Matching A Steward Investor’s Goals with God’s Goals
by Don Simmons
In my previous post I offered the good news of engaging in worldwide missions through investing into missional businesses.
In order to effectively move capital from where it is stored up (retirement accounts, charitable funds, savings accounts) to where it is in short supply (SMEs in emerging markets, corrupt communities, or impoverished lands), we need to reconsider our personal investment goals.
What are your investment goals? If you are like most people, your goals probably include high financial return, minimal risk, and tax avoidance. Have you ever thought about why you have those particular goals?
What do you believe matters to God? Frequently people respond by saying that the Great Commission and the Great Commandment matter to God. Have you ever considered that your investments should be aligned with God’s objectives and His purposes since He is, in fact, the true owner of your investments?
What is the connection between our wealth and the kingdom of God?
The familiar story of Jesus’ conversation with the Rich Young Ruler, in which he asks him to sell everything and give to the poor, challenges the common blindness we exhibit when viewing the connection between our wealth and the kingdom of God.
Fiduciaries are obligated to manage another’s resources according to the true owner’s wishes. As God’s fiduciary, managing God’s resources, we must do some hard work and think through questions like these:
1. Does my portfolio look any different than someone’s who does not proclaim Jesus as their Savior?
If we are merely investing to achieve financial returns and protect our holdings either for our own comfort or to pass on to our children, then we are not investing any differently than the majority of investors on the planet. We cannot ignore Jesus’ teaching on Mammon in Matthew where he challenges the assumption that a person can serve both God AND Mammon.
The spirit of Mammon—self-protective, impatient, risk averse, controlling, selfish— has infected our entire economic system and has gotten into our own heads. The spirit of Jesus is the exact opposite. Therefore, we must consider looking at and deploying capital and investments in a way that honors Jesus’ nature of others-centeredness, selflessness, patience, sacrifice, and generosity.
2. Does my obligation to be a fiduciary of His resources apply only to my tithe and donations or does it apply to every asset that I control including my bank account, my home, my retirement account, my automobile, and even my emergency cash reserve?
While giving money away after it’s been made is one component of stewardship, we have a calling and responsibility to invest money in order to achieve God’s purposes. To do so, we must invest not just to increase our personal net worth, but to bring relief and hope to those who are vulnerable, exploited, or impoverished.
If we falsely assume that donations are sacred and investments are secular, we fail to understand the all-inclusive nature of God’s ownership. Thankfully, through BAM and other similar movements, believers have more opportunities than ever to deploy investment capital as a powerful tool for growing the kingdom of God.
3. If an auditor reviewed my portfolio or nest egg, would it suggest that I should be convicted for embezzlement because I invest primarily to support my own lifestyle and comfort while investing nothing or very little in businesses that have clearly defined spiritual impact plans?
The Bible issues a stark warning to us through the apostle John’s words to the Church at Laodicea, which applies very well to many contemporary Christian investors:
I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, “I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.” But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. (Rev. 3:15-17)
It is not wrong or evil to have wealth. However, seeking to accumulate wealth for our own indulgence, comfort, and security so that we can say, “I do not need a thing because I am financially independent,” seems to be the character flaw that John warns against. We are, in fact, managing God’s resources as His fiduciaries.
We must set our eyes on eternal outcomes by bringing the good news to all nations. Focusing on our own financial goals rather than addressing the material injustices and spiritual poverty actually leaves us poor and blind.
Many Business as Mission enterprises around the world have contextualized and profound spiritual impact plans in place to effect spiritual, social, environmental AND financial gains in their communities. These businesses require capital to start and grow and our investment into such businesses will help us align with the goals of God, the True Owner of our resources.
Invest God’s Resources for Eternal Impact
If you were to review your financial status over the past five years, what has grown more: your personal net worth or the portion of your portfolio that is proactively deployed into missional enterprises? Your answer may reveal whether you are serving Mammon or God, whether you are hot, cold or lukewarm.
Let’s be willing to look at where our wealth and self-interest have actually made us more poor and wretched. A better understanding of the power of leveraging investment resources can lead God’s people to deeper engagement in his redemptive plans for the world.
For more information on becoming a steward investor, visit www.thestewardinvestor.com. Together we can grow the kingdom of God through offering investment capital to missional and redemptive businesses.
Don Simmons has over thirty years of experience building and managing a boutique investment firm in upstate New York that he founded in 1988. A CFP® Professional with a degree in counseling and post graduate training as a portfolio asset allocation specialist, Don fuses professional portfolio strategy with investor psychology and behavior to provide a well-informed perspective on our role as Christian steward-investors. With nearly a quarter billion dollars of assets under management, his firm consistently ranks among the top 1% of financial advisor practices in the United States. Read more…
NEW BOOK: The Steward Investor
