The Trust Factor
A daily lesson that focuses on achieving unparalleled success in life using ancient wisdom in modern times.
We will be discussing critical concepts as they are laid out in the book Sha'ar Habitachon - The Gate of Trust. Written 1000 years ago, the author reminds us of the values and wisdom that have allowed humanity to thrive throughout history.
The concept of trusting in a higher power that exists purely for our benefit, puts us in the drivers seat with absolute confidence to achieve greatness.
Eliminate: Fear, Hatred, Anxiety, Depression, Jealousy, Greed...forever!
* Note that some terminology will be in the original Hebrew or Aramaic which I will always follow with the English translation.
The Trust Factor
Episode 112 - Wealth Without Strings: How Not to Be a Financial Tyrant
Money—we all need it, but how should people of faith approach it? The tension between trusting in divine provision and taking practical financial steps forms the heart of this enlightening exploration.
Starting with a listener's question about retirement savings, we unpack the delicate balance between prudent financial planning and spiritual trust. While acknowledging the importance of saving for future expenses like children's weddings or retirement, the critical factor is your mindset. Are you saving out of fear and a belief that your security comes from your bank balance? Or are you saving responsibly while recognizing that all provision ultimately comes from a higher source?
Drawing from religious wisdom and years of professional experience in financial management, this episode provides a nuanced framework for thinking about wealth. We examine traditional guidelines around charitable giving, including the general rule that one shouldn't give more than one-fifth of their assets to charity (with important exceptions for the wealthy and emergency situations). The discussion also addresses how to give effectively in a world where many charitable organizations retain excessive administrative costs.
Most powerfully, we confront the harmful practice of using wealth as a control mechanism. Those who dispense money to family members while demanding gratitude, obedience, or recognition in return fundamentally misunderstand wealth's purpose and origin. "The money is not yours," we emphasize. "It was given to you to put to work, to take care of your needs and the needs of others around you." When we approach our finances with this perspective, we not only improve our relationships but align ourselves with deeper spiritual truths about generosity and trust.
Ready to transform your relationship with money? Listen now and discover how financial wisdom and spiritual trust can work together to create both security and peace of mind.
Good morning everybody and welcome to the Trust Factor. This is the podcast that's going to guarantee your success when you implement its divine, age-old teachings. We're going to dive deep into what we've been talking about here, for two reasons. Number one I got a question from a friend of mine, moj, who asked me a very important question about okay, we get all this concept about not worrying where it's coming from and that God's going to provide, but at the end of the day, do we have an obligation to save? Do we have an obligation to invest? Right, that's one question. Then I read into it for today, preparing for today and I see that the Art Scroll version that we're reading through over here discusses that specifically. I also have a finance background, which is what I did for so many years. I managed people's money, I invested their life savings, and so I know a thing or two about it, and so let's dive into it a little bit, because it's important.
Speaker 0:Up until now, we've been saying rely on God, god's going to provide. It doesn't mean he's only going to provide for you in your earning years, when you're young and capable and you're out and you're working and earning all kinds of livings and you're supporting people, then he'll help you get that money. Well, what about when you stop working? What about, well, into retirement? Where's that money going to come from? How does one plan for retirement today? We need to save right. Did they not retire 300, 500, 3000 years ago? Did they stop, not stop working after a certain period of time? Certainly they did. We're not all cut out to work until our very last day and earn a living, so clearly there needs to be efforts to be made to make sure that we have savings. We want to marry off our children. We all have unexpected expenses that pop up that we need to try and be prepared for right. So how do we approach that? And I just want to read from the book what it says and then give you a little bit of additional insight. He's discouraging hoarding money, but he says it does not mean that one should not save anything for the future. It is in fact reasonable to think that some of one's extra income is meant for upcoming needs. Certainly if he anticipates a future expense like we said, a child's wedding is coming up or will eventually come up, god willing it's fiscally responsible to set aside money for that event and for others.
Speaker 0:The focus here is on one's attitude. It's in what's in your head. Is all the money that God sent him meant for his own use or is some or much of it potentially meant to be shared with others? And if one has funds in savings, does that provide him assurance for the future or does he look to God to ensure that he will eventually be able to put it to use? It's your state of mind.
Speaker 0:What am I thinking here? The more I save, the more comfortable I will be, the more security I will have, the better I will feel going out and tackling the challenges of this world. In other words, if I don't have X amount of dollars in my bank, then I'm going to live in a constant state of fear. What if this person comes knocking? What if this breaks down? What if I have to do A, b or C and I cannot afford it? I'm constantly going to be living a life of worry and concern that I don't have enough. Is that your mindset? Or are you saving because you know it's responsible? I need to be responsible.
Speaker 0:Money is an important thing. It is an important tool. It can be utilized to be able to do the things that are necessary in this world and in order to survive on the most basic level. So it's clearly important. I need to plan around it. But when I'm planning, am I diluting myself to believe that if I only put in a valiant effort, if I choose the right stock portfolio, if I choose the right money manager, if I choose the right asset mix, if I do all these wonderful things, then I will come out successful and I'll be able to live a long and healthy retirement? Not true, my friends. It does not matter how much you've invested and how much care and time you've taken to invest. We know there have been scammers throughout history Bernie Madoffs of the world who've taken a lot of money from very intelligent people, my friends who've done their homework but were conned. People get conned every single day. Banks and financial institutions go bankrupt. They have a hard time. Entire countries go bankrupt and leave their citizens with no access to their own funds. So anything can change at the drop of a hat, my friends. So at the end of the day, are you diluting yourself to believe that your investment genius, your prowess, your wisdom is what's going to secure your financial future, or are you recognizing that you're doing this again as an indication to god to say I'm doing this because it is financially prudent, so I'm going to do it. But at the end of the day, I know number one, where the money is coming from to invest, and number two, where the investment returns are coming from, and number three, where that security is coming from.
Speaker 0:He goes on to say the sages made clear the need for fiscal responsibility by ruling that one should not give away more than one-fifth excuse me of one's assets to charity, lest he himself become poor and need to accept handouts. The Torah, god, in his wisdom, put limitations in place, knowing very well that two things can happen. You can either become the type of individual who despises money, despises money, and there are plenty of people who despise money because we know that there are sayings such as money is the root of all evil. We've seen the negative, detrimental effects of having money or too much money, and so there are people who despise money. In their hatred for money, you often find them giving it away. They make a dollar. They give it away. They don't want anything for themselves, they barely have enough to eat, but they will not hoard money. They do not chase it right. So God says no, no, no, no.
Speaker 0:I don't care how much you hate money. You have to recognize that it is an important tool and you have to appreciate and value its abilities. And you need to make sure that you take care of yourself, that you have the finances to be able to not depend on other people. You should not be a burden on other people if you don't have to be, which means you have to get up and get a job. You have to get up and be productive. You have to do the things that are required by every reasonable human being to get up and earn a living, and then he will provide for you. If you're doing it because you despise money, you're not going to work, or you're not going to do the important things that you need to do, or you're going to give away every dollar you have because of your hatred of money, then the Torah comes and tells you you're actually sinning, he says.
Speaker 0:There are numerous exceptions, however, to this rule. It does not apply to an extremely wealthy person. If you're making bank, if you're making a lot of money, if you are in a position where you are being showered with much more excess finance than you and your entire family need to be able to survive and thrive. This policy doesn't apply to you. There's no, no limitation. There is a limitation, but it is a much greater limitation than the one-fifth. You can give away much more than your one-fifth because it is expected of you. In fact, you are being given that much more because you are being tested as a safeguarder, as a keeper of God's wealth and a distributor of it. You need to distribute it to the correct sources, to the correct individuals. People need to rely on you because, whether it's individuals or whether it's institutions that supply individuals, you have been given an excess amount of money in order for you to do the right thing with it. It is a test. My friends, be very careful. It is a difficult test.
Speaker 0:He also says it doesn't apply when an exceptional need for charity funds arises, even if you're not a multimillionaire. But there is an exception within the community, somebody is really suffering. There's a real, real need, and it is dire. It doesn't matter. The one-fifth rule goes out the window. Nor when one has a steady income that provides more funds than enough for his needs, so similar to the wealthy person. It is thus a great challenge for a wealthy person to determine the true extent of his charity obligation. It's not easy.
Speaker 0:I suggest, if you're taking charity seriously, that you learn about it, that you find yourself a qualified rabbi, orthodox rabbi, and you learn by them. Pick up a book there are many books that are written on Stuck on Charity and read how much should you give? When should you give? Where should you give? It is so complex, my friends. It is not as simple as taking money and putting it in a charity box. It is not as simple as giving donations to large institutions. In fact, you could be doing the exact opposite.
Speaker 0:Remember, we live in a world of lies. We live in a world that is run by humanity, and humanity, we know, has the ability to corrupt and be corrupted. And so many of these institutions if you've done your research, you know what I'm talking about. There are so many institutions in this world where you give them a dollar and the recipient that they claim to be advocating on the behalf of or collecting on the behalf of receives less than 10% of that dollar. You understand it happens in the biggest institutions in the world the CEOs, the top executives, the people running these organizations making huge, huge money, okay, and the amount that ends up transferring from you to the person that you think you're helping is minuscule relative to the amount that you've given. So you need to be careful. Figure out how to give proper charity, figure out how much of your money should stay with you and how much of it should go to your family and how much of it should go to your community and beyond, my friends. It's a very, very important and worthwhile exercise.
Speaker 0:Now I'm going to finish with this because it resonates with me. I know a lot of people and I know that the way they are when it comes to money, and so I want to read with you just a little bit about what we read yesterday, and I want to finish the paragraph because I think it's very powerful, and I think there are a lot of people who I know personally who will benefit from hearing this. We said that a foolish person. When it comes to them and their money, they think the following they say although he is giving the provisions that he received to the rightful owners, we said yesterday he's making millions, but he's providing money for his children, for his grandchildren, for his parents, for his siblings, for whoever it is, for his community members. He's doing the right thing, right.
Speaker 0:Even though he's doing those things he reminds those people of the goodness towards them in doing this, as if he were the one who provided them with provisions and sustained them, and that he was the source of kindness towards them. You hear he's the God. He expects them to thank him and praise him profusely for this. Thank you so much for giving me what God gave you on my behalf and to act submissively towards him. Be careful what you say. Don't upset them, because if you upset them, they may cut you off right, as if their sustenance were dependent on his generosity, his or her generosity.
Speaker 0:He becomes arrogant, his heart becomes proud and conceited and he neglects to fulfill his debt of gratitude to God for granting him this privilege of distributing provisions to others. He thinks that were he have withheld the funds from them, from his dependents, the funds would have remained in his possession and if not for him and his generosity, their income would have been cut off. How many times have the wealthy children heard this from their parents? If you don't do what I say, I'm going to cut you off. You're going to starve. If you don't fall in line, if you don't do everything I demand of you, we're going to cut you off. You're not going to get what's coming to you, as if they are in charge of that. In actuality, however, he says he is the poor one who toils in vain in this world and forfeits his reward in the world to come.
Speaker 0:My friends, if you know somebody like this or, even worse, if you are somebody like this, know that you are forfeiting your world to come. You are forfeiting all of the things that you have worked for, all of the good deeds that you think you have done, that you have built a career and a life of doing and giving and godliness, and, at the same time, you think that, when it comes to money, you're going to hold everybody hostage. You're going to be the tyrant. You're going to hold everybody hostage. You're going to be the tyrant. You're going to expect from them things in return, as if you are doing them a favor. If this is somebody that you know, or if you are this person, my friends, it is time to course correct before it is too late.
Speaker 0:The money is not yours. It was given to you to put to work, to take care of your needs and the needs of others around you. Those who live alone, my friends, die alone. You do not want to be one of those people. You want to use your wealth to improve your life, the life of those around you and the world at large. My friends, and when and when you do that, and when those who have the means take the time and the care to research and analyze and make sure that they're doing the right thing with their money, the world will be a utopia. God willing, we will get there one day. Have an amazing Shabbat, my friends. It's Friday. Tgif, tgis for tomorrow. My friends, we will speak again on Sunday. Have an amazing Shabbat.
