You Can't Walk on Water Until You Get Out of the Boat

For most of them, I was their first teacher.

And that, in and of itself, is a serious problem…

Our public high schools mandate pre-calculus, trigonometry, chemistry — subjects that few students will ever apply in their daily lives after leaving the classroom.

Yet these same institutions completely ignore the foundational principles of financial literacy.

While advanced mathematics will always be a niche skill, every single American will, without exception, be forced to navigate the fundamentals of credit, debt, taxes, and personal investments.

You might have a 401(k) or IRA through your employer, but there's no class to show you how it works, what it's invested in, or why it's important.

The result? Most people are utterly oblivious to the fundamentals of trading and investing.

They have no idea where their money is or what it's doing.

And that's not just irresponsible. It goes against Jesus' teachings.

Remember the Parable of the Talents, found in Matthew 25…

A master entrusted his wealth to three servants before a long journey.

Two invested wisely, doubling what they were given.

The third, rapt with fear, simply buried the funds, returning only what he initially received.

The master exalted the first two servants for their diligence and condemned the third.

This parable illustrates a fundamental truth that our society seems to have forgotten:

God wants you to multiply your resources. He wants you to work diligently, faithfully, and multiply whatever resources He gives to you — including your money.

But you can't invest wisely if you don't know how.

Proverbs 19:2 tells us, "Desire without knowledge is not good—how much more will hasty feet miss the way!"

It's plain as day in scripture, folks…

We all have the same desire: to grow our financial well-being for our family's future.

But without the knowledge to do so, your hasty feet will miss the future you seek.

The Big Lie Wall Street Tells You

Let me be blunt.

If you've got money sitting in a 401(k), an IRA, or a managed fund — and you don't know what it's invested in (or what fees you're paying)…

You are not the investor. You're the product.

My local pastor likes to say, "You can't walk on water until you get out of the boat."

The same goes for your bank account.

You can't break out of financial mediocrity until you realize the wool has been pulled over your eyes.

Remember: The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world that he doesn't exist.

Image courtesy of Wallpaperaccess

Wall Street has pulled a similar illusion on the modern-day public…

They want you to believe that trading and investing are inherently too complicated, too intellectual, and too risky for anyone but them.

Their motive is obvious. The more you leave your financial future in their hands, the more money they make — and the more money you leave on the table (for them to scoop up).

They want to mislead individual, non-professional investors, pushing the idea that institutional funds are the sole gatekeepers of financial wisdom.

They want you to think you need them.

But the entire premise is built on a lie.

This Is Your Exodus Moment

It reminds me of Exodus.

In ancient Egypt, God's people were enslaved, making bricks without straw, working towards a destiny that wasn't their own…

Image courtesy of ramsesii-amaic.blogspot.com

Day after day, year after year, they drudged themselves to the bone, all for the Pharaoh to get richer and richer.

That was the system. And it was all they knew — because they hadn't seen the light.

Until God raised up a voice, Moses, and said, "No more. I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians...I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God."

That was one of the most groundbreaking (or should I say "sea-parting?") moments in the entire course of history.

And right now is the same kind of moment for you.

A chance to stop working for modern-day Pharaohs…

To stop making Wall Street richer…

And start building something that honors God, provides for your family, and funds the things that matter most to you.

You don't have to stay in Egypt.

You don't have to keep struggling financially.

There's a path out of the financial desert. And you don't need to be a genius to take it.

Peter Lynch — who ran the Magellan Fund and beat the stock market consistently for three decades — once said something I'll never forget:

"The amateur investor has advantages that should result in better performance than the experts."

Hear that?

He didn't say you can match the pros. He said you can outperform them.

You just have to take that first step out of the boat.

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Be good to yourself (and be good to others),

Ben Sturgill