Perspective is Everything
By Dr. Gerald House
In the realm of retirement planning, everyone seeks answers to three questions: How am I doing, how much is enough, and will it continue to be enough? The answers can be elusive and difficult to define, and they can change over time. However, with a Godly perspective, these questions find simple answers in the Bible, a text that transcends the boundaries of time. The Bible, a timeless and reliable guide, remains the same today as it was over two thousand years ago, giving us a profound sense of reassurance and security in our financial decisions.
The question regarding how I am doing is simply a math problem—or is it? You can determine your financial position at any given time by completing a personal financial statement. You simply add up all your assets and subtract liabilities to determine your net worth. Next, compare your net worth to your established long-term goals. This simple math problem works well in a secular world, but how does it compare to a biblical worldview? God wants to know if we have been good stewards of His resources. How do you stand as a good steward of His resources—including money? Psalm 24 is a good start.
The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it,
the world, and all who live in it; (Psalm 24:1, NIV).
Understanding that God is the ultimate owner of everything relieves us of the burden of ownership. We are simply stewards of His resources, accountable to Him for our management. This is like being a real estate property manager. If we consider there are only four uses of money, five if you separate taxes from personal debt, Live, Give, Owe, and Grow. We can use our money in one of these five ways: to pay living expenses, give to charity, pay personal debt, pay taxes, and grow our savings/investments. Your overall perspective determines how you order these items. If you fall into the trap of the worldly flow of funds, your typical use of money falls in this order: paying first for lifestyle expenses, paying taxes, and paying debt, with little to give or saving left over. However, a Biblical perspective finds us prioritizing giving first, then paying taxes, next paying debt, and then setting aside money for savings and investing. The results left over are for living expenses. This priority may find us living a lifestyle lower than we want. We may need to adjust our lifestyle to accommodate this biblical order. This sense of accountability to God in our financial management instills in us a deep sense of responsibility and commitment.
Financial maturity is being able to give up today’s desires for future benefits
One day, we will stand before our creator to give an account of our stewardship. Remember the parable of the talents in Mathew 25:14-30? How would you answer the question of “how am I doing” from a biblical perspective? How would you rate your stewardship? The perspective of being a manager of God's resources is everything.
Answering the question of “how much is enough” leads to contentment. Unlike the secular worldview, where many advisors liken the answer to this question to a fixed number, a biblical worldview takes us on a journey of discovering our contentment barometer. 1 Timothy 6: 6-8 sums up this message.
But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that (1 Timothy 6: 6-8, NIV).
The answer to “How much is Enough?”, according to scripture, is what you have. Philippians 4:11-13 gives us some insight into how the apostle Paul viewed this situation.
I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength (Philippians 4:11-13, NIV).
We are to take the attitude of not having any regrets about the past, no fear of the future, and no envy in the present. God’s provision is enough. Again, in 1 Timothy 6:8, we are reminded that having food and clothing is enough to be content with our situation. The late Larry Burkett stated, “It is my responsibility to provide. It is God’s responsibility to protect” (Burkett, 2010). God does not want us to fear the future by wondering what the future will bring. Jesus’s sermon on the mount in Mathew 6:25-34 is a perfect example of God’s loving protection for us. This does not mean we are not to provide for our loved ones. The statement in 1 Timothy 5:8 should open our eyes to how God expects us to do our part.
Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever (1 Timothy 5:8, NIV).
The question of how much is enough, then, is to reconcile our Live, Give, Owe, and Grow decisions. If we have prioritized according to a biblical worldview, then satisfying the five uses of money answers the question of how much is enough. If our cash flow provides all five of these areas, even after retirement, then that is enough. Consequently, satisfying the five uses of money typically becomes our short-term goal.
Finally, the last question in the minds of those who are unsure of how long their money will last depends on our long-term goals and perspective, of course. We move into the category of enjoyment, especially in our retirement years. Naturally, the worldly perspective would have us in fear of running out of money before we run out of life. It is common for many advisors to enrich themselves by overestimating the amount of money we need to survive through our last stage of life. Instead, we should adopt a biblical perspective in this area and not fear what the future will bring. Proverbs 23:4-5 helps us gain a better understanding in this area.
Do not wear yourself out to get rich; do not trust your own cleverness.
Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings
and fly off to the sky like an eagle (Proverbs 23:4-5, NIV).
The category of enjoyment is best described in 1 Timothy 6:17-19.
Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life (1 Timothy 6:17-19, NIV).
Identifying our long-term goals will give us insight and a good starting point. Many long-term goals include financial independence, charitable giving, freedom from debt, lifestyle desires, family needs, or possibly starting a new business. These long-term goals appear to be common. One thing to keep in mind is that there is a tradeoff between short-term and long-term goals because the only way to reach long-term goals is to save for them. Once we have accomplished our long-term desires, we are free to give more to further God’s Kingdom. Do not be like the rich man in the parable of the rich fool.
Someone in the crowd said to him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.”
Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed me a judge or an arbiter between you?” Then he said to them, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; life does not consist in an abundance of possessions.”
And he told them this parable: “The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’
“Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. And I’ll say to myself, “You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’
“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
“This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God” (Luke 12:13-21, NIV).
Perspective is everything
Your faithful servant
References
Burkett, L., & Bentley, C. (2010). Debt-free living: How to get out of debt and stay out. Moody Publishers.
Holy Bible, NIV. (2013). Zondervan.
