Six Financial Blindspots for Veteran Missionaries

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If you are a mission worker above the age of 50, hopefully you are now well established in your funding. And you have retirement investments? Good!

Can you now breathe a sigh of relief? Not yet! Too many veteran missionaries are stressed because of these financial blindspots.

1.  Over-spending on adult children.

Overspending on adult children is a major source of financial pressure for seniors. We ache for our children when they endure financial struggles, but when does “helping” become enabling?

When we care more about our children getting their bills paid on time than they care, we are guilty of enabling. This is not merely a financial issue—it is also a discipling issue. Why does your child’s failure to plan ahead mean a financial emergency for you? And once they know you’ll bail them out, they begin to depend on it. 

A friend of mine had a “come to Jesus” meeting with his son who struggled with minor depression and was constantly short of money. He offered empathy, which the son appreciated. Then, even though this father could easily pay his son’s bills, he set a boundary, saying, “I will cover your medical insurance and your auto repairs. Otherwise, you are on your own.”

The son agreed to this arrangement but soon asked again for emergency help. My friend took a deep breath and said, “No!” The son survived and has not asked again. And he has become more responsible. Boundaries! And a good example of discipling.

2. Ignoring the discipline of budgeting and saving.

I assumed that once we reached 100% of budget consistently, I could kiss our monthly envelope budgeting goodbye. After all, we weren’t living month to month, we weren’t squeaking by. Even though the clothing envelope is empty, why must I wait until next month to buy that cool Led Zeppelin T-shirt!

But household budgeting is for all stages of life, not merely when money is tight. Discipline yourself to pay with cash (for household items) instead of credit cards.

Using credit cards increases spending by up to 19%. Handing over cash at the store is more painful than handing over a piece of plastic for a 30-day loan.

The discipline of saving with every paycheck (PYF—Pay Yourself First) after giving to the Lord’s work is still necessary after you hit age 50. Alma and I found it helpful to identify different savings categories:

• Emergency

• Vacation, Christmas, family fun

• Kids college or training

• Old age

 3. Will there be enough? Fearing outliving your savings.

“Outliving your money” is one of retirees’ biggest worries—especially wives.

If you don’t identify a specific amount to accumulate by the time you retire, you will not know how much to save each month. You will live under the pressure, “Will there be enough?”

One friend said, “How much will we need at age 70? Gazillions! We’re spenders!” Nonsense! Whether you are a spender or thrifty you need a “holy retirement number.”

Here’s your assignment! On a blank sheet of paper:

• List what you think your monthly expenses will be as you retire. Don’t forget “bucket list” items. Make necessary assumptions about your lifestyle. Ignore inflation for now.

• Estimate your government pension (social security) income, other income, your salary or part-time salary.

• Estimate how much savings you will need in addition. For Americans, financial counselors say it should be 8-10 times your today’s annual salary. They also say social security will not be enough!

• After you have your “savings total magic number,” multiply it by 4%. That is the amount you can safely withdraw each year and not deplete the original amount.

Your retirement budget should look different from your working-days budget. Why not put less cash in the clothing envelope and more in the “eating out” envelope? Men, remember those three little words your spouse loves to hear: “Let’s eat out!”

4. Postponing bucket list items. 

It is easy to postpone doing bucket list activities….“It’s too expensive!” Or “We’ll do it next year.” Don’t defer every dream until you retire. At age 65 you might not have the health or energy to take that once-in-a-lifetime vacation or even an impromptu weekend away.

Do some bucket list dreams now while you can. There will come a day when you can’t.

5. Hanging on to your home mortgage.

Carrying mortgage debt (or any debt) into retirement expands emotional pressure as we age. Paying off a mortgage will make you smile! Replace that mortgage line item expense with saving still more for retirement so you don’t have to “postpone fun” (#4 above). Hopefully you are making extra principal payments each month.

What about a reverse mortgage? Be extremely careful! A reverse mortgage is still a loan. If a financial tactic seems too good to be true, it probably is.

6. Failing to invest in memorable events with your family (or others).

Is it “things” you buy for your children and grandchildren that they will remember? Or is it experiences they have had with you and their siblings and cousins? Save up to visit your family and friends such as long-time giving partners. What special things would you like to do with special people in your life?

 Plan it now!

 One year instead of buying Christmas presents, we took a family vacation with kids and grandkids. Ten of us in a large home for a week in the snowy mountains. “All expenses paid” by Alma and me of course! Lots of chaos and lots of fun we will never forget.

But memorable events can be tiny too. Recently, I spent a day with my granddaughter who was visiting from Chicago. She is a sophomore in college, and I worried about what we could do that would not be boring for her. I’m about 100 years older!

So…we hiked in the mountains, ate lunch at an outdoor bistro under a shady tree, crossed the street for ice cream cones and just walked and talked. Then I said, “I have been asking you lots of questions, do you have a question for me?” I was ready for a deep soul-searching question. But she smiled and said, “Yes, I have always wondered….why do you wear shoes with tassels?”

We laughed and laughed. To this day I don’t know the answer. It was a memorable event. We are closer now.

Let us be wise financially after age of 50. It is not too late to change old habits! Your best days of ministry might still be ahead of you.

Former Navigator President Lorne Sanny said, “As I grow older, people ask if I see signs of the Lord’s coming. Yes, I do. But I see more signs of my going!”

But don’t let financial blindspots spoil these precious years. Be wise, and may the Lord keep you fresh as a palm tree (Psalm 92:14-15), “full of sap and very green to declare that He is upright!”