Following the Money

God's economy is quite different from that of the world and vastly superior.

Hi, I'm Rob West. God has a perfect design for how an economy should work, but man corrupted it. Today, Jerry Boyer tells us how to get back to God's economy, and it starts with the Church. Then it's on to your calls at 800-525-7000.

That's 800-525-7000. This is Faith and Finance Live, biblical wisdom for your financial decisions. Well, we've been in this series is starting out with the way things are supposed to be. What is God's design? That's what Jesus did over and over again. When someone asked him a question about divorce, for instance, he'd say, Well, what was the original creational intent?

Over and over again, he goes back to creation. So we should, too. And the economy of Genesis 1 and 2 is the economy as it should have been, the economy as it was and should have continued to be. Now, we abandoned that.

We were offered that, and we rejected it. And so you get the economy of Genesis 3 and 4, where things get worse, and there's a curse. And then we make the curse worse. In other words, we could repent and kind of get back more to that original Edenic intention, although after the fall, you can't get perfectly there. But instead, we tend to make things worse, and we rely on our own power more, and we have more rivalry and envy, and we turn the scene.

And we rely on our own power more, and we have more rivalry and envy, and we turn the state into an idol that replaces God. Then we talked about the way out, which is to go back to biblical principles and have our nations organize the way God originally intended with the creation. So that kind of brings us from where we started in this series to where we are now.

Yeah, that's really helpful by way of recap. So how would you then describe where we find ourselves today? Where we find ourselves today is in kind of the church era, where God is acting through the church in the nations, and some of these nations follow biblical principles and some of them don't, and some of them followed biblical principles but then abandoned them.

And some of them didn't follow but have been moving towards them. And so providence has organized things ever since the fall of the Tower of Babel so that the powerful of this world are limited to some degree in what they can do to us. You know, when God says there's nothing these people can't do, people have kind of wondered, what do you mean there's nothing they can't do? We're not God, we can't do anything.

I think basically God is saying there's nothing they can't do to each other. If there's no place of escape, if there's just one national power, one tower, then, you know, we're vulnerable to exploitation. So by spreading out the nations, we can vote with our feet, we can vote with our capital, and we see that going on all the time now with money flowing in or out of the United States, or Europe used to be very Christian, but it's really turned away from that, and so capital has been flowing out and that's hurt their economy. So we're in the era now where people can vote with their feet, they can vote with their capital, and God has built the universe in such a way as following his principles tends to enrich and violating his principles tends to degrade and make poorer. And that is a protection to some degree in the world where we haven't gotten back to that original intention. It kind of puts a limit on the evil of the world. Well, and we can see on full display the evidence of that when we just look at the US taking off like a rocket ship because of our adherence to those principles, right?

Yes, we leapt over nations that were 2000 years older than we were. We leapt over old Europe, which had, I think, to my view, a more flawed understanding of Christian economics, even if it was more formally Christian, didn't have enough emphasis on personal dignity and individual freedom. But of course, we're slowing down now, and so we might not be the fastest growing place in the world because many ways we've been violating his principles. And that's how God has made the world so that there's something inherent, apart from whether God comes in and supernaturally judges, there's something inherent in violating principles or following principles that has a punishment and reward aspect to it.

Well, that's powerful. We're talking today with Jerry Boyer, our resident economist. We're talking about God's design for economics and wealth creation. When we come back, Jerry will tell us where we go from here. What is the role of the body of Christ and the church and how do we move forward and lean into God's handiwork in economics? Your call is coming up a little later in the program as well.

800-525-7000. I'm Rob West and this is Faith and Finance Live. We'll be right back. Great to have you with us today on Faith and Finance Live. With us today are resident economist Jerry Boyer.

He's the author of The Maker vs. The Takers, what Jesus really said about social justice and economics. Today we're concluding a multi-part series that Jerry has been sharing on God's ideal economy. As we look to the scriptures beginning in Genesis, we see God's architecture for economics and wealth creation, starting with an understanding that man was created in the image of God. And we were created to be a worker, to be productive, to take God's creation and order it and improve it. And there was a virtuous cycle that God intended and of course that was disrupted by sin. But the DNA, the hard wiring is still there for God's design because we're still in his image and yet we can get it wrong, especially when we replace God with the state.

And yet there is a path forward. And Jerry, I'd love for you just to encourage us today as we wrap up this series with where do we go from here as the body of Christ and the church? Well, I think you've really described it already. I think it's a good start, which is that the church is where this should be happening. So we had Adam and he was made in the image of God and he was supposed to do things a certain way and he failed. And Israel was kind of offered an opportunity to do it right.

And they fell short of that. And we saw that God scattered the nations in the Tower of Babel, which limited the power of the state to be God. So instead of having like one emperor who's the god of the universe, the alleged god of the universe, now we might have, you know, a hundred, in that case, 70 kings who thought too much of themselves, but you could always try to flee that king and go to another. And I think the ultimate answer to that we see in the day of Pentecost, what we see in Jesus first, he's the new Adam. So he starts over in a new garden. And where Adam was tested in the garden and failed, Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane was tested and succeeded. Where Adam stole from the tree, the fruit, Jesus, the fruit of God, was put back on the tree and restitution was made to God.

And we got a do-over. But that doesn't start with the nations. That starts with the church. The church is a nation.

It was repeatedly referred to that way. A holy nation, for example. A priestly nation. The church is a city. It's the city of God.

So whatever the nations do, you know, we pray for them to do the right thing, but we can do the right thing ourselves. And I was struck, I was doing some research recently. Look at the account of the Tower of Babel. They went east, it said. Moving east in the Old Testament tends to be a bad thing.

They went east and they built a tower on the plain of Shinar. And then those languages were confused. Then what we have on the day of Pentecost is, we have this list of nations.

And I looked at those nations, looked at the list, and I put it, you know, over a map. And they're moving west. In other words, Babel is being undone. And instead of a confusion of language, now they're all understanding one another's language. So it's the opposite of Babel. So what's done in Babel is redone correctly in the church.

And what do they do? Well, they share with each other. It's one of the first things that happens when the Holy Spirit falls. But they also work hard. And Paul talks about that, about working with your hands, etc. So the early church picks up what the intent was supposed to be, and we're productive, and we're generous. And I feel like in the church world that we're in, you've got some people who focus on the wealth and productivity, even to the point of idolatry, say with the health and wealth gospel. And you have other people who focus on the generosity, not understanding that if you don't produce and earn, there's nothing to share. Whereas I think going back to God's ideal economy has a church which is devoted to God, puts him first, is productive, and then also shares, which was God's intent originally and God's intent for Israel. But now, with the power of the Holy Spirit, we are able to do it.

Oh, that's really helpful, Jerry. And I think we can often be frustrated, because we know we have limited impact on the national economy, and yet what we have direct control over is our own personal economy, right? Yes, and I think that's a formula to not be frustrated, although I feel that frustration all the time, because there's actually a sense of agency. I can't really move the nation. I mean, I've been in touch with various White Houses over the years, and I've never really been able to convince them to do much of anything. I mean, maybe here or there I nudge them in the right direction, but in my own household, in a local church, you can actually have a lot of agency. So the choice is you can fret about the nations and not have much impact, or you can act the right way on a small scale, creating a model that then the nations can imitate if they choose to do so. And I think that's actually less frustrating, because you can actually make something better, and you can see it.

It doesn't matter if it's small. What matters is, is it right? God can take care of the nations. He raises them up, and he pulls them down. That's always been his level. That's his pay grade. Our pay grade is simply to be the kind of nation, meaning the church, the holy nation, the priestly nation, to be the kind of nation that he's commanded us to be.

Wow, that's powerful, Jerry. As we think about where our nation goes from here, what is it going to take for us to get back in line with God's design? We weren't perfect, but we were certainly much closer when the Founding Fathers started the United States. Yeah, I think a couple of things.

One we've talked about, which is they need a model, right? And the church should be that model. We should be better at handling money than the world is. Are we?

In general, I would say no. But that's what you're doing every day. You're plugging away, helping people who want to be diligent, be better at handling money than the world is. So we should be better at it. Secondly, we should be prophetic. We shouldn't just do the right thing. We should also say to the nation, inflation is not just an economic problem. It's not just a math problem. It is an abomination.

That's what God says in the Torah, that unjust weights and measures are an abomination. So we should prophetically confront. And at that point, we can vote, etc.

But most of the power is in being a good example and preaching the truth and praying for God to do what God's going to do. I don't know what's going to happen to America. I know what I want to happen. I know I want us to be restored, not even just to our former glory, because if everything was right, we wouldn't have gone so wrong. For instance, there were millions of slaves when we were founded.

That's terrible to go to something better, but it's not going to do it on its own. Historically, what that means is you have to have a prophetic voice and you also have to have judgment. So when is a nation too far gone? Well, I like to look at the story of Sodom and Gomorrah. What did Abraham say?

He kind of dickered with God. You know, well, will you will you spare if there's this many? Finally, he comes down to 10. Will you spare the nation if there's 10 righteous? And God said he would.

Why? 10 is a minion in Jewish tradition. 10 is a synagogue. If there's 10, there is an organized voice. It might be small in a, you know, we don't know how many lived in Sodom and Gomorrah, but maybe 10, 20,000, but 10 people speaking the truth to a nation that is being chastised by God, that in that situation, the nation is still salvageable. I don't worry about America because of everything that's wrong with America. I worry about America if we don't have a prophetic voice, that minion, that 10. That's when we're doomed.

I don't think that's where we are, but I do think we need to raise our voice more clearly. Wow. Well, from your mouth to God's ears, Jerry, let's hope and pray that at some point our elected leaders begin to understand this and that we embrace our role as the church, the body of Christ, to handle God's money in a way that he designed it to be handled, not as an end, but as a means to an end to accomplish his purposes. Jerry, so thankful for you, my friend. We appreciate you being with us today.

And for you. God bless. All right. That's Jerry Boyer, our resident economist. He's president of Boyer Research.

You can read his insightful columns for World News Group at wng.org. All right. Your calls are next.

The number, 800-525-7000. I'm Rob West, and this is Faith and Finance Live. We'll be right back. Well, it's great to have you with us today on Faith and Finance Live.

I'm Rob West. It's time to take your calls and questions. Wasn't that a great conversation with Jerry Boyer? I always learn so much when Jerry is here.

It's so encouraging. I know there's some hard things to think about in that conversation because we wish things are different in some respects as we think about where we find ourselves as a nation and just how this nation responded as we put these biblical principles into our founding and understood the Council of Scripture as it relates to a whole host of issues. But certainly economics and wealth creation and the importance of valuing human life and working and productivity and sound money and all of those things. And yet we've in some ways lost our way in that.

And we're going to reap the consequences of that. And yet we still can operate in our own economies in light of biblical wisdom and pray for our leaders and elect those leaders who understand God's principles. And I think there's plenty of reason to be encouraged as well, but always grateful for Jerry's insightful analysis and taking us back to the scriptures as we look through a biblical lens at all of these topics, whether it's this nation's economy or your personal finances.

And that's where we want to go next. So what are you thinking about today financially? We've got some lines open for you, and we'd love to tackle your financial question in light of those biblical principles and passages. So give us a call right now with lines open 800-525-7000. Again, that number 800-525-7000. Let's begin today in Worcester, Ohio, WCRF. Ben, I know we couldn't get you on yesterday, so I'm delighted that we are today. Go right ahead.

Hey, Rob, thanks for taking my call. We are legal custodians of a minor, and she is getting ready to receive, she's by all definitions an orphan. Both parents are deceased, but she's receiving an inheritance from the estate, which the lawyers and everyone's kind of telling me that we should probably put in a custodial account, like basically through a trust. But they mentioned UTMA and I'm not really familiar with what those are. I've tried to look online.

What are those and what are the good things, bad things about them? Yeah, well, I'm delighted to hear that you're caring for this precious little one, and we want to be good stewards of the resources that are going to be for her care and provision in the future. You're right. There are a couple of options you could go, and I would get some counsel from an attorney who can help you navigate kind of the legal instruments and how to set this up in a way that allows you to keep this money for its intended purpose, to make sure that it's available for her care at the appropriate time, and that you understand the tax implications of all of it. UTMA and UGMA are essentially the same. The UTMA is similar to the original UGMA, which came first, which essentially allows minors to receive gifts, and it allows those funds to be invested. They're under the control of the person that sets them up, but ultimately become the asset of the child at the age of majority, which is typically 18 in most states.

So it's a way to transfer financial assets to a minor, but without setting up that formal trust. Now, it's taxed in terms of the unearned income that's generated from the investments, because it can be invested. It's taxed at the child's rate between $1,250 and $2,500. Below $1,250, there is no tax. It would be at the child's rate up to $2,500, and then at that point, it would flip over through the kiddie tax to the parent's or account owner's marginal rate at that point.

So there is some benefit, but obviously if there's a sizable amount here, you could quickly get beyond that $2,500 threshold. Now, one of the keys to the UTMA and UGMA is they do become the child's asset. It's managed by the adult custodian, but only up to the child's age of majority. So if that's 18 in your state at the age of 18, they take over full control of that money, whereas a trust would have some other controls where, you know, based on how that money was received and what instructions came along with it, perhaps there could be some more controls in place that allow it to be distributed based on other triggering factors, reaching a certain age or it being distributed over time. There could be some guidelines around how that money is distributed versus the UGMA and UTMA, which just automatically becomes, you know, the child's control at the age of majority. So I think that's perhaps the thing for you to look into with an attorney is, you know, how do we want this to be distributed? Are we comfortable with all of this being under the control of the child when he or she turns 18?

And if not, should we consider a trust instead? Okay. And then, thanks. That's really helpful.

The the tax part, you know, you mentioned that, obviously past the child's portion, it's taxed at the would that be the legal custodian or like so like it whoever owns the account? That's yes, that's that it would be. That's correct. Okay. Yeah.

All right. Well, so that's that requires Yeah, some further consulting, you know, both I think on the legal side and the tax side, just to see how that needs to be set up so that, you know, you're handling that properly and the most effective way so that obviously the key is for it to be used for her benefit. But you also just want to be wise about, you know, where it is between now and then does it get invested or not? What about the tax implications?

And then ultimately, how do we want to pass it over for her use at some point down the road? So I think getting some counsel on that will go a long way. Hey, God bless you, Ben, we appreciate you being on the program today.

And may the Lord bless you. Well, folks, we're just getting started here on faith and finance live, we have a lot of ground to cover. Coming up, just around the corner, we'll stay in Ohio and talk to Tim.

He wants to know, he has the opportunity to sell his home wants to think about investing the savings and he's wondering, should he liquidate that property? We've also got room for your questions today. 800-525-7000.

That's 800-525-7000. You know, folks, as we think about our role in handling God's money, our goal, faithfulness. Those who have been given a trust must prove faithful is what God's word says. We want to help you be that wise and faithful steward here on this program as we live in light of scripture with an eternal perspective. We'll be right back on faith and finance live. Stay with us. Well, it's great to have you with us today on faith and finance live.

I'm Rob West. Hey, if you haven't downloaded the faith by app, check it out today. You'll find it on our website, faithfi.com, faithfi.com.

Just click the app tab or in your app store wherever you get apps. Just search for faith by faith and finance. It will give you not only broadcast archives of this program and access to our community where every day stewards like you are posting questions, sharing ideas on how to manage God's money wisely. Also, our content library is there with the best articles, videos, and podcasts in biblical finance, and you can manage your spending through the spending plan portion, the money management portion of the app, which allows you to have three different approaches to choose from. One that is very hands off all the way to the digital envelope system where you can connect your accounts to your institutions, download your transactions automatically with a pro subscription and know at any point, and if you're married, you and your spouse can have access to it together. What's left in each of those envelope categories? Do I need to stop spending in the eating out until the next paycheck?

Well, you'll know that information maybe for the first time so you can modify your behavior throughout the month and stay on budget. It's all there in the faith by app. You can download it today at faithfi.com. All right, back to the phones we go. Let's head to Ohio, Tim. Thanks for your patience. Go ahead, sir. Yeah, I'm in the help.

You've just been a tremendous help to all of us. And, of course, my faith is in God, not in the government, but I have a question. I have a point in my life where I can liquidate my properties as far as primary residence, that type of thing, and not incur enough of a profit for cap of gains, but I'm just wondering with the value dollar, everything else that's going going on in our world. Is there more of a likelihood that we should become more fluid or flexible with our, as far as our funds, freeing them up, maybe selling some of the properties, or is it better to, you know, especially with the value dollar, is it better to just hold on to our properties, especially if they're paid off?

Yeah, well, I appreciate that question, Tim. You know, I wouldn't make any moves financially based on the prospect of the dollar losing reserve status based on a potential credit crisis here in this country. I think any of those, they're not certainties by any stretch. And if we were to see either of them or any kind of, you know, collapse of the banking system where, you know, we can't get access to funds, things like that. I mean, I would say any of that is plausible, but it's way down the road.

I mean, it's barely on the horizon right now. And I think, God willing, we'll make some changes that won't keep us on this trajectory. You know, we are obviously have some significant headwinds, you know, the debt in this country, the fact that we're spending beyond our means, the fact that our largest national federal expenditure will be interest. The fact that, you know, so much of our debt is held overseas, the fact that demographics are working against us, we're having less children, and so we've got an aging workforce. I mean, no doubt we have some issues.

But despite that, God has been incredibly gracious to us. You know, we have the strongest and largest economy in the world. The U.S. dollar is by far the de facto reserve currency. Sixty percent of the global reserves are held in U.S. dollars. Ninety percent of trades are still held in U.S. dollars. I mean, it doesn't matter whether it's BRICS or the euro or any other currency.

There's just not a viable alternative and there wouldn't be for some time. So what do you do with that? Well, I think the key is to be faithful in managing what God has entrusted to you. So what would be more of a concern or a priority for me than trying to raise cash or, you know, think about how you could position yourself for an impending collapse? I would rather you just be wise in terms of building out a solid investment portfolio that is properly diversified, because that would take us back to Ecclesiastes that, you know, really where this idea of diversification came from, we don't want all of our eggs in one basket.

So I kind of like the idea of you having multiple asset classes. I love real estate. I love the physical property that you'd have there, the tangible asset. We know that there's a shortage of homes in this country. Real estate will continue to do well.

We'll get past this challenge with the high interest rates. And so I think that makes sense as long as it fits into your overall plan. I also like you having stocks and bonds in a properly diversified portfolio, owning real companies, preferably even companies that align with your values that are promoting human flourishing and provide a good value to you in terms of income and capital appreciation. And then I like you having some reserves that are liquid and emergency savings, perhaps as much as six months worth of reserves. I like you giving generously, holding it loosely and keeping your focus on the Lord.

So you just kind of managing, you know, Tim's economy or your family's economy personally in light of diversification and a sound investment strategy is probably the preeminent thing for me more so than how do we position ourselves because of what could happen down the road. Does that make sense, though? Definitely. Good.

Okay, so then, yeah, no worries. So then we come back to the question, okay, so what do we do with the property? And I think that's then a question of, well, you know, how does it fit with the rest of your investable assets? What kind of return is it generating? You know, do you need more cash flow or is it cash flowing just fine? You know, how do you like being a landlord? I mean, you, you know, I think we're, we're then looking at all of those kinds of things and saying, you know, what is my ultimate savings goal? How much is enough? And that requires some prayer, some conversation about your values and your priorities and some financial analysis to say, what do we ultimately need in the way of assets, both liquid and non liquid?

And what kind of income do we need to generate to live whatever lifestyle we believe God has called us to? You know, with real estate, there's this additional consideration of you being a landlord. I think you've got to put all of that together in the context of a well thought out financial plan, and then, you know, make the decision as to whether it makes sense to keep that piece of real estate continue to allow to generate income for you, or whether it's better positioned by liquidating it. You said you don't have any capital gains.

So then you can redeploy it in a more passive investment strategy, likely stocks and bonds, maybe a little bit of precious metals. Does that all make sense? Well, we don't have one of those, but we do have God's word. And we know that in the end, we know how the story ends. We know that our abundance is in him. And you acknowledge that from the from the get go here and in our conversation today. And we know that, you know, before even the first dollar, we're rich, right? Because what Jesus has done for us on the cross to adopt us into the family of God put us in a right standing with God the Father. And now we get to manage God's money, whatever he entrust to us wisely, and in light of eternity, because we realize that this world is going to pass away. And, you know, when we look at our lives in the context of God's grand story from everlasting to everlasting, the only way for us to have a real impact is to anchor our lives to him, first giving our lives to Jesus.

But also, I think that includes the temporal wealth that he entrusts to us as well. So hey, God bless you, Tim. We appreciate you checking with us today. It's a great question and all the best to you and your wife and family as you make some of these decisions moving forward. Well, folks, we still got a lot more to come here on faith and finance live when we come back.

Valerie in Tampa Bay has been holding patiently. She's got an annuity that's maturing, wanting to know what to do with that. And David's wondering about taking a lump sum of his pension benefits.

That's always an interesting question. Do we take that monthly income stream or do we get that lump sum? Which one is better? Perhaps your question as well at 800-525-7000. My name is Rob West and it's my privilege each day to be able to take you back to God's word to explore the principles and passages we find in Scripture related to money management so you can make the practical decisions you need to make every day. Stay with us. We'll be right back after this. Well, it's great to have you with us today on faith and finance live. I'm Rob West.

Let's head right back to the phones to Tampa Bay. Hi, Valerie. Go right ahead.

Hello, Rob. I just want to first share with you and your listeners that I as a single woman and then married have followed all the principles that you have taught and with Larry Perquet's teachings about God's principles on economics. And I'm just letting your listeners know you do what's been preaching the truth and God will move you mightily. There's no greater than to be there's nothing greater to be free from working in the world system and able now to serve completely with God and give his money back to into his kingdom. Well, thank you for sharing that Valerie. I couldn't agree more and delighted to hear that's certainly been the experience in your life. So thanks for that testimony today of God's faithfulness.

How can I help you? I have a annuity coming up for renewal or it's maturing and I have choices I can do many different things and the advisor gives many different ideas, but it's approximately $46,000 is coming up for maturity. It's a Roth IRA.

I really feel led that we should put in something more secure. Maybe with some insured, you know, insured secured. Yes. And did you say it's a Roth IRA?

That is correct. Okay, so yeah, so the essentially are you considering between rolling it over to another annuity or moving it out just into a Roth and investing it on your own? Is that what you're considering? Well, I am wanting to roll it into another Roth of something, you know, whether it's a Roth IRA CD or something like that.

I just not comfortable putting it. We have other we're diversified also, okay, just like you shared with the other fellow, but I'm just not comfortable in leaving this out in the open to have high risk. It earned up to 25% for the six years it was in. So that's very good. Yeah, yeah.

Very good. Have you considered, who is managing the rest of your investable assets? I have there through, we go through an advisor through our credit union who has an investment in trust services. Okay, so what else do you have? Do you have other investable assets there? Yes. Okay. Yes. Other annuities, other stocks, other mutuals, a lot of different things.

Okay. So what about just transferring this out of, since the annuity is maturing, what about just rolling this over into a Roth IRA outside of an insurance product with that same advisor so that he or she can manage this in light of everything else? That would be okay, except I still want that protection, you know, these aren't, there was good protection here, you know, downsize protection, and some of the things, the products they have, and I'll call it the brokerage firm, you know, they don't have that protection. No, I think you have to choose, you know, so you, you're always giving something up in exchange for that downside protection. So you gain the peace of mind and to your point with an insurance product, like an annuity, you get that floor where your assets can't lose, you know, beyond the principle that they have right now.

But what are you giving up to get that? Well, you're giving up upside potential. So, you know, you might get a portion of the upside on the investment if it's invested in, let's say, indexes, or they may just give you a stated guaranteed return. So if that's what you're looking for, then you could roll it over into an another annuity product that would give you that those same protections, if that's what you're after.

The other approach is to say, well, I'd rather have access to the money if I need it. So I don't want to tie it up in another insurance contract, because then I've got surrender penalties, and not to mention all the other fees and expenses embedded in it. And so then I'm just going to put it in a guaranteed investment, like a CD, where, you know, it's going to earn five and a half percent a year right now for, you know, the next 12 or 18 months. And then when it comes due, you'll consider what to do with it then. But I think the first question is, do I want to roll it over into another annuity? Or would I like to try to limit my risk or even have, you know, guarantees on the money? And if so, well, then I'm going to have to stay in the most conservative investments. And that's going to be your banking type products, like certificates of deposit, which sounds like it'd be a better fit for you. I the second one, I don't, okay, the second one we have, because like I said, we have other funds that they're, you know, some are aggressive, some are semi, and they're well protected, there's downsides and upside, protection, etc. I just, it's a Roth IRA, it's God's money, and I just feel more comfortable, especially with things happening, you know, to be more safe, or, you know, more protected, because it's not money we have to have, in a sense, but I want to be able to get to if we need it.

And we're free to get it, since we've met that age requirement. Yeah. Okay. Well, I you know, if you have a trusted advisor that's managing everything else, I would just have this conversation with your advisor and say, Listen, I want to roll this over to you. But I don't want to take any risk with it. I understand we're taking risk with other, you know, assets that you're managing with this particular asset, I'd like to just take advantage of these high interest rates right now. And let's buy a CD with it or something. But let that person have it. So it's all in one place.

But select the investments that meet your investment objectives with this particular portion of your assets. Okay, well, I appreciate it. I want to hear it from a solid Christian man. Okay. Well, thank you, Valerie. We appreciate you listening.

And thanks for your kind words about the program. And also for mentioning the late Larry Burkett. We're just incredibly grateful for how God continues to use his ministry even now. He's been gone for 20 years now. It's hard to believe. And yet, there's not a week that goes by that somebody doesn't mention the impact Larry's ministry had in their life. So that's great.

To Ocala we go. Hi, David, how can I help you? Hey, Rob, thank you. I got a offer for taking a lump sum distribution of my pension benefit.

Yeah. And my question is, is there any way to avoid that 20% tax federal tax on it? I can I can I have a few options of how I receive it, whether all of it, a partial direct rollover, or a full direct rollover. Okay, those direct rollover options would be a traditional IRA, an employee sponsored retirement plan, or a Roth IRA. I'm 50 I'll be 58 next month. And I just needed some advice because you're probably my only financial advisor I have.

Well, we only have a couple of minutes here on the radio. So it may behoove you just given the significance of these decisions for you to engage a financial advisor if you haven't already. There is a mandatory income tax withholding of 20%. That applies to most taxable distributions paid directly to you and a lump sum from an employer retirement plan.

Now, if you roll it over, you should be able to avoid that. And so that would be the key as to whether or not you could take that as a qualified rollover. Have you decided whether you're definitely taking the lump sum versus the payout? Well, I could take the lump sum or a monthly payment of around 87, which isn't much or if I do nothing in 2030, I can start receiving 154. I do have a 401k at the at the employment that I have now and a pension plan.

So I don't know if that helps you. Okay, yeah, I mean, I think you probably need to get some retirement planning here as a part of this. So you can really look at your overall financial picture, what are your income needs going to be in retirement?

What income sources do you have? And then they can look at kind of the internal rate of return calculation on, you know, what would you need to earn on this money to equal what you would get in the pension payments, you know, based on your life expectancy or, you know, maybe you go out to age 90. You need to consider, you know, what that payout would be for you or you plus your spouse if you're married, because you don't want this to be a key part of your income and then you pass away and then your spouse is left without that payout. You know, the pension payments for the rest of your life can give you some peace of mind there. There's also in some cases, you know, it's better to take the lump sum because then you have more control over the money, it gives you flexibility over on how you want to spend it or invest it.

You can do that how you see fit. You know, studies tend to show that retirees with the monthly pension income are more likely to maintain their spending levels than those who take lump sums. And then you've also just got to consider, you know, what if the, you know, pension administrator goes bankrupt? Now, for most people, the pension benefit guarantee corporation, the insurance is going to cover them, but you just need to make sure that that, you know, is, you know, you would qualify with your particular pension. So, you know, I would just have somebody look at your overall financial plan and help you develop a strategy that meets your goals based on your values, that addresses, you know, giving you the peace of mind that you and your wife are looking for that meets your income needs for the rest of your life and your wife's life and gives you the flexibility to be able to use that money as you see fit, invest it and even pass it on as an inheritance or, you know, give it away to charity at your death. So I think there's just a host of considerations there that you need to look at, you know, as you make this decision. So what I would do, David, is connect with a certified kingdom advisor there in Florida. You could do that on our website at faithfi.com. Just click find a CKA and do some of that planning.

I think that'll give you some more peace of mind just to make sure that you've thought through the whole picture before you made that final decision. Quickly to Park Rapids, Minnesota. Craig, I've got just about 45 seconds.

How can I help you? Okay, I have 10,000 and I bond and I can get a higher rate of interest in a CD from my credit union. I do.

I've got a nonprofit I'm leaving for Thailand. I think I can transfer that out of the Treasury direct by online and move it into the CD. I think that's the correct decision.

Yeah, I like that option a lot. I mean, you know, when they were at six, when they were at 9.6, it was great. Then they dropped down I bonds to 6.8. Now we're at 4.3. You're probably going to get somewhere in the middle, the aggregate rate, if you've held it for a year between 4.3 and 6.8, you are going to lose if you've held it less than five years, three months worth of interest as a penalty.

But that's okay because I agree with you. Now's the time not to be invested in I bonds moving forward, because those rates the composite rates going to continue to drop. So taking advantage of the higher rates and CDs makes a lot of sense. If you want an institution that shares your values, check out join Christian community.com. That's the Christian Community Credit Union. Thanks for your call. I'm grateful for my team Lynn, Amy, Dan and Jim faith and finance live as a partnership between Moody radio and faith by see you tomorrow.