4 Spiritual Forces that Make or Break Investors
Ever since COVID crashed the stock market in 2020, I’ve become semi-obsessed with learning as much as I can about economics and investing. As I’ve participated in the markets since then, I’ve noticed some powerful spiritual forces at play within my own spirit during investing: fear, greed, patience, and self-control.
These 4 forces are commonly talked about by investing legends such as Warren Buffett, Benjamin Graham, Howard Marks, and Jeremy Grantham—and yet they are age-old spiritual forces that God has been telling humanity about long before the inventions of Bitcoin, index funds, and central banks. These are some of the most critical forces that affect investors, and it turns out that God has to say about them.
1. Fear
When the stock market is plummeting, its easy to let fear get the best of you. “What if if never comes back up?” That’s when I’m tempted to sell, which is almost always a bad decision.
Fear can visit anyone, but God exudes peace, so people who know Him have a huge advantage. That’s why King David wrote:
“In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.”
—Psalm 4:8
Trusting God to take care of me gives me a huge advantage in both life and investing. Knowing that He’s my provider gives me the peace of mind to make rational investment decisions, even in a bear market.
2. Greed
Even if you think the stock market is overvalued, it’s hard to hold cash while the stock market keeps climbing higher.
There’s a technology fund (ARKK) that was all over the news in 2020 because it had gained 100% returns which is eye-poppingly huge. Fueled by greed, I bought some—but of course, it quickly fell 75% in the following months. As much as that loss hurt my bank account, it taught me a valuable lesson about greed that God had already been warning humanity about for thousands of years.
He says:
“Those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction.”
—Timothy 6:9
My own experience agrees with scripture: greed is a harmful and destructive force should be avoided in life and investing.
3. Patience
Legendary investor Warren Buffet once said something along the lines of:
“Investing is the means of transferring wealth from the impatient to the patient.”
—Warren Buffett
I love that quote. But exercising patience can be hard in investing, because there’s always some other investment that’s growing faster than yours. But patience is probably one of the most crucial spiritual forces for investors, since it counteracts the destructive spiritual forces of fear and greed.
As God says,
“Whoever is patient has great understanding, but someone who’s quick-tempered displays foolishness.”
—Proverbs 14:29
God and Warren Buffett agree: patience is crucial for succeeding in the stock market.
4. Discipline (Self-Control)
Discipline is really similar to patience. It’s the spiritual force that prevents good investors from buying overhyped stocks that are in a bubble or from selling undervalued ones when they’re down.
Here’s what God says about self-control:
A man without self-control is like a city broken into and left without walls.
—Proverbs 25:28
I’ve definitely found that to be true in the world of investing: not having self-control is sure to lose you a lot of money.
Final Thoughts
Stocks will rise and fall as recessions come and go—but that doesn’t mean we have to let ourselves be tossed around by the destructiveness of fear and greed. God is overflowing with the peace, patience, and self-control we all need to succeed in life and investing.