How can I break the cycle of classic humanism and embrace true Christianity?

Ralph
00:00:00

Have you ever felt like something was missing in your life, even when everything seemed to be going well? Do you find yourself relying solely on human reasoning and achievement, yet still feeling empty inside?

Today we're going to explore how breaking free from classic humanism and I know that's a big term, and embracing true Christianity can transform your financial and your spiritual life. Stay tuned as we answer the question, how can I break the cycle of classic humanism and embrace true Christianity?

Podcast Announcer
00:00:36

In a world where crushing debt keeps you trapped, where living paycheck to paycheck has become your new normal, and where the dream of retirement seems impossibly out of reach, there's hope. Join financial evangelist Ralph Estep Jr. A man who's walked through the fire of financial failure and emerged stronger on the other side.
Welcome to Ask Ralph, the show where real world experience meets biblical truth. To break the bondage of financial despair.
To get ready to take control of your money, break free from the financial stress and align your resources with God's purpose for your life. This is Ask Ralph with Ralph Estep Jr.

Ralph
00:01:14

Thank you for joining me today. I've got a powerful message for you, something you might have never even considered.

My goal today is to help you find a deeper relationship with Christ. That's my goal now.

If you missed yesterday's show, we had an exciting discussion on tips, which not the kind you get or leave in a restaurant, but treasury inflation protected securities.

We covered how these government backed securities can protect your purchasing power during times of inflation and it was essential knowledge for any savvy investor. So I'm going to encourage you to go back and listen if you missed it.

And remember, all your episodes of the Ask Ralph show are found right@askralph.com well, today's listener question comes to us from Peter in Boston. Get ready for a good one today. Dear Ralph, I'm a 48 year old CEO of a software company I built from the ground up over the last 20 years.

On paper, everything looks perfect. Profitable business, beautiful home in Boston, great health and respect from my peers.

I've always prided myself on being rational and self reliant, making decisions based on data and logic rather than emotion or faith. But lately I've been waking up at 3am with this gnawing emptiness I can't explain. My daughter recently asked me what I think happens after we die.

And for the first time in my life I felt completely lost for an answer. My late mother was a professor of philosophy who raised me on Camus and Sartre and secular humanism.

She taught me that meaning comes from within, but honestly, it's not filling the void anymore. I've been secretly attending a local church for the past few months.

Something about the message of grace and purpose beyond material success really resonates with me. But I'm struggling with that.

What feels like a dual identity, the rational businessman who makes decisions based on margins and market analysis, and this emerging part of me that's drawn to something more transcendent. My specific challenge is this.

How do I integrate Christian principles into my business operations and my personal finance without compromising the company's success?

For instance, I'm wrestling with questions like whether charging interest aligns with biblical teachings or how to balance profit maximization with Christian values of generosity and fair labor practices. I have 200 employees depending on me to make sound decisions.

My business peers would think I've lost my mind if they knew I was even considering this spiritual direction. Yet I can't shake the feeling that there's a deeper truth I've been missing all these years.

How do I navigate this transition authentically while maintaining my responsibilities as a business leader? And how do I reconcile my years of humanistic thinking with this pull towards Christian faith? Peter, thank you so much for reading out.

I am truly inspired by your question. I actually wrote a book about this very issue. It's called the Gospel of Entrepreneurship Following Jesus in your business journey.

And you get a copy of that book by going to askralphpodcast.com/gospel and I'll put a link to that in the show notes. And my book addresses your core question, Peter and today I'll share some of what I shared in my book.

Now if you've got a question like Peter's and you got something to share with the show, remember you can submit it at justaskralph.com and don't forget to join our live show every Tuesday night at 7pm Eastern time. And you get to that by going to askralphpodcast.com/live.

You know Peter, your struggle reminds me of a powerful verse that speaks directly to this situation. As we think about transitioning from relying on human wisdom, that humanistic approach, and we look at transcending that into God's wisdom.

Let's look at what the Scripture tells us. And this comes from the Book of Proverbs, Chapter three, verses five and six.

And it says this Trust in the Lord with all of your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways, submit to him and he will make your path straight. And Peter, I think this is the very contradiction that you're feeling.

You're trying to understand everything. You've always known that classic humanism with this Christianity. So I want to expand on that understanding today.

Well, let me share a transformative story that cuts to the very heart of who I am, Peter, one that mirrors your own journey in ways that still take my breath away. Picture this, a crisp autumn evening.

I'm here in my farmhouse office, windows overlooking rolling pastures where my black Angus cows graze against the setting sun. I remember well. It was 2017. I just closed our most successful quarter ever. When I looked at the numbers, it was a 217% increase in revenue.

Looking at the spreadsheets before me painted a picture of unqualified success. Yet there I sat, hands trembling, watching teardrops stain those immaculate financial reports.

I could hear those cows off in the distance, and they really served as a reminder of how far I'd come from those desperate years when we nearly lost everything. And I remember still to this day, pressing my palms against that cool window pane, and I watched the cows move slowly across the pasture.

And I knew each one by name, and I knew their temperament. Just two years earlier, that same view had filled me with dread. It wasn't too long after we started our cattle operation here.

We lost several calves that season. It was a tough year. It was heartbreaking to watch this. And I'd stay up countless nights at this very desk.

I was trying to crunch numbers and couldn't make them add up. And I just figured, you know what? With sheer determination and financial savvy, I could make this work.

And my pride wouldn't let me admit that I was really in over my head. I was trying to run both a cattle operation and a growing financial practice. And the truth is, I was losing my grip on both of those things.

And I could still remember the breaking point. It came during what should have been a routine client meeting with Robert and Sarah.

These two were a retired missionary couple, and when I looked at their situation, their life savings were modest by industry standards, barely six figures.

Yet when I started my normal review of their finances and I shared how well they were doing, Sarah gently nudged me and touched my arm and asked ralph, but how can we use these resources to serve the kingdom? I was like, what is she talking about? And then I realized where she was going. And that question hit me like a thunderbolt.

Here I was, drowning in worldly success. But I looked at them, and they radiated a joy and purpose that made my achievements feel like ash in my mouth.

And I began to see how deeply I I bought into what I now recognize as what I'm going to call the gospel of human achievement. That's that belief that enough intelligence, enough hard work, enough strategic planning, and I could fill this God shaped void in my soul.

I was trapped in what I call the golden handcuffs of success. Measure my worth by my net worth. Chasing validation through valuations, while the timeless rhythms of farm life proudly testified to a deeper truth.

And the transformation began slowly, like the sunrise I watched each morning over the eastern pasture. I could still think back to the critical time when we lost those little calves. It was a tough time for everybody here.

And I start each day with prayer and scripture before touching a single spreadsheet or log into my computer. And at that point, I found the book of Proverbs, chapter 3, verses 9 and 10. And they became my business manifesto.

They were simple words, but this is what it said. It says, honor the Lord with your wealth, with the first fruits of all your crops, then your barns will be filled to overflowing.

And it was at that point that I began viewing both my farm and my firm, not as my kingdom, but as an embassy. And every client interaction, every acre, every animal, an opportunity to demonstrate his principles of stewardship.

And the change wasn't just spiritual. I started looking around, and our client retention rate soared to 98%. Referrals flooded in.

The cattle operation began to thrive as I learned to balance modern management practices with. With timeless wisdom. And the people around me sensed something different as well. They saw authenticity, they saw purpose, and it was transcendent.

Now we still use cutting edge financial strategies, but now they're anchored in eternal wisdom rather than merely that temporal gain. And I remember this day. Everything crystallized.

I was meeting with another young entrepreneur wrestling with sudden wealth right here in my farm office. And as we talked, a new calf took its first wobbly steps in the pasture behind us.

And instead of jumping into my normal financial counseling, I shared my own journey in discovering true abundance. We just looked out at this little calf who the mother had just birthed, and it was just getting ready, getting ready to stand up.

Then it stood up for the first time. And I'll never forget this. His eyes filled with tears. And he said to me, he said, Ralph, this is what I've been searching for. And that's when I knew.

I knew that God had brought me through those trials despite my faith, but to use this experience as a platform for his purposes. And it really changed everything in my life. So, Peter, I look at you and I see myself back then. I achieved so much yet I hungered for something more.

And what I've discovered is that true prosperity isn't a destination that we reach through human striving, but it's a journey. We walk in partnership with divine wisdom.

Every dollar, every decision, every client relationship becomes an opportunity to demonstrate that eternal principles and professional excellence aren't competing values. That's why I wrote the book I wrote. They're complementary forces that when aligned, create impact that echoes into eternity.

This isn't just about managing money differently. It's about seeing our role as stewards rather than owners.

You're not going to like what I'm getting ready to say, but you've got to see your role as a servant rather than a master. And those cattle grazing peacefully outside my window remind me daily of this truth. We're just caretakers. We're not the creators.

And even in the lean years when drought parches the land or the market rates plummet for the cow prices, and I don't have a big operation by any stretch, but there's a peace in knowing. We're working his land, we're tending his creatures, and we're managing his resources.

I share this story not just as a testimony, but as an invitation. An invitation to step into a bigger story where your success becomes a vehicle to for significance.

Well, your expertise becomes a channel for eternal impact. And listen, I'm going to be honest with you. The journey isn't always easy. That's just the truth. I've got scars, I've got calluses to prove it.

But here's the thing I'm going to tell you, Peter, I promise you it's worth every single step. I think about it like this.

Just as every sunrise brings new promises to the farm, each day brings fresh opportunities to align our financial wisdom with these eternal principles. You might be saying, Ralph, that's great, but give me some action steps that I can use right now to put that into practice.

And I'll do that in just a minute. But let me ask you this. What if your faith could become your greatest business asset?

What if the path to entrepreneurial success aligned perfectly with your Christian values? Peter, this is exactly what you asked me. And in my book, the Gospel of Entrepreneurship, I uncover the powerful intersection of faith in business.

And there is a success that most entrepreneurs overlook. You know what I'm talking about, Peter. Every day, Christian business owners face a seemingly impossible choice. And I know you feel this.

They feel like there's this choice between following cut rope business practices or staying true to their faith. But what if you didn't have to choose, what if your faith could actually become your competitive advantage?

See, when I wrote this book, I didn't want it to just be another business book. It's a guidebook for entrepreneurs who refuse to compromise their values for success.

And through real world examples, practical strategies and biblical wisdom, here's what you're going to discover. You're going to discover how to build unshakable business foundations rooted in God's guidance.

You're going to learn why prayer should be your first business strategy, not your last resort. Not when things are failing. It's got to be at the front end.

You're going to learn how Christian principles naturally lead to stronger customer relationships. And listen to this. And stronger team loyalty among your staff. And you're going to learn the secret to making decisions with both faith and wisdom.

Because that's what it's all about. It's balancing faith and wisdom.

So join countless other Christian entrepreneurs who have transformed their businesses by applying these biblical principles. They've discovered that success doesn't require sacrifice in their values. It's truly enhanced by them.

And in today's uncertain business climate, you need more than just good, great business strategies. It just isn't enough. You need that divine wisdom. You need that guidance that aligns with your faith. You need the book the Gospel of Entrepreneurship.

So don't let another day pass wondering how to bridge your faith in business structures. Get your copy of the Gospel Entrepreneurship Today. You go to askradcast.com gospel and you can get it right there.

And remember, your business isn't just a venture. I want you to hear this, Peter. I want you to hear this loud and clear. Your business is a ministry.

So again, pick up my book the Gospel of Entrepreneurship where I'll show you how to honor God while building a legacy of success. Again, that's at askralphpodcast.com/gospel Now, I promised you that I would share some action and practical steps you can take. So here they are.

Number one thing, if you don't listen to anything else I've said today, start each business day with prayer and scripture reading. Encourage that in your organization. Number two, there are a ton of these out there.

Join a Christian business leaders group or find a Christian mentor. You need to surround yourself with like minded individuals. Peter, I'm going to challenge you. Don't hide your Christianity. Live it out loud.

That's what the Lord is asking you to do. And you're at this crossroads. I get it. You're not sure what to do. You're afraid of what people are going to think.

So surround yourself with people who understand what you're going through. And last but not least, and Peter, I'm going to encourage you to do this.

A lot of young Christians don't do this, but begin tithing, begin contributing to your church or to a faith organization and trust in God's provision. Those three things will have a direct impact and there are things that you can do right away.

Now, tomorrow I'm going to be tackling another important topic and this one is hard to deal with. And I've had a couple clients that have gone through this.

Tomorrow's topic is going to be what do you do if you suspect your mom has dementia and she's still handling her own finances? And listen, it's a sensitive subject that many of us face. I've gone through it with my own mother in law. I've gone through it with a couple clients.

So I'm going to encourage you to tune into that and remember this. My passion is to help you achieve financial success. That's part of the thing, right Peter? That's what we're talking about today. That's part of it.

I want to see you live out your dreams. But here's the more important part. I want to see you grow in your faith.

I want to see you turn your financial life, if you have a business, your business life into your ministry. I know working together we can master your finances from a Christian perspective.

So as I always end this show, I encourage you today, stay financially savvy and God bless you.

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00:20:12

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