourself in a position when you follow biblical financial principles to experience God's best in this area. And my experience, Randy, is that our financial journey in many ways shapes our spiritual journey. You know, when we relinquish this one area that is often a competitor to lordship, this area of money, when we release that to the Lord and put it under his lordship along with every other facet of our lives, my experience is it has a ripple effect in so many other areas. I think the key right now is for you to really ask the Lord to give you some wisdom about how you should proceed. Set God-given goals, limit your lifestyle, give generously, and be faithful with your margin, your excess beyond your spending, to invest that.

Put it away. I think maxing out your 401k, which over the age of 50 you get a little bit extra that you can put in, maxing that out will be the very best way to do that. In addition, you could open a Roth IRA and fund that as well. Again, you can put in an extra thousand in your Roth IRA this year because you're over age 50, and so that would give you 7,000 you could put away. And then if you still had more to do beyond that, you could even look at an insurance product like an annuity of some kind that would allow you to put even more away on a tax-deferred basis. I think the key is developing a plan right now, perhaps seeing if a financial advisor would come alongside you to do some retirement planning, so you'd have some confidence and peace of mind to know that based on the trajectory you're on now, what you could expect when you get to that point 10 years or 15 years down the road. And then you order your life appropriately so that you can try to achieve those goals. And I'm confident that you'll have quite a bit if you're diligent in saving and investing right now, even though perhaps you're starting a bit late. So let's leave all that at the foot of the cross and purpose yourself to follow biblical principles from here on out.

And I'd like to send you a copy of Ron Blue's book Master Your Money. I think it'll be an encouragement to you and allow you to begin to digest all of these principles as it relates to how you handle God's money. Randy, we're glad you got through today, and I love the way you concluded your question. Is there any hope for a guy like me? Sounds like the title to a great old country gospel song, and it's certainly a question that we could all ask when it comes to our position in life and God's position in eternity.

Is there any hope for a guy or a person or a man or a woman or a child just like me? And we wish you the very best, Randy. Thanks. Our phone number, if you'd like to call, we have a couple of open lines. Now's a good time to try to get in. 800-525-7000. 800-525-7000. Is there a line for a person like me?

Yes indeed there is. Call right now, 800-525-7000. We'll be back with more MoneyWise Live after this. You probably have a strategy for your finances, your career, even your retirement. But do you have a strategy for your giving? At the National Christian Foundation, we can help you create a giving strategy to inspire your family, maximize your resources and leave a lasting legacy of faith.

To learn how visit moneywise.org slash ncf. This is Barry McGuire. I'm a car guy here to help you understand God's purpose for your life through the eyes of a layman. It seems everyone is wondering where God is these days. With every atrocity, the question is raised, where's God? And of course, the answer is he's right there and weeping along with us for the pain and suffering man is inflicting upon himself while covering those who place their trust in him. Without understanding the gravity of God's decision to give us free choice, it's easy to blame God for everything. But God did indeed give us the gift of free choice.

And without God and the lives of most Americans, bad choices are being made by a lot of Americans with everyone both good and bad suffering circumstances. What the world needs now is love, sweet love. And that's how God attends for the world to know that we're his disciples and draw them into him by our love. There is nothing more exciting than knowing God is using you to move people closer to him. Join us at igniteamerica.com.

This is Anne Graham Lotz with the Daily Light for Daily Living. As God dealt with Adam and Eve, he revealed he is righteous and just. But God is also loving and merciful. Satan, planning to defeat God's purpose, failed to account for the character of God. He failed to realize how much God loved the man and woman he created and the depths to which he would go to bring them back to himself. Adam and Eve needed a covering for their sinfulness, guilt and shame.

But fig leaves were woefully inadequate. So God provided the covering. Listen to me. You too can be clothed and receive forgiveness for your own sinfulness by claiming Jesus Christ as God's sacrificial lamb. He will clothe you in his righteousness. Isaiah 61 10 says, I delight greatly in the Lord. My soul rejoices in my God, for he has clothed me with garments of salvation and wrapped me in a robe of righteousness.

Isn't it time you got dressed? This is Anne Graham Lotz. Many people adopt an attitude toward marriage and finances that it'll all work out somehow. But sadly, it often doesn't. Financial woes can devastate a marriage. But there is a better way God's way. Money and Marriage God's Way by Howard Dayton will help you discover God's approach to growing your finances, strengthening your relationship with your mate and cultivating Godly joy. Money and Marriage God's Way is available when you click the store button at MoneyWiseLive.org. If you'd like to send Rob West a brief email, keep it brief, just a couple of lines.

The address for that is questions at MoneyWise.org, if we have time, we'll try to get to one or two of those today. Geraldine, Alabama. Hello, Terry. What's on your mind? Hey. Hey, how y'all doing today?

Great. I wanted to give a praise report to you folks. I've been listening for 30 something years, starting out with Larry Burkett, and I don't know how many people have been on there since he has been there, but I'm grateful for all the wisdom you all have given. And he had a program with Austin Pryor years and years ago, and I got involved with Sound Mind Investing and still am. And it has really been a blessing to me. And I want you to know how much the program and the wisdom that you all give has meant to me and my family for years and years.

Wow. Well, Terry, before you ask your question, let me just affirm what you're saying here. I appreciate you giving testimony to the impact of the late Larry Burkett. You know, there's not a week that goes by that we don't hear Larry's name from somebody calling into this program.

And it's just evidence of his faithfulness and integrity and ministry serving the Lord for so many years, and it had such an impact on so many people. And it's incredible to hear folks like you saying, I got my start. We hear from folks saying, I was in the back seat of my mom's car while she was listening to Larry Burkett, and now I'm listening and my kids are in the back.

I mean, it's amazing. And Steve, you had a front row seat to all of it, didn't you? Yeah. Well, they were in the back seat. I was in the front seat. And I was. And I'll tell you, I remember the very first time that Austin Pryor joined Larry on our program.

And it was just fascinating and fantastic. And Larry encouraged Austin to begin his ministry, and it remains out there today, soundmindinvesting.org, doing great things for people, all biblically based. So Terry, again, thank you for calling and thank you for those very kind words. Now, how can we help you?

What's your question? Well, I was listening to your program the other day, and somebody called in about credit cards and opening one, you know, to get a discount and that kind of stuff. And you said that doing that sometimes opens you up to more, I guess, discrepancy or something. But what I've done over the years is tried to use the best credit card I could to get the most returns or perks, you know. And so I've had three or four cards over the last 30 years. And when I quit using one, I just quit. And I assumed that it all went away. They quit sending me cards.

But I got the word of the day, am I still open in some of that stuff? And where would I go to find out if somebody's still keeping a card or does it go away after a while? You know, if it's dormant for a certain period of time, it would be closed automatically.

But I wouldn't assume that, Terry, it may still, in fact, they may be open just sitting there with zero balances. What I would do is pull a copy of your credit report from each of the three bureaus. Go to annualcreditreport.com, annualcreditreport.com. You can pull a copy of each of the three bureau reports, Experian, TransUnion and Equifax.

I'd get all three. You'll pull them, you'll take a look at them and it'll show you all the accounts and it'll show you which accounts are open and active and which ones have been closed. And it should still be on there.

It'll take seven years for it to roll off. But if it's been within seven years, you'll see them there. Hopefully it says closed. If not, you could go ahead and give them a call and tell them to close them. I would say, just as a rule of thumb, when you are closing an account, you typically want to redeem any awards first. Then you'd talk to the card issuer, make sure there's not a balance.

If there is, pay it off, confirm your zero balance, request the account closure and then dispose of the card. And if you want to be extra safe, you'd notify them in writing. That way you'd make sure. And then you could follow up by checking your credit report later just to make sure they were in fact closed. So I won't be surprised if you find either case.

You may find they're open and you need to close them or they may have been closed just because they sat dormant for so long. So that's probably your next step. And if you are confused by anything you're seeing on those credit reports, Terry, once you pull those, give us a call back. Terry, God bless.

Thanks so very much. You know, Terry sounds like the kind of guy I'd like to have a cup of coffee with. And I bet, I bet he drinks it black.

I could just tell. You know what I mean? I use the little pink stuff. I use the, I'm, you know, I, I use the little pink stuff in my coffee.

You use the pink stuff. Got it. Okay. Yeah. No pink in Terry's life.

Parris Island, South Carolina. Joseph, uh, what's your question for Rob West today, sir? Yes, sir. Thank you very much for taking my phone call. I really enjoy your ministry and I want to thank you for the great work that you guys are doing.

Thank you, sir. I have a lot of friends that are involved in cryptocurrency and I wanted to find out if you thought this was a good investment and something that the Christians can get involved in. Uh, yeah, Joseph, you know, when you talk about cryptocurrency as an investment specifically, I would have some caution there. You know, people invest in cryptocurrencies because they think they'll make a lot of money in a hurry and some investors have done that. Uh, you know, the most well known would be Bitcoin investors, but keep in mind, some have lost significantly and the Bible has something to say about this.

Proverbs 21 five says the plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes only to poverty. I think the best word you'll find in God's word related to this type of investing is steady plotting would be the alternative and really how we should approach our investments. And I think, you know, chasing cryptocurrency returns would be oftentimes anything other than steady plotting because I would really fall into the ultra high risk investment category, too much volatility, greatly exceeding other investment classes and without the long term performance. Now, I will say, I think the technology behind many of these cryptocurrencies is here to stay in our digital age. You know, we want instantaneous global transactions that are low cost, accurate, verifiable. Um, and, and so I think from that standpoint, the cryptocurrencies are not going anywhere, certainly as we move to more, uh, digital payment methods. And, uh, you know, we're going to have that here for ever, I think.

Um, but as an investment far too risky for the average investor, that would be my take. Joseph. Joseph, thank you very much. Interesting question.

And one that we get on a semi regular basis. Hope that helps you quickly. Madison, Wisconsin, Mary, just a little bit of time. Can you give it to us briefly? We have 70,000 in cash wondering what we should do with it. We have 125,000 left on our mortgage.

Um, we have 525 K in our retirement, but the 70 cash is just sitting around doing nothing. Yeah. All right. What are your ages, Mary?

Uh, 54 and 52. All right. And you're still systematically contributing to your retirement plan? Yes, sir. Okay. And do you have kids that are grown?

Um, one that's out of the house, two in high school. Okay. Do you have plans for college covering the cost of college? We do have one educational IRA with about 7,000 in it. Um, the rest of it, we're not sure how we're going to cover it. Yeah.

Okay. Well, you know, I think the good news here is that you all are well on your way towards having a retirement nest egg. I love the fact that you're paying down that mortgage and it sounds like that's a reasonable amount. The goal there would be that that mortgage would be completely eradicated by the time you reach retirement. Um, with regard to the 70,000, you know, we always need to come back to our values. I think we have to start with what are the values that are important to us, our convictions, what is God doing in our life? And as stewards of God's resources, what are the goals he's given us? How much is enough with regard to retirement? How much should we be giving?

What lifestyle has he called us to? But here's the thing. Once we decide on our lifestyle, then we're not going to continue to increase that. Um, so any excess can either be applied, uh, to additional giving or savings. And I think we've got to define our savings goals as well. In addition to retirement, we need to look out and say, what other savings goals do we have now?

The cost of college obviously can be very high. Um, you know, it's not uncommon to see 25 or 30,000 a year being spent doesn't mean you have to spend that much. But I think the next question for you and your husband is to say, how much do we want to provide for our kids? And then communicate that to him and them.

And I don't think there's a right or wrong answer there. I think you just have to pray through it, decide on the amount, communicate it so they know. And they can factor that in as they're making the decisions with you, and then make a plan for any amount that it's going to cost beyond that. But certainly this 70,000 could be a great start in that direction. Beyond that, I'd certainly want to make sure that you have three to six months in emergency funds. And even though it doesn't sound very exciting, earning a half a percent a year in an online savings account, that's exactly where I'd put it.

Because that's there for emergencies when the unexpected comes, and it will. So I think you've got to go back to the goal setting process and really pray and think through what are those goals beyond retirement that we have college, certainly emergency savings, what else do we need to replace a car for cash down the road, and therefore we want to hang on to it. So I think that's the next step. And then once you guys think and pray through that, if you have other questions, once those goals become clear, certainly give us a call back. We'd love to weigh in. Mary, we're glad that you got through today. Thanks so much for being brief so that we could squeeze all that in. And we trust that you and yours will have a wonderful weekend. And you too, Rob, you know, we've covered a lot of ground this week.

You know, we talked so much about the technical side of things, Wall Street and this account and that account. Bottom line, though, is we really do put our faith in where it all starts. And that's with the cornerstone, Jesus Christ himself.

That's exactly right, Steve. He is trustworthy. His promises are true and he is our provider.

He will never abdicate that role and responsibility to anyone or anything else. Amen. Thanks very much, Rob. Hope you and the family have a wonderful weekend. Thank you. And thank you for listening. MoneyWise Live is a partnership between Moody Radio and MoneyWise Media. My thanks to our technical crew behind the scenes, pushing all the right buttons at all the right times.

For Rob West, I'm Steve Moore. Have a wonderful weekend. Drive safely. Don't forget church. We hope you're assembling together as best you can these days and then join us again Monday for MoneyWise Live.