What’s Wrong with Traditional Investing?
We believe the Bible clearly encourages followers of Jesus to partner with companies that reflect God's character and kingdom. We express this belief through investing in companies that produce good products while also upholding good practices that in turn provide good profits.1
Traditional financial advising and retirement planning have focused on diversified portfolios, mainly in public securities that minimize risk while maximizing return (profit). This over-emphasis on return has inherently ignored whether or not companies have good products or good practices that align to God’s Character and advance His Kingdom.
Unfortunately, the most common retirement portfolios invest in companies that have an impact that is contrary to Christian values. This is a shocking realization to investors who seek to honor God with their entire lives.
However, investing doesn’t have to work this way!
In Traditional Investment Portfolios:
You could be funding anti-Christian causes without knowing it.
As followers of Jesus, should we invest in companies that are compromising our biblical values and working contrary to the Kingdom of God? We should abhor what is evil while holding fast to what is good (Romans 12:9).
The only goals are personal—risk mitigation and return maximization.
As Stewards of the Lord’s resources, should our only desired outcomes from our investments be to mitigate risk and maximize our personal financial return? What would it look like for us to do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than ourselves as we look not only to our own interests but also to the interests of others (Philippines 2:3-4).
Investment performance is typically focused on temporal outcomes, rarely considering eternal treasure.
While we do not want to be the foolish farmer in Luke 12:13-21 who built bigger barns to support his quest for comfort and “guaranteed” security, our current financial planning and advising industry is built upon principles that can lead to hoarding wealth and the insatiable pursuit of temporal comfort and self reliance. Let’s explore faith-driven investment ideals that can provide for your and your family's temporal needs while seeking eternal impact that stores up treasures in heaven (Matt. 6:19-24).
Your financial advisor may not know how to align your investments with your Christian values.
Just as you would need a qualified trail guide to lead you through the Himalayas, it's important to partner with the right guide(s) to serve and support you on your faith-driven investing journey (Proverbs 11:14, Proverbs 24:3-6)
Let’s Get Started!
Footnote:
Credit to Jason Myhre, Executive Director of the Eventide Center for Faith & Investing for shaping the language we use to describe this conviction. We highly endorse Jason’s “God’s Story for Faith & Investing” course!
