The Biblical Worldview of Retirement

Shawn (00:00): Are you counting down the days until retirement, dreaming of the day you finally stop working? What if retirement was never meant to be about what you’re leaving behind, but about what you’re stepping into? In today’s episode, we’ll explore what a biblical worldview of retirement actually looks like. Let’s get some perspective. Welcome to another episode of Christian Financial Perspectives. My name is Shawn Peters. I’m joined as always by Bob Barber and today we’re going to be talking about a biblical worldview of retirement, and retirement as we know it today is mostly shaped by a secular worldview, but it doesn’t have to be, right, Bob? Bob (00:43): Yeah, exactly. And the Bible basically only has one thing to say about retirement. So to get into a biblical worldview of it was very difficult for me, but I’ve had a lot of good mentors over the years through Kingdom Advisors. But yeah, I think the Bible doesn’t speak a whole lot about it. A Christian needs to live a biblical worldview in every area of their life, pre-retirement and post-retirement, including in all those retirement years. And retirement years can truly be a good time, Shawn, about serving, helping, and mentoring others with all the mistakes now that we know that we can … Mistakes equal knowledge, by the way. Shawn (01:34): And we mentioned this in, I believe the last episode, the one we were talking about on work, but the word retire appears only once in the Bible. So looking at it from a biblical worldview is difficult yet necessary since it’s become such a part of everyday life over really just the last 80 to 90 years. It seems like is kind of the peak. Bob (01:54): Yeah. Yeah. It’s basically made up to the American way. And we’re going to go over that. But like you say, there’s only one place in the Bible that retire appears, and that’s in Numbers 8:23-26. So let’s look at that, kind of break that down. I’m going to have you read that. And then I have a comment on this I want to make. Shawn (02:13): Okay. So like Bob said, Numbers 8:23-26, “The Lord said to Moses, ‘This applies to the Levites. Men, 25 years old or more shall come to take part in the work at the tent of meeting, but at the age of 50, they must retire from their regular service and work no longer. They may assist their brothers in performing their duties at the tent of meeting, but they themselves must not do the work. This then is how you are to assign the responsibilities of the Levites.'” Bob (02:40): It’s really interesting. We never want to take scripture out of context. Shawn (02:43): Sure. Bob (02:44): But in one- Shawn (02:45): And by the way, I’m not a Levite as far as I’m aware. Bob (02:47): Yeah. Gotcha. So you’ll say, and one thing is saying at the age of 50, they must retire from the regular service, but then right after that, what does it say? It says they should assist. Shawn (02:57): Yeah, that they may assist. Bob (02:58): Right. And in context, they’re still working, but it’s in a very different way. And I think this points out that people my age, I’m about to be 64. By the time this comes out, I will be 64. Shawn (03:15): Bob, it’s supposed to be 50. Supposed to retire at 50, right? Yeah. Bob (03:18): Yep. To assist the next generation. And I can see where this is coming from looking at … I know Shawn, when I was 45 or your age, which is what? Shawn (03:32): Younger than 45. Bob (03:33): Yeah, younger than 45. I had a lot more energy and I can see where this makes sense from a scriptural point of view that as you get older, you don’t have the physical and the mental energy that you had at a younger age that the body starts to wear out and the stress that comes with that. Shawn (03:52): So focusing more on assisting the next generation rather than still taking on all the stress and full weight of the primary work. Bob (04:01): Which is, you can see what I’ve done right here at Christian financial advisors. Shawn (04:05): Yeah. Yeah. Bob (04:06): You know that. Shawn (04:07): I’m very aware. Bob (04:07): You’re very aware of that. So when we think about retirement, we have to look at … Remember the last session that we had was on the biblical worldview of work and we have to think about that, that retire appears once. Shawn (04:21): But work appears over 500 times. Bob (04:23): 500 times. And I have three passages that I really think speak into the importance of work. Shawn (04:33): Sure. Starting with Genesis 2:15, “The Lord God took the man and put him into the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” And a reminder for those who maybe didn’t watch or listen to the last episode, that occurred before sin, so before the fall of creation. Bob (04:48): And I would emphasize that somebody go back and watch that. Shawn (04:51): Yeah, I would recommend it. Bob (04:52): Or listen to it. Yeah. Shawn (04:52): We’re slightly biased that we think you should go watch and listen to it. And then our next one, Ecclesiastes 3:22, “So I saw that there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy their work because that is their lot, for who can bring them to see what will happen after them.” All right. And then Colossians 3:23-24, “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving.” Bob (05:25): You could kind of put retirement in the place of that, couldn’t you? Shawn (05:28): Yeah, exactly. Bob (05:28): Whatever you do- Shawn (05:29): Whatever you do in retirement. Bob (05:30): Yeah. In retirement, do it as if you’re working for the Lord. So what does God think about retirement since it only appears once in the Bible, but work appears over 500 times? What do you think about that? I mean, it’s a good question. Shawn (05:48): Well, the average attitude or the typical attitude, it seems like towards retirement is kind of almost the opposite of what God talks about, especially when it comes to work and why we work in the first place. So for Christians, retirement can be about serving either our own agenda or God’s agenda, increasing our service to God and to others. Bob (06:16): And I think that Christians should desire to do the later, not about our agenda because when we are all about ourselves and it becomes all about us, which retirement can do that, what happens is we come devoid of significance in our lives and really if we don’t have a purpose during retirement, we can become depressed and Shawn- Shawn (06:42): I know there’s been a lot of studies that have shown that when people have retired and they don’t have a purpose besides, “Oh, I go play golf”… and there’s nothing wrong with playing golf…Or I go, “Just hang out and go to the ballgame and go to the beach and whatever it might be.” If you don’t have any real significance or purpose, it significantly increases depression, like the rates of it. Bob (07:07): And I’ve seen it. I work with a lot of retirees, probably the majority of who I work with are retirees, and those that are not doing what God has called them to do, they’re kind of down. They’re not as excited about life. Picking up what they say, seashells on the seashore only goes so far. I think Christians need to think of retiring as retiring TO something, not FROM something. I’m going to say that again. You need to think of it as retiring to something, not from something. Shawn (07:44): Exactly. Yeah. And that’s something that we have been trying to tell all of our clients for quite some time now. I think that specific phrase isn’t necessarily been using it for 10 years, but at least the last few years, I see that as, hey, that’s like the number one thing that we want to make sure that we help people with is that as Christians, you’re not retiring FROM something, you’re retiring TO something. So what is that something? A great example might be someone who retires from their normal career, whatever their work is and enters the mission field or finds another calling to serve God because you just put yourself in that person’s shoes. You’ve planned well for when you start your retirement that you don’t have to work to meet your needs. So with that restriction being removed, if you will, I’m not worrying about working to be able to provide for myself and my family. (08:48): Okay. Well, what’s something that the Lord is calling you to do? Bob (08:53): Right here in our city now, we’re not a town anymore. We’re a city. Shawn (08:58): Depends on what city you compare us to. Whether or not we’re a town. Bob (09:01): We’re in between San Antonio and Austin, so it’s just one big city now, but there’s a lot of mission work right here in our own town. I know Habitat for Humanity is huge here in New Braunfels as well as the food bank is very big. And of course, go help your church, especially if you’re in a smaller church. They need somebody to mow the yard many times. Shawn (09:26): I think the statistic, I remember, the church that was started here that we went to for many years, they decided to come back after being gone, the head pastor there to start the church was like, why come back to New Braunfels? Well, they came back because one, they have a heart for this area, but also I think it was like 40 or 45% of people from the New Braunfels area are people that profess to have no religious affiliation at all with the idea being that when they wake up on Sunday morning, it’s no different than Saturday. Fundamentally just not, it’s just the second day of the weekend. And so obviously right there, there’s a large potential of, “Hey, if you’re retired and you’re in this area, well maybe find a way to connect with and reach those people that don’t go to church at all.” (10:20): They’re not even thinking about going to church. Bob (10:23): I can’t imagine that because that’s where so much of my socializing is. There’s one thing about retirement as we talk about it. It’s just so different with the biblical worldview. This idea of retirement as we were talking about earlier, it’s really something that was made up the way that we look at it in just the last 90 years, basically during the 20th century, it was during the Great Depression that the president needed to get men out of the workforce- Shawn (10:58): And to get the older men out of the workforce. Bob (11:00): Right. Shawn (11:01): And replace them with the younger ones. Bob (11:02): Yeah. And out of that came the government pension, which is social security, and then pensions, the larger companies kind of worked into this. So it’s really this view of retirement that people have gotten ahold of in just the last 80 or 90 years of it. And I think we need to look at some of the reasons people retire today and then we’re going to look at that biblical worldview, what that looks like, like we talked about in missions. Shawn (11:33): First one of why people retire today, many are just physically and mentally tired of working so hard or their health has deteriorated to the point where they can no longer work. It’s pretty common. Bob (11:46): Isn’t it funny how I joke around here, “Y’all don’t call our retirees right after lunch. We might need to go take a nap.” We get that afternoon just, “Oh, I’m so tired.” 30 minutes is all you need then you’re good. Others, they just want to pursue the fun activities that are out there like golf, pickleball, that’s me, but I’ve hurt my niece so bad. Fishing, hiking, traveling the world and experiencing different cultures, or they might want to do different things like woodworking, gardening, farming, ranching, painting, ceramics, or even writing a book, which this biblical worldview that we’ve been talking about is going to go into a book that has 12 chapters to it. Shawn (12:27): That’s right. Bob (12:29): Some just are so tired of pursuing somebody else’s agenda, they want to pursue their own agenda. Shawn (12:34): Which is number three. They want to pursue their own agenda instead of somebody else’s. And number four, others may be kind of forced into retiring. Bob (12:45): This is true. The larger corporations, once you hit a certain age, they kind of say, “Okay, it’s time for you to move on.” And some, which I think is a very noble cause, is they just want to spend more time with their spouse and more time with their family. Shawn (13:00): Yeah. Maybe there’s some grandkids or great grandkids that they want to spend more time with. Those are fun. And then you send them back to mom and dad after you gave them an extra puppy kitten and coffee and some candy, right? And maybe some ice cream for dessert. Bob (13:14): So this really, we talked about just mission. Let’s really tackle this biblical worldview of retirement and what it could look like. And I think it really needs to focus around this scripture passage. Shawn (13:25): Philippians 2:3-4, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit rather than humility, value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interest, but each of you to the interest of the others.” Bob (13:39): Yeah. That’s a good one to really have as your baseline. Shawn (13:42): If that’s your baseline for retiring- Bob (13:45): Or anything. Shawn (13:45): Or really anything. Yeah. But in this case, we’re focused on retirement right now, that’s a good place to start. That’s a good place to kind of base it on of not just thinking about like, oh, what’s all the fun things that I want to do and that I want to spend money on and do stuff for me, me, me. Bob (14:00): So I came up with six ideas. One of them was the mission work, but I came up with six ideas on what a biblical retirement- Shawn (14:05): What it could look like. Bob (14:07): What it could look like. Yeah. And that first one that we just mentioned is being there for your grandchildren and living out life with them. Those grandchildren want you. We know that. I know that, which you may or may not have been able to do with your own children. Shawn, in my younger years, I was a workaholic basically. And I mean, I was leaving at 7:30 in the morning and working until 10:00 at night and that was wrong. I shouldn’t have worked so hard. This is why grandparents say if I knew it was going to be this good to be a grandparent, I’d have done that first. Because retirement can truly be a second chance at life with your grandchildren and having time for them. Shawn (14:53): And the second one, retirement could mean taking on more responsibilities at a nonprofit or just volunteering. Maybe you’re not in charge of something, but you’re just extra volunteering time. Bob (15:05): Think of this one, especially a lot of times as guys need to think of this. It can be a time about giving back to your spouse for the many years that were lost working outside of the home. I know Shawn, I just do appointments on Tuesdays and Thursdays now and I’m giving a lot more time to Rachel because I just wasn’t there as much when I was younger. I think this other point is really good is that you can end up being a mentor to many others.You could teach a class at a college, a small college. Shawn (15:41): Depending on what your work experience was, there’s a lot of different ways that you could maybe be a mentor within that space. Well, you’ve had a lot of knowledge and experience in it, so help other people even if you’re not getting paid for it. Bob (15:55): Or just something you like. I remember my father-in-law, when he retired from the military, he went to teach history. He loves history, and he went to teach history at Texas State down the road from us and he really enjoyed that. Shawn (16:13): And number five could be working in missions, even in your own town. Examples, Habitat for Humanity, local food bank, volunteering at hospital or nursing home to help the sick and forgotten. Bob (16:26): And they are forgotten. When my mom was in assisted living, I could see the people just yearned for fellowship and I would go in and I’d put my arm around them and talk to them and it meant so much. And there’s just so many other ways that you could be productive with your time that you need to think about it. Shawn (16:46): But results may vary. We don’t know exactly what your experience has been and your career and other things or what the Lord has prompted your heart to do, but just again, kind of think about that. What is something that God has equipped you with that you’re uniquely able to help? And just seek the Lord in that first and find ways to get connected. I’m assuming for those of you that are already retired, find something to give back. Bob (17:12): So I came up with six questions that I think are really good for you to think about before retiring, but you can also think about these if you’re already retired. These are some great questions. There’s seven of them that I came up with. Number one, exactly why do you want to retire? You need to write that down. Why do I want to retire? And if you’re retired, why am I retired? Shawn (17:38): Sometimes people retire because, well, I’m turning 65 so I have to retire now. It’s like, well, you don’t have to retire. I mean, if you’re like, “Man, I can go another 10 years doing what I’m doing.” Okay. And then do that, right? Bob (17:52): Exactly. And the second one really hits to the heart. Shawn (17:55): Yeah. What will your purpose in retirement or what will be your purpose in retirement or what is it now if you’re already retired? Bob (18:04): And I don’t think a lot of retirees have thought about that – what is my purpose now? (18:07): What are your days going to look like or what do they look like right now? I mean, is it just kind of you’re wandering in a desert, you don’t have it planned out? Shawn (18:20): Yeah. So number four, how will you serve others or how are you serving others now, if retired? Bob (18:27): And hopefully we’re spurring some that might be retired already think about, I need to think about this. I need to think about how I’m serving others. Is it all about me? Which is number five, will retirement be all about your agenda? Shawn (18:43): Yeah. Or is it about your agenda now if you’re retired, or will it be about God’s agenda? Bob (18:51): Number six, how can you serve and help others during retirement? Shawn (18:55): And the last one. Are you financially able to retire? Bob (18:59): Yeah, it’s a big one we work on around here. Are you financially able? You may even be retired and not realize that you may not be financially able to be completely retired and we need to put all this into a financial planning system that we use and it goes over everything even from if you want to do that Viking cruise every third year or every year, to I want to buy a new car every five years or a new used car. I mean, everything we can put into there, I want to do that remodel. Can you afford to do that? Our financial planning system will help you to figure out if you can. Shawn (19:38): So in conclusion, retiring with a biblical worldview for a Christian is about serving and helping others with your free time as long as it’s not done solely on the basis of works. Bob (19:49): Retirement is not a biblical concept. If the Lord gives you breath, it’s because it has some work for you to do. Yeah. Sorry. What’d you say? Shawn (19:59): I was saying it’s not a biblical, but a cultural concept. Bob (20:02): Yeah, it really is. Yeah. The goal should be to finish life well. It’s like the marathon. Shawn (20:10): Don’t run 26 miles and then quit. Finish the last point, was it 0.2? Because 26.2. so it’s like don’t run 26 miles and then say, right. I’m just going to stop. No, no. Finish the last 0.2. Finish it well. Cross the finish line. Bob (20:23): And just remember this, retirement is a phase in life that you can use your gifts, your skills, your talents, your abilities to glorify God and differently than the way that when you were working full time. Shawn (20:38): Yeah. It’s interesting. I think of it as when you’re in your career, you can still obviously, yes, serve the Lord with your gifts and your abilities, but there is at least somewhat more of an obvious restriction that, well, you kind of need to do it in a way that can actually earn a living to provide for yourself and your family. But in that retirement phase, when you get to that, well, now you have the advantage of if you’ve planned well for the retirement and you’re not spending too much in retirement for your expenses, you can use your gifts and talents to glorify God for something that maybe you don’t get paid at all for it. Maybe your salary’s a dollar a year. It’s a really cool way, just a great way to look at it. Retirement doesn’t mean you’re done. It just means you have something different that the Lord’s calling you to do. Bob (21:29): You can tell we really want your retirement to be one of purpose and glorifying God and we can help you here at Christian Financial Advisors® do this through biblical studies, through utilizing that biblical worldview for money and wealth, putting everything into a financial plan that’s an ongoing financial plan. Our financial planning program and system also is one that utilizes — your involved in that. So, you can go into that, even yourself and put in different scenarios. We can help you put that all together here at Christian Financial Advisors®, and we’re a fiduciary based advisor. if you would like to talk about that from a biblical perspective and a worldview, give us a call at 830-609-6986. You can text that number as well during business hours or check out our website that Shawn has done such a great job of putting together. Shawn (22:31): Sure. www.christianfinancialadvisors.com. Love to hear from you if you’re on one of the platforms, YouTube, whatever, feel free to comment or otherwise use our phone number, use our website and send us your thoughts, comments, suggestions, or reach out to schedule an appointment. Love to hear from you. And as always, thank you so much for tuning in and God bless.