As You Plan, Don’t Forget the “G Factor”
Some financial planners say the word “retirement” isn’t in most people’s vocabularies until they’re in their forties – typically the first time they get serious about retirement planning.
When Annette and I hit that decade, we took stock of our progress. We were in decent shape, but I wasn’t sure if we were completely on track. This caused us to look at how to close the gap. The most likely possibilities were:
I could potentially get a new job that either paid more or had a better retirement program.
Either Annette or I could work additional years which would both allow us to add to our retirement savings and reduce the number of years in retirement (meaning our savings would last longer).
I didn’t have any likely job prospects on the horizon, and, although we didn’t have specific target dates for retirement, we weren’t excited about the thought of prolonging our working years.
This led us to brainstorm about some additional options. Disclaimer: Some of these are far-fetched, and a couple are downright apocalyptic.
Perhaps my going-in assumptions were overly conservative, meaning our situation was actually more favorable than my modeling projected.
We had a distant family member with considerable resources. PERHAPS, some of that wealth would eventually come our way.
There was always the possibility of an inheritance.
Although we didn’t play the lottery, occasionally someone would give us a ticket. MAYBE one of them would result in a windfall.
And now here are the more extreme scenarios:
Perhaps both Annette and I would die before retirement age, thereby eliminating altogether the need for retirement income.
Perhaps the entire economy would collapse, in which case, no amount of planning or saving would ultimately matter.
Perhaps Jesus would return before we retired.
Admittedly, these last few are highly improbable, but they WERE remote possibilities. For the record, I don’t recommend counting on Jesus’ return as your primary retirement strategy.
This analysis of our situation was a bit discouraging, even somewhat depressing. And it prompted at least some worry. Although we thoroughly believe God controls absolutely every circumstance of our lives, I couldn’t help just a little fretting.
I’m all for realistic analysis. However, as you plan, you should never overlook the “G Factor” – the God Factor. Despite your best planning, you really can’t control the outcome. That’s up to God. The book of Proverbs refers to this numerous times:
Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails (19:21).
The horse is made ready for the day of battle, but victory rests with the Lord (21:31).
Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth (27:1).
Jesus urges us in the Sermon on the Mount to refrain from worrying (Matthew 6:25-34). And in Philippians 4:6-7 the Apostle Paul teaches: “Do not be anxious for anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding will rule your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
This applies even when things are less than ideal or even disastrous. We can sometimes catastrophize the future – assuming the worst will happen – when projections are unfavorable.
I know. It’s easy to say we shouldn’t worry but much harder to practice. However, God wants you to live that way.
Bottom line: Plan realistically based on the most likely scenario, do your part to achieve your goals, but never forget that God ultimately controls everything that happens. This means that you have exactly what he wants you to have – no more and no less.
It turns out my assumptions were far too conservative, and we also received some unexpected fiscal blessings, one of which was not even on my list. God has been good to us!