FAITH = GREED Pt 2

Turns out Warren Buffett shares my view on buying on fear and selling on greed.

So, how does faith fit in?

Well faith is the opposite of fear. In the markets, greed is the opposite of fear.

Intuitively it means that when things are going well, it's easy to have faith, and it's easy to have greed. The last 10 years have seen the growth of the megachurch and the hyper-debt fueled asset explosion which is now finally unwinding.

Somewhere along the journey, our spiritual life and our material life have become so entertwined, that our faith, I believe has commingled with our greed ie. the love of money. The prayer of Jabez, and other fads that have swept Christiandom pair the two words together.

On one hand, if generosity and social justice is the offshoot of the wealth/faith continuum, then I think that is in general a positive thing, for those in need. However, the spiritual mindset of those who are at the source of this wealth transfer is what I question.

I'm not proposing that we pray for poverty, or lack, as that would be contrary to Bible. God blesses, and abundance is our inheritance. But the messages from the pulpits of some megachurches may be propagating a blurring of the faith/greed line.

Perhaps, instead of praying for more wealth (and to be fair, more to give away) we should be praying for humility and holiness. God is not a genie, and he is not around to grant wishes. He exists for us to worship, to submit, to be a servant of.

So for all those, who are doing well financially and growing in wealth; what are you praying for? More wealth? Take a look at the % you are giving away, and maybe you'll find that the amounts you give away are getting bigger, but the % has not.

So now that times are tough, and those in need are on the rise, and fear is ruling the world, perhaps a response of true faith, in the one who is worthy to have faith in, will take its rightful place.

Peace.

FAITH = GREED Pt 1

OK. The title of this blog is the title of a book that I am working on.

I've been a person of the Christian faith for 16 years, almost exactly. At the time, I was employed by Merrill Lynch, the investment bank. From the outset, I found the greed factor highly refreshing, it was overt and "clean"; not covered up with any real noble causes. Make money for others, make money for yourself.

Upon coming to Christ however, I did have a crisis of whether to stay involved in such a business. My resolution, be a person of faith, and attract the curious.

So suffice it to say that the word Greed, the Gordon Gekko "Wall St." kind of greed, has been well absorbed into my psyche and understanding. As a trader in the markets, you had to understand this word. It was, and is, one of the driving forces from which all self-interest of its participants could be understood. Analyzing the types and levels of greed, was helpful to my work.

The other driving force, is, of course, Fear. Suffice it to say that the systemic global financial risks that exist in the world today, would certainly be worthy of some fear. Fear of the known: things are going to get worse; fear of the unknown: how bad is it going to get. As a market participant, certainly fear is also a great thing to understand: your own, your fellow professionals, and the public.

I also developed quite a simple method of relative success. When I was most fearful, I bought. It worked. Turned out that my emotional decision making was no more sophisticated that a kind grandmother, responding to the headlines of the day. So when I wanted to buy, I sold. When I wanted to sell, I bought. 60/40 success rate was all I needed.

Well that's enough for Part One.

PS. Can't believe I didn't post in September. Must be something to do with moving houses (again) and travelling to Australia and back.