Stewardship over Ownership in Finances
Read Time / 2 Minutes
Theme / Stewardship
Since November’s election, the market has been very up and down. Many stocks saw a decline to finish 2024 and started 2025 strong before another dip that started in February. The ups and downs of investing can be challenging to our emotions. We want to see investments do well, and when they do poorly it can be lead us towards change. These emotional reactions likely come from a suboptimal mindset about our role when managing our investments. What’s the suboptimal mindset? Often, we believe we are the owners. It’s honestly too easy to fall into this trap resulting in worry about protecting and growing our assets at all costs.
Since believing we are the owners is a worldly point of view, let me encourage you to approach your earthly treasure as a steward, not an owner. Oxford Dictionary defines stewardship as the job of supervising or taking care of something. When we steward our wealth, instead of owning it, it can help shift our mindset during volatile market cycles from fear to optimism. An owner is emotionally tied to the funds, living and dying with every day and every market fluctuation. A steward keeps in mind the larger picture, and reminds himself constantly of the purpose he was called to carry out his job for. When it comes to our finances, we often quote the Parable of the Talents (Matthew 25:14-30). The Lord wants us to steward the wealth that he gives us. But there’s a verse that is often forgotten when we detail this verse. Matthew 25:19 says
“Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them.”
After a long time. The Lord gives us the outline for investing and growing wealth, and in the outline he details that it takes time. A long time. A good steward knows the plan and understands that sometimes there are ebbs and flows to that process. For most people, if you’re under the age of 50, the ups and downs of the market should be a test of your long-term faith in growth. Not something to react to daily.
What’s your relationship with your treasure like? Are you the owner or the steward? What’s your reaction to a bad week (or a good week) in the market?
My hope for all of us is that we continue to ponder the path of our feet and trust in God as we are navigating life’s complex financial decisions.
Nathan Carroll
Registered Assistant
208-918-8655
nathan.carroll@christianwm.com
