Episode 192 - Are You Being Financially Steered or Shepherded? with Kingdom Advisors
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In a world where financial advice is evolving from product-driven to values-driven approaches, Kingdom Advisors CEO Rob West reveals how 2,700 Christian financial professionals are transforming the industry through biblical stewardship. With an estimated $20+ trillion in Christian wealth at stake, Wall Street firms are increasingly embracing faith-aligned investment strategies that prioritize Kingdom impact alongside returns. As Rob West reminds us, "True wisdom is not a perspective, it's a person and His name is Jesus."
Please note that the views expressed by the hosts and guests are their own and do not necessarily represent the opinions of Faith Driven Investor.
All opinions expressed on this podcast, including the team and guests, are solely their opinions. Host and guests may maintain positions in the companies and securities discussed. This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon as specific investment advice for any individual or organization.
Episode Transcript
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Richard Cunningham You're listening to Faith Driven Investor, a podcast that highlights voices from a growing movement of Christ -following investors who believe that God owns it all and cares deeply about the heart posture behind our stewardship. Thanks for listening.
Speaker 2 Hey everyone, all opinions expressed on this podcast, including the team and guests, are solely their opinions. Host and guests may maintain positions in the companies and securities discussed. And this podcast is for informational purposes only, and should not be relied upon as specific investment advice for any individual or organization. Thanks for listening.
Richard Cunningham Welcome back, everyone, to another episode of the Faith Driven Investor Podcast. A joy to have you with us for what is our March Marks on the Markets episodes. And while we're going to get into markets here and there today, we're doing something a little different as the Super Bowl Luke Rausch for kind of the financial services industry and Christian advisors in the financial services industry just took place February 19th to the 21st in Orlando, Kingdom Advisors Annual Conference. And we have got K .A.'s CEO Rob West with us here today to talk about. KA, the conference, everything that was coming out of that, some of the major themes and threads that we'll pull on. That's where we'll get some of that market commentary. But Luke, before we say hey to Rob West and get into an episode we're both really pumped about, you were at KA, you sent myself and a number of other folks an email about just how staggering and transformative an event like this was, kind of one of the seminal key moments for the broader movement. How are you, man? And tee up Rob a little more as well. We've got you.
Luke Roush Yeah, thanks, Richard. Well, as we've said many times before on this podcast, it takes a village as we embark on continuing to shape a whole industry and kingdom advisors every year for me is just it's a whole gigantic room full of fellow villagers who are trying to put their shoulder to the plow and be a part of really creating new culture. As Andy Crouch writes, it's easier to build new things than it is to change existing. And that's what Rob and the team have been at for many, many years so faithfully. So I'm really excited to have Rob on today. And I'm still riding off the high of a couple of days in Orlando.
Richard Cunningham Absolutely. Well, so Rob, once again, CEO of Kingdom Advisors, also hosts nationally syndicated radio program, Faith and Finance. Rob, I was just listening to that live show 20 minutes ago. So thanks for hopping over from Faith and Fi over to our FDI podcast recording. Joining us from Marietta, Georgia today. Awesome to have you with us, man. Congratulations on what was an unbelievably successful KA conference back in late February. How are you? Welcome to the FDI podcast.
Rob West Well, thanks. I'll tell you, it's great to be here. Richard and Luke, what a privilege. Have such respect for FDI and FDE and the movement. And you're right, it does take a village and we each play our parts. But yeah, we're riding high similarly on what God did in Orlando. We see that as the gathering of the Christian financial industry. And there was a lot of people gathered and the Lord was on the move. So thrilled to be able to share a little bit of what we saw there.
Richard Cunningham So Rob, set the stage for us a little bit on just K generally as an organization, obviously everything that built into the big event, I mean, huge, I mean, almost 3 ,000 attendees, the growth of the number of financial advisors that are coming each year, the speakers you pull in like Louis Giglio and Tim Tebow and Randy Alcorn, and then moving over to the kind of investing side, the Bob Dolls, David Bonsons, Brian Wesferis, Michael Kitsis, I mean, just an unreal lineup. Everyone raves about it each year, but kind of set the stage for us on just K generally and then kind of how that dovetails into this year's big event.
Rob West Yeah, thanks for asking, Richard. So, Kingdom Advisors goes back to 2003. So, we're 22 years old, founded by Ron Blue and the late Larry Burkett. And it was really birthed out of Ron's vision personally to help Christians plan and manage their finances so they'd have more money to give away. And it's this recognition, and this is really, I think, at the tip of the spear of our work at Kingdom Advisors is what drives our team today. And it's this. that God has allowed financial advisors to be the supply line for kingdom advancing capital through giving and investing. I mean, it's that simple. You know, if you think about it, when money is released, whether it's through capital deployment in faith -based investments or whether it's through generosity, it generally comes by way of a financial advisor that gives permission and really brings counsel and brings a plan and brings the products to the table. And so what that means is that we have the opportunity to really invest in these, let's call them financial pastors, that are advising on money. But as we know, who understand a biblical worldview and God's word, it's so much more than that. It really is issues of the heart. And so it puts these men and women in the center of this conversation that is so unique, really unlike the leveraged opportunity of anyone else as they engage with their clients. And so... We've built this community for advisors that want to bring their faith with them to work and help their clients plan, give, and invest God's money according to a Biblical worldview to really help those clients live as faithful stewards. And we do that by offering a designation, certified kingdom advisor. We can talk more about that a little later. Every major Wall Street firm just about has accepted CK and approved it as the only designation for biblically wise financial advice. But we also do this conference every year that we call Redeeming Money. And it's really, we like to say, the gathering of the Christian financial industry. And you're right, we've seen some incredible growth in that conference. Two years ago, we were sold out at 2 ,200, and we were up 20 % from the prior year. This year, we're up another 20 % at 2 ,700 with a sell -out crowd. And you know, Michael Kitsis, thought leader and industry leader in our space, He says, you know, Rob, most financial services conferences are not back to where they were pre -pandemic. And so why would we have seen 40 % growth over the last two years? And I think it really just speaks, and you all would see this as well in your work, it speaks to the momentum that's going on right now in our space. And that's for a variety of reasons, I think. Number one, I think the future of financial advice is really suited for financial advisors and offer faith -aligned advice and investments. because we believe that the future of financial advice is really, it's holistic, it's values driven, and it's really catering to the unique needs of clients. You know, there was a day where financial advice was largely product driven, and then it moved to goals -based planning, and I think now the future of financial advice is really around the intersection with values. And, you know, we're seeing significant demand on the part of believers, whether it's how they choose their movies. or how they choose their financial advisor. They want their faith reflected in every domain of their life, and that includes their money decisions. And so as a result of that, and as a result of the acceptance of the industry, the larger financial services industry around our niche, we're just seeing some incredible momentum.
Luke Roush maybe share a bit more just on that momentum because I've only been coming to the conference for five or six years now, Rob, and it's just been extraordinary even in the last five or six years. Me, talked about the last two or three. What do you think has really propelled that? And maybe just say more on what you were just alluding to in terms of an evolution and how Christ followers are thinking about stewarding what God has entrusted to them and the unique role that kind of river guide of an advisor has in shepherding them forward.
Rob West Yeah, it's a great question. You know, I think first of all, it really does speak to where financial advice is going. Number one, I think it speaks to the demand on the part of Christians that are really want to see their values reflected in in every decision they're making. But that includes the planning decisions, the giving decisions, and now the investing decisions that they're making as they're becoming familiar with the opportunity to really see incredible Kingdom impact alongside. really compelling risk adjusted returns with their investments and having an advisor who can bring that to the table. But what's fascinating is what's going on in the financial services industry as well, because what's unique about this conference is it's a gathering of 2 ,700 folks, massive group of advisors who are Christians bringing their faith with them to work. But you also see just about every major Wall Street firm represented at that event. And many of those Wall Street firms are bringing They're senior leaders all the way up to the C -suite. And you might ask, well, you know, why are they there? Why are they so supportive? And here's what they're recognizing is they're recognizing that when you can connect with your client at a values level, everyone wins, right? It creates better planning outcomes. It's a deeper relationship. You know, it's better for the client. It's better for the advisor. It's better for the firm. And so... What we're so excited about is that really the financial services industry has embraced our space. They're creating room in their firms for communities of faith -based advisors to come together. And they're adding products to the shelves. You know, the world -class, both public and private market products that are being created in the faith -based space. You know, one of the big pieces of the work that we do is engaging with these firms and helping them develop model portfolios and helping them think about. how they build out their faith -based investing product suite. And you put all that together, the consumer demand, the advisor energy, and the industry acceptance, it's a game changer. And then I would say the last thing is really just, it changes the why for the advisor. Because one of the things I hear most often when I get a call from an advisor is they'll say something like, Rob, I was ready to get out of the business. I was tired of helping people build bigger barns. And this changes everything because I've realized that my greatest opportunity for ministry is on the other side of the conference table, Monday through Friday. And when they can come home to the Kingdom Advisors Conference and not feel like they're on an island anymore, but they walk into the room and there's 2 ,700 people worshiping and sitting under Louis' teaching and then getting into the breakouts and getting in the best practices and then going into the exhibit hall and seeing 70 partners and world -class investment products all built for the Christian advisor. It's a game changer.
Luke Roush Well, I think it's a great comment just on the unique role that kingdom advisors plays and actually bringing together firms and individuals who work for firms who are very faith driven, but also many in the room that represent firms that would not be faith driven that ministry opportunity in the broader marketplace is really unique. And, you know, lest one might think, gosh, 2800 advisors, how many more advisors are there in the US that could possibly be reached? Maybe just describe kind of the broader opportunity that you guys are still staring at in terms of really impacting not just, you know, thousands of advisors, but also many times that many clients maybe speak to just kind of the size of the overall advisory space that is potentially reachable.
Rob West It's pretty compelling, you know, best we can tell there's about 350 ,000 client facing financial planners and investment professionals. So we're not talking about the CPAs, we're not talking about the insurance folks, we're not talking about the state planning attorney, we need them too. But just the financial planners and the wealth managers, it's about 350 ,000. And you could lay over top of that, you know, any number of statistics, but let's just use Farna's 26 % are practicing Christians. where their faith is very important to their lives. They're in church regularly and they self -identify as practicing Christians. Well, that's 90 ,000 advisors. That's our potential market that are out there today. Let's say we just get a third of those. I mean, what we really see is our true market potential at Kingdom Advisors is 30 ,000 advisors. You know, we serve about 4 ,000 that are members of Kingdom Advisors today. About 1 ,700 of those have earned our designation. And so. They've gone through a 50 hour training program, proctored exam, pastor and client reference, statement of faith, code of ethics, regulatory review, 10 hours of CE. I mean, we don't go easy on them, but those 1 ,700 are the ones that we then hold out to the public. You know those have a team. 80 ,000 Christians will come to our website this year and do a search for the Certified Kingdom Advisor, but there's a massive audience of advisors. And then you lay that on top of, and you guys, I'm sure have your own stats on this. I mean, best we can tell, there's probably somewhere north of $20 trillion in the hands of Christians today. I mean, just the advisors in that room at our conference probably represented $300 billion of investable assets. So. There's a compelling opportunity there. And, you know, one of the things I'll add just in terms of the potential is really what's happening with students. And you would have seen this, Luke, at the conference, but we had 250 undergraduate students at the conference this year from 25 universities, eight of those offering a CFP and a CKA, our designation, Certified Kingdom Advisor program, in their business school. So this is training the next generation of financial advisors. They're gonna graduate ready to sit for CFP, ready to sit for CKA, and our advisors are hiring them as fast as they graduate. We need more schools and more students because, here's an interesting stat, 38 % of today's financial advisors will be out of the business in 10 years. You know, the average age is 55. So they're putting this biblical advice model in place, and the last thing they wanna do is, you know, transition the practice to the next generation that's gonna unwind all of that. So they want these next gen students that are ready to kind of enter the business with impact on their minds on day one.
Richard Cunningham Incredible, Rob. I love how you guys have thought about almost every angle from next gen to those retiring out. Just, it's fun to hear how much space there still is to run in terms of growth. I mean, the one thing I keep thinking about is, as epic as that Orlando World Center Marriott is, are we going to grow out of that space? I mean, it just feels like it's been the staple KA host, but I can't imagine it can hold much more.
Rob West Yeah, it's interesting. We have that conversation with the Marriott all the time. We're contracted there through 2029 and they can go up to with our style of event, which is heavy on breakouts and workshops because, you know, from the main stage we're doing teaching to encourage the attendees spiritually. So that's where Louie Giglio and Tim Tebow and Andy Crouch and others. But then in the breakouts, it's the how -to's of biblical financial advice. And so we need a lot of We need a lot of space. So we can go up to 4 ,000 there, and then it'll be onto a convention center or something like that. But we've got a few years left.
Richard Cunningham That's awesome. Hallelujah. What a good problem to have.
Luke Roush Maybe speak a little bit about the certified kingdom advisor designation. Kind of what does it mean? Why is it advantageous for an advisor to sort of think about that? And maybe just speak to the origin of it. Cause I think that's a really compelling part of what kingdom advisors is doing to try to educate and also, you know, create a designation that implies expertise to a client.
Rob West I appreciate that. We realized a number of years ago that if we were going to really serve the public well, the Christian public who wanted an advisor who understood their worldview as Christ followers and could align their advice and now their investments with those values, that they really needed an advisor who'd been trained and that we could feel good about holding out to the public. And so we built the Certified Kingdom Advisor designation, but we built it. in line with all the industry norms. Because what's going on right now in financial services is most major wirehouses and Wall Street firms are reducing the number of designations. They're not adding them. There was a day where you could go to Vegas for the weekend, sit through a few courses and come home with a few letters after your name. And that's pretty much gone by the wayside. I mean, they're really skinning them down to only those that have true academic rigor and have you know, a public disciplinary process and have a code of ethics and annual CE requirements and the whole host. And so we built a designation that met every one of those industry standards. And then we added on top of those with a pastor reference and client reference and code of ethics and statement of faith. So we have a true designation that is widely accepted across the industry, which is really exciting. And what it does for us is, you know, there's been a lot of affinity fraud out there. Christians taken advantage of in the name of religion. And this really addresses that head on by making sure that we've got not only a really robust front end process before somebody can get the designation, but an ongoing process of annual renewal and CE. And so we're seeing real excitement about it. As I said, we've got 1700 advisors. What's pretty cool is just the growth track of CKA is pretty phenomenal. So just by comparison, certified financial planner CFP grew by between three and 4 % per year the last two years, three to 4 % each year. CK is up 11 and a half percent two years ago. We're on pace to be up 14 % this year. So the growth rate is pretty compelling. Now there's 100 ,000 CFPs and we've got 1 ,700. So we got a long way to go, but the trajectory and the glide path is right. And then that demand is growing pretty significantly. So those searches for a CKA on our website are gonna be up about 20 % plus this year from 68 ,000 to 80 ,000. So it's pretty fun to watch it all unfold.
Richard Cunningham That's awesome. Yeah, there's a competitive advantage to it as you're unpacking there, as people are looking for CKs and that values alignment when they sit down across from their advisor. That's amazing. Well, Rob, let's go to the meat and potatoes of this year's event. What are those talks, those themes that people just keep bringing up here a couple weeks later? Maybe some market insights, but also I want you to start with two. We've said his name a few times, but folks like Louis Giglio, you guys have worship at a financial services industry event. Talk about the significance of kind of pastoral care and teaching as you also have, you know, a ton of insight on kind of just best practices, what's taking place and kind of the overall financial services ecosystem as well.
Rob West Yeah, thanks Richard. So worship is a big part of our event. We put a lot of time and energy to make sure that everything we do is done with excellence. So everything from just the main stage and the audio visual and the lighting and the production value and we have a creative director who you know really thinks through that end -to -end. It's now a year -round planning process. Everything from the hosting experience to the band and you name it. But worship is a key part that because what we hear consistently. and most often from first timers is they'll say, I walked in the room and I saw 2 ,700 people worshiping the Lord at an advisor conference and I realized I found my people. You know, like I had no idea this existed. I mean, we've heard from advisors saying, hey, I'm gonna go to this thing, honey, and you go out to the pool and I'm sure I'll be out there in 15 minutes. And I called my wife or I called my husband half hour later in tears and said, you gotta get in here. I've never experienced anything like this. So that's been a cool part of it. And then, you know, as we said from the main stage, it's really all about spiritual encouragement. I mean, Ron Blue, our founder, has said from day one, you can't take a client where you haven't been. And so it really starts with us, right, and our own walk with Jesus and my relationship with the Lord and what I'm learning in God's word, I have nothing to bring to my clients apart from that. And so we just want to pour into you. And so... In terms of those talks that resonate, I mean, if you jump on LinkedIn, you're gonna see Tim Tebow all over it because he brought this just really passionate message about, wait a minute, as kingdom advisors, you're advising on behalf of the king. And what is the significance of that? And what does that mean? And he just really challenged them. And then, Louie's been amazing. Louie's been a great friend of ours for several years. I think this is his fourth or fifth visit to the Redeeming Money Conference. And we just really appreciate how he just builds people up. ... Just the Bible -based teaching that he brings is always just a real high point of the conference. Andy Crouch, there's nobody better. Peter Grier on Mission Drift. Gabe and Rebecca Lyons were amazing just talking about this idea of really a wisdom track that rides alongside the culture that's just so appealing that draws people in and the opportunity our advisors have to bring that to bear. So that's really what happens from the main stage. When we get into some of those. you know, practical how -tos we like, as you said, to bring the best of the best in our industry, but who operate from a biblical worldview. So that's, you know, Bob Dahl and David Bodson and Brian Westbury and Jerry Boyer and so many others. And it's just fun to watch them kind of bring the market and the economic news of the day through the lens of a biblical worldview, because they know it begins with God's design for wealth creation. You know, this virtuous. cycle that we were created and mankind is a blessing and we're to keep and cultivate and be productive and work with our hands and then you know we take God's latent potential and you know we put it to work and we are co -creators and and then we give back to the God that created us. I mean that is a backdrop as a game changer for understanding what's going on in our economy today and that's the kind of worldview that these guys are bringing.
Luke Roush Yeah. So Rob, I'd love for you to just go a little bit deeper in terms of things that seem to be popping out, things that seem to be evolving. I've noticed some evolution even in the last three or four years around how people think about kind of values driven investing. I think where maybe the industry was a some number of years ago was largely about how do we avoid certain things, negative screening. It feels like there's been an evolution in the last few years about also leaning into this, what are we for? You know, it's one of the things that I always appreciate about and his talk is. investing that makes the world rejoice, which is what even Tide speaks a lot about, and it's something that is obviously close to our heart at Sovereign's. How have you seen those themes evolve and change in the last few years?
Rob West That's been so significant, Luke. I think it was our friends at Eventide that really kind of coined these three categories of avoid, embrace, and engage. And I think you're exactly right. The conversation around faith -based or faith -driven investments was largely around the avoid side. What is it we're kicking out or avoiding? And that's great. We want to continue that. But I think kind of the new story of what at least the tone and tenor that we're experiencing at this year's conference is moving very heavily. into the embrace side and looking at the impact investments and the opportunity through both the public but now also the private markets to really lean into and think about how we deploy capital and how it's solving problems and how it's really resonating with investors and how real impact is occurring. And that's been a shift in the narrative. I think the community of faith -based investors and asset managers and thought leaders and theologians. is healthier than it's ever been. I think the discourse is happening at a higher level. I think the products are world class now and there's more products on the shelves. And then I think the engagement side is a new story as well. And we saw that really present at the conference this year also. I mean, the work Jerry Boyer and others are doing in this space and many of the asset managers have their own engagement strategies, but not only are Christians understanding that their proxy votes and their shareholder resolutions matter and they need to be engaged in those conversations to express Christian values. But advisors are bringing that opportunity to the table in a way they haven't previously. And so there's just a genuine excitement and enthusiasm on the part of our community at Kingdom Advisors around all of these things because it just seems like the trajectory of faith -based investing has changed dramatically. both in the conversation, but also in the execution.
Luke Roush Yeah, well that resonates with me and I think that's very much in line with what I've observed I also think and you mentioned this earlier, but it's a big encouragement to me the number of young people who are Seriously interested in this industry and really, you know If for no other reason just the need and demand There are a great many kingdom advisors who are somewhere in the last 10 or 15 years of their career and so thinking about succession, how do we continue to offer the kind of advice that Kingdom advisors have been offered to their clients for so many years faithfully I'm excited to see and this may be part of what's actually Driving just an evolution and thinking is more and more young people waiting in Who aren't having a halftime event at 45 or 50 thinking about how do they reframe their career? To be more in line with their faith. They're having their halftime event at 23 24 Even younger maybe in college. It's interesting to see that kind of play out and i'm excited to see how kingdom advisors continues to wade into that younger generation.
Richard Cunningham Well, Luke, I'd also piggyback into that. It's also on the advice side is that if, for the most part, people working with advisors right now are maybe the baby boomer generation, those in the millennial kind of Gen Z cohort coming into wealth or accumulating wealth, working with an advisor, are also thinking about values alignment maybe differently than the generation before us was or is, or you know, it's unique and everything kind of has its own kind of. independent scenario, but just kind of on a macro level that feels like that's the case. Robert, you seeing that too, kind of to dovetail off what Luke's saying?
Rob West No doubt. We actually did a panel of next -gen inheritors speaking to the advisors to help them understand what they need to know about those inheritors because they view money differently. They weren't the ones that saw the creation of the money. They're receiving it, and obviously that changes dramatically how they view it, how they handle it, how they give it, how they invest it. And I think to your point, Luke, this next generation, I mean, all the data saying impact even more. then the paycheck is heavily on their minds. They wanna know, am I making a difference? Am I being authentic to who I am and how God has made me? And I wanna align my work, I wanna align my investments, I wanna align how I handle money, with that across the board. And that just really bodes well for the work that we're doing because these programs that are spinning up, I mean, the latest of which was Grand Canyon University, which is just massive and - you know, between Liberty and Grand Canyon. I mean, the two biggest Christian universities in the country now. And for both of them to have a program that trains the next generation of financial advisors. And to your point, Luke, most of the advisors we serve in Kingdom Advisors today, you know, they found this idea of bringing their faith with them to work 20 years into the business. I mean, imagine starting on day one, knowing that I have a different why for why I go to work. And, you know, I'm gonna be able to help. my clients live as stewards and help them make an impact and help them use these investments. You know, that is a game changer and we couldn't be more excited about where this is all headed.
Luke Roush Yeah, super exciting. The energy is contagious. And you know, the buzz, I think on the street, to your point, growth is usually a combination of faithful execution and also timing. It really does feel like the timing in combination with great execution by you and the team. And I think, you know, standing on truth, what we always say is truth stands out in the marketplace of ideas. And you guys are standing on truth that has been carefully curated and crafted and informed by God's Word and just wise biblical counsel. So I'm really I think we're all really grateful for the leadership mantle that rests with Kingdom Advisors. particularly within the RIA community. It's a big, big deal, and we're grateful for your service. Richard, we always end with the same question, so I'm gonna let you fire it over.
Richard Cunningham Yeah, I'm actually going to not play by the rules here, Luke, and go to that question just yet. And kind of maybe a lightning round from both of you. Real quickly, just Marks on the Markets episode is kind of our monthly nod to the markets. Maybe quick commentary from both of you. Think talking about that kind of biblical worldview, everything that's just going on right now on headlines, whether it be tariffs or Zelensky situations, and then the US and Ukraine trying to have peaceful conversations, whatever that looks like, and go in whatever direction you want. but maybe. Kind of a nod to our marks on the markets. 30 to 60 seconds from each of you on just kind of, maybe it's something you heard at KA from one of the economists. What are you thinking about right now? How can you take that biblical worldview? And then Rob, we will close with our go -to question, but I wanna hear from both of you on that.
Rob West Yeah, you know, I mean, boy, the volatility is up. I mean, the uncertainty is through the roof. And yet we can rest on God's design for economics and wealth creation and realize that when we understand his handiwork at the core of this, we can trust him for the outcome. You know, I love a lot of where we're headed. And this was a consistent theme from Brian Westbury and David Bonson and Jerry Boyer and Bob Dahl. And that is that You know, a lot of the things we're talking about today in terms of getting out of the way of business and letting business providing goods and services, things that are good and things that are serving people do what they're going to do without a lot of heavy -handed government intervention is the way it should be. And let capital be deployed in a way that's gonna solve problems and meet needs. And when we understand again, that we're more mind than mouth, right? We were created as a blessing. and we need to let people thrive. And, you know, God creates out of nothing. We create out of God's creation, but that human flourishing happens when we supply capital to business to do what business was intended to do. And I think that's a lot of what's happening right now in Washington, and that's a good thing. And we need to celebrate that, and we need to understand why that's working the way that it is, and that ultimately goes back to a biblical worldview. Yeah, I agree.
Luke Roush completely Robin. One of the things that we really believe is that there are certain things in the world that are timely and there's other things in the world that are timeless. And so we know God's Word to be true. We know it to be timeless and He is the same yesterday and today and tomorrow. There's other things that are timely and certainly the flavor of the hour, as you said, is volatility and uncertainty and I think just some amount of drama. And so I think that the situation in Washington is chaotic. I think many people would say that it's about time that we shake things up. But I think it's an important time for believers to remember that, you know, the three main legs of the stool, prayer, God's Word, and godly counsel from others who are running in the same direction is what anchors us into truth. I think that there's a lot of good things that will come out of this to include more fiscal responsibility on the part of Hopefully our nation and certainly at a state level and at a departmental level I think there's going to be a lot of just Change and you know as christ followers We've got a wonderful opportunity to reflect what we know to be true in terms of where do we place our hope? And and what gets us rattled or not rattled and so I think reanchoring Into our true identity as believers and followers of the teachings of jesus is important even as markets Endure, I think some protracted turbulence and part of it is of our own creation You know when money's free for 10 or 15 years It's hard to imagine a time when money goes back to being what it's costed I heard it actually quoted yesterday in biblical times the interest rate on an unsecured loan was in the 8 % to 12 % range. And that's kind of like where we are today. And for a long time, it was about 4%, which was an aberration. And so what we're living through right now in terms of return to more normalized cost of capital is I think more emblematic of where we've been in the course of human history. And as we readjust to that normality, there's some turbulence, but we know where our hope should be placed and needs to be placed daily. And I think that the kingdom advisors out there in the world are reminding clients of that and reminding themselves of that. So I'm grateful for that aspect of how you help people to anchor into what is true and right.
Richard Cunningham Absolutely. 8 to 12 percent in biblical times. That's fascinating.
Luke Roush I would have expected it to be much higher.
Richard Cunningham Right? Me too.
Luke Roush I don't know how they calculated that or where they got that. I've not seen a source on that, but it was stated with some amount of confidence yesterday. Therefore, I'm going to go ahead and restate it.
Richard Cunningham Nothing like a little conviction. Well, hey, Rob, it's Ash Wednesday. As we record this, this episode will release on Monday, March 10th. We're just so thankful for all the things Kay is doing and just an honor to celebrate the big event. But take us home with the question we love to ask at the close of every FDI pod, and that is what's God been teaching you in and through his word lately?
Rob West Yeah, well, I'd be delighted to share that. Let me just say before I do how grateful I am for Richard, you and Luke and the team at Faith Driven Investor. Your work is so important. I love what's happening with solving the world's greatest problems and the momentum that you all have right now. And you are such vital partners to our work. So thanks for all you're doing. I can't wait to continue to collaborate in the days ahead. But yeah, so I've been in the book of Ecclesiastes lately. We're actually. Producing so we haven't talked much about faith five, but that's our consumer brand where we host the radio show And we're really kind of moving into a new area of creating Resources that are intended to be for advisors to use with their clients But also for our radio listeners and so forth. So we're producing studies and devotionals. So our new study comes out In April called wisdom over wealth 12 lessons on money from the book of Ecclesiastes. So I've been in the book of Ecclesiastes, a lead writer on it's John Cortina's good friend of ours, but here's what Ecclesiastes 7 .12 says, and you all would know this passage well. It says, wisdom is a shelter, as money is a shelter, but the advantage of knowledge is this, wisdom preserves those who have it. And so we know that wisdom is far more important than wealth, and we need to transfer wisdom before wealth. And we talk a lot about wisdom at Kingdom Advisors because really at the core of everything we do is biblical financial wisdom. But it does beg the question, I think, and this is what I've been thinking about, what is wisdom? It's really not just about intellectual mastery or a list of best practices. True wisdom is not a perspective, it's a person and his name is Jesus. And if we want to be wise, we have to do a lot more than study theology or gain life experience. We need to know Christ personally. and so. That would be my challenge to us today, is do we know wisdom himself? What a great word.
Luke Roush What a great word to finish on.
Richard Cunningham Absolutely. Rob West, CEO of Kingdom Advisors. Friends, he's got a great radio voice and a lot of wisdom. You can find him at faithfi .com. He's on every single day, giving talks similar to this and just unpacking finances from a biblical worldview. Grateful for your time. For Luke Roush, folks, I'm Richard Cunningham. Thank you so much for joining us and we will catch you next time.
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