From a recent talk given to Houghton University students:
Good morning, students and faculty. It's really a privilege to speak with you today about a unique perspective on the profession of financial advice that goes beyond numbers and portfolios.
First, let me give a little background. This is my second career. My first career was in the ladies’ fashion industry. I ended that career as president of a large company in New York City that produced ladies’ lingerie all over the world. As such, I traveled a lot, made a lot of money and had a dream job – Paris, Lyon, Barcelona, Hong Kong, China, and New York.
Why am I telling you this? Because when the company got bought out and I no longer had the big boss job, I still had the over-priced stupidly large house, the expensive cars, the private schools, and so on…I discovered that I'd never learned how to handle my money well. The short story is that I lost everything… and I mean everything.
But God - I had a couple friends from Bible study who came around me, encouraged me to get my head on straight. They pointed out that I had a huge contact list, I had made presentations to presidents of major retailers, I can talk to anyone, I am good with numbers, and I love people. I should consider being a financial advisor. Strange, isn’t it? That someone who lost everything and never knew how to handle money would be a financial advisor. But I did. And now I have a passion to serve people and let them know what I have learned, and that even if they’ve screwed up, God still has a better plan for them. God IS the redeemer.
God brought me Jan – and four adult children I didn’t plan on. God surrounded me with wise counsel – and service to over 300 households and millions of dollars in my care that I never could have predicted. In short, God made clear my calling.
And here I am today, with a very successful and growing Christian based financial firm. All God. So, with this passion to share, I’m so very grateful to come here today and do so with you. But you need to know that I am uniquely qualified to do what I do, because none of my clients will ever be financially in a place that I have not already been.
So, what’s the message? I'd like to share how Christian financial advisors really serve as missionaries in environments where traditional ministry and missionaries might never reach.
In fact, most Christian financial advisors (Kingdom Advisors) have a more intimate knowledge of what is important to the people we reach than do their pastors, their relatives, and the best friends. You see, most people don’t talk about their personal money issues in our society. Whether it is pride, or fear of how other people will see them, or just stubborn reclusiveness, most people don’t share this with just anyone. But they do share it with us.
My mission field is the marketplace
The great evangelist Billy Graham said that the next great revival would not be in stadiums or churches, but in the marketplace.
Our calling as financial planners and advisors puts us in direct contact with people from all walks of life. Many of your clients may never step foot in a church, attend a Bible study, or engage with Christian community in any traditional sense. Yet they will spend hours with you, discussing their deepest hopes, fears, and values as they relate to money, their family, their jobs, who they aspire to be, and how they want to live the rest of their lives. Pastors and missionaries wish they could get the attention of such people, and God puts them in front of us every day.
We are not like an accountant or attorney, who have a transactional relationship with people. We see them several times a year. We hold their hands during tough times, we celebrate when things are going well – in short, we do life with them. Less than half of our clients are Christians. But God - But God placed them in our care as fiduciaries to always act in the client’s best interest. Shouldn’t that include their spiritual welfare as well?
As Scripture tells us in Matthew 5:14-16: "You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden... let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven."
Quite frankly, the financial world often operates under values directly contradictory to what we know as Kingdom principles. In this environment, your integrity, compassion, and wisdom can stand as a profound witness.
We Guide People Beyond Transactions to Transformation
Make no mistake, there is a big difference between being an advisor who warms the pew on Sunday morning and happens to be a Christian and being a Christian Financial Advisor – a Kingdom Advisor. What separates a Christian financial advisor from others isn't just adding a prayer to client meetings, which we often do. It's approaching the entire profession as ministry. It’s sharing biblical financial principles in a way that can change lives. Did you know that there are over 2,000 versus in the Bible that refer to stewardship and how we should handle the blessings that God has entrusted to us? Jesus spoke about it more than any other subject. Shouldn’t we take that as a hint that we should pay attention in our own lives?
Proverbs 11:14 reminds us that "Where there is no guidance, a people falls, but in an abundance of counselors there is safety." As advisors, you provide that safety, not just financially but spiritually.
· When clients face difficult financial situations, you have the opportunity to demonstrate grace.
· When they struggle with financial decisions, you can model patience.
· When they achieve goals, you can exemplify gratitude to God rather than self-congratulation.
· We are often one of those first phone calls after a major event, whether a tragedy, a job loss, a divorce, or the birth of a new child. When you think about it, all those things are intertwined with finances.
· We’ve attended countless funerals (and weddings!) because we do life together with our clients.
· We’ve counseled non-believing newlyweds to see marriage differently. We’ve grieved with the man who just lost his wife and the widow whose only son wrapped his car around a tree.
But whether grieving with those who grieve or celebrating with those who celebrate, we are given many opportunities to bear witness for Christ.
I thought you just managed money
Of course, we also manage money for people. But that, too, becomes a place to witness. We talk about ownership as a responsibility. If the floor of your local deli or restaurant is dirty, whose responsibility, is it? Of course, ultimately, it is the owner’s responsibility. If that’s the case, when you own stock in a company, isn’t it ultimately your responsibility what the company does? In fact, the simple issue is – if you believe the Bible, and it clearly says that all things are God’s, then your money is God’s to steward. So we ask our clients what they intend to do with God’s money. How much for giving back, what companies are you willing to own – or eliminate? Do you have values? Do you have values that you hold so deeply that you wouldn’t want to violate those values simply to make a profit?
But Faith-based investing isn't simply avoiding "sin stocks." It's about active stewardship of resources in ways that honor God and advance His purposes. Money management becomes an act of worship.
Colossians 3:23-24 instructs us: "Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ."
This scripture revolutionizes how we view investing. Consider:
1. Integrity in all recommendations, never putting commission before client needs
2. Seeing investing as responsible ownership
3. Helping clients align their investments with their values
4. Encouraging generosity and kingdom-mindedness
5. Discussing the spiritual implications of financial decisions
When you help clients invest according to biblical principles, you're not just helping them avoid certain industries – you're teaching them that every resource belongs to God and should be managed accordingly.
And yes – we discuss things this way, whether we are in front a believer or not. Everyone has values. Everyone would like to think they are doing the right thing. They just need a clear message from someone bold enough to share it. Most financial advisors don’t know how to do this. So most clients never hear about it. But when they do, lives change. Talk about a marketplace ministry!
Let’s talk about the Ministry of Financial Peace
Many people experience tremendous anxiety about money. Scripture addresses this directly in Matthew 6:25-26: "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on... Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?"
As Christian financial advisors – Kingdom advisors, you have the unique opportunity to minister peace in an area where many experience significant stress. You can demonstrate what it looks like to trust God with finances while still practicing wise stewardship.
I can tell you this: We have clients who come to us with $10,000 and clients that come to us with $10 million. Every client has one question in mind: “Are we going to be okay?” Our job is to provide some peace in their lives. No, we can’t really do that alone. Real peace comes from Jesus. And Jesus is shared in everyday things you say and do in the presence of those God has entrusted to you just by putting them in contact with you.
And we are Reaching the Unreached
Jesus gave us the Great Commission in Matthew 28:19-20: "Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you."
The financial marketplace is your mission field. Your clients may include:
- Successful professionals who find their identity in wealth accumulation
- Families struggling with debt who feel shame and isolation
- Elderly clients facing end-of-life financial decisions without a spiritual foundation
- Young professionals making their first investments without moral guidance
Each represents an opportunity to demonstrate Christ's love through excellent service, wise counsel, and genuine care.
I want to live as a Witness
1 Peter 3:15 tells us to "always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect."
Your professional excellence will open doors for these conversations. When clients ask why you operate differently – why you're more transparent, more focused on their well-being than your commission, more concerned with their long-term flourishing than quick returns – you have the opportunity to share your faith naturally and authentically.
Of course, this means vulnerability on your part. You have to be willing to share your heart, your journey, your failures along the way, and how God redeemed those choices to create a “New Thing,” as Isaiah declared,
Behold, I will do a new thing,
Now it shall spring forth;
Shall you not know it?
I will even make a road in the wilderness
And rivers in the desert.
Jan and I are evidence that God really can “do a new thing,” and we’re so grateful for that.
The Eternal Impact of Financial Ministry
We're reminded in 1 Timothy 6:17-19: "As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy. They are to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, thus storing up treasure for themselves as a good foundation for the future."
Your work as Christian financial advisors has eternal implications. You're not just helping clients build retirement accounts; you're helping them understand stewardship in light of eternity. If God owns it all, what are you doing with God’s money?
Conclusion
As you consider your future careers, I encourage you to see financial advising as more than a profession. It's a calling – a mission field where your technical expertise becomes a vehicle for kingdom impact.
Remember the words of Paul in 2nd Corinthians 5:20: "Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us."
In the financial marketplace, you may be the only ambassador for Christ that some people ever encounter. Your integrity, compassion, and wisdom may be the only Bible some clients ever read.
May you approach this calling with reverence, excellence, and joy, knowing that through faithful service in the financial realm, you're advancing God's kingdom in places traditional ministry and missionaries probably will never reach.
Thank you.