What Are You Passing Forward? with Ron Blue | FaithFi
November 12, 2026
What Are You Passing Forward? with Ron Blue
Faith & Finance with Rob West
In a relay race, runners don't leave the baton behind. They pass it forward to someone prepared to carry it. Shouldn't we think about inheritance the same way?
When we consider leaving an inheritance, we naturally focus on the financial resources we'll pass along. But an inheritance involves more than transferring money or possessions. It also involves preparing the people who will receive them.
Proverbs 16:16 reminds us, “How much better to get wisdom than gold! To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.”
Ron Blue, founder of Kingdom Advisors and Blue Trust and a pioneer in Christian financial planning, has spent nearly five decades helping families understand this distinction. His message is simple but profound: The greatest legacy we can leave isn't merely the wealth we've accumulated, but the wisdom to steward it well.
In a relay race, runners don't leave the baton behind. They pass it forward to someone prepared to carry it. Shouldn't we think about inheritance the same way?
When we consider leaving an inheritance, we naturally focus on the financial resources we'll pass along. But an inheritance involves more than transferring money or possessions. It also involves preparing the people who will receive them.
Proverbs 16:16 reminds us, “How much better to get wisdom than gold! To get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver.”
Ron Blue, founder of Kingdom Advisors and Blue Trust and a pioneer in Christian financial planning, has spent nearly five decades helping families understand this distinction. His message is simple but profound: The greatest legacy we can leave isn't merely the wealth we've accumulated, but the wisdom to steward it well.
Why Wisdom Must Come Before Wealth
Wealth can certainly be a blessing, but money alone doesn't produce wisdom, character, contentment, or purpose. Those qualities must be developed intentionally, and they ultimately determine how someone handles the resources entrusted to them.
Passing significant wealth to someone who isn't prepared to manage it can create unintended consequences, even when the giver has the best intentions.
This is especially important when considering multigenerational wealth transfers. Children and grandchildren who inherit substantial resources may not have experienced the sacrifices, discipline, or decisions involved in accumulating them. Without that perspective, they may develop an entirely different relationship with money.
Ron encourages families to think beyond the immediate inheritance and consider how their decisions might affect the next two or three generations. By the third generation, beneficiaries may have little or no personal connection to the family members who originally accumulated the wealth.
One question he recommends asking is: What's the worst thing that could happen if I leave this money to this person or family?
It's not intended to discourage generosity or create suspicion toward potential heirs. Rather, it invites you to consider how an inheritance might affect someone's relationships, character, financial decisions, and spiritual well-being.
The same principle applies to charitable giving. Before transferring significant resources to a ministry or nonprofit, it's wise to consider whether that organization is prepared to manage the gift effectively.
Ultimately, the goal is not simply to transfer resources, but to prepare the next steward to use them faithfully.
Preparing the Next Generation Through Example and Experience
How can parents and grandparents prepare their children and grandchildren to handle an inheritance wisely? Ron offers two practical principles.
First, more is caught than taught. Children learn about money by observing how the adults around them earn, spend, save, and give. Over time, they absorb attitudes and habits that can influence their financial decisions well into adulthood.
This means the example we set may be just as important as the financial lessons we teach. Ron recalls speaking with a father who realized his children had never actually seen him give because he made all his charitable donations online. There was nothing wrong with his method of giving, but he recognized that his children were missing an opportunity to witness generosity firsthand.
Making generosity visible and inviting children into age-appropriate conversations about financial stewardship can help them understand not only how money is managed, but why it matters.
Second, we learn to manage money by managing money. Financial wisdom isn't developed through instruction alone. It requires experience, including opportunities to make decisions, face consequences, and learn from mistakes.
For younger children, that might mean managing an allowance or making purchasing decisions. As they grow older, parents might entrust them with responsibility for buying their own clothes, developing a budget, or managing a small investment account.
The goal isn't to prevent every poor decision. It's to provide opportunities for children to develop discernment while parents are still available to offer guidance.
Of course, watching our children make mistakes can be difficult. Our natural inclination is to protect them from disappointment or financial consequences. But continually rescuing them from those consequences may prevent them from developing the wisdom they'll need later.
Allowing children to learn from manageable mistakes today may help prepare them for much greater financial responsibilities tomorrow.
Why Age Doesn't Always Equal Maturity
One common mistake in estate planning is assuming that someone is ready to manage significant wealth simply because they've reached a certain age. But financial maturity doesn't automatically arrive at 30, 40, or even 60.
Circumstances change. Relationships evolve. Financial needs and responsibilities shift over time.
Ron knows this firsthand. At 84, with children approaching their 60s and a growing family that includes grandchildren and great-grandchildren, he's seen how dramatically a family's circumstances can change across generations.
As a result, he and his wife have revisited their estate plans many times. His counsel is straightforward: Don't put your estate plan in concrete.
An estate plan that made sense when your children were young adults may no longer be appropriate decades later. Changes in marriages, family relationships, financial circumstances, and personal maturity can all influence how an inheritance might best be distributed.
Rather than treating estate planning as a one-time decision, families should revisit their plans periodically and maintain enough flexibility to respond to changing circumstances.
The question isn't merely how old an heir is, but whether that person is prepared to steward what they receive.
The Benefits of Giving While You're Living
When we think about inheritance, we often imagine a transfer that takes place after death. But there can be tremendous value in passing along at least a portion of our resources during our lifetime.
Ron frequently shares a memorable principle from his book Splitting Heirs: “Do your giving while you're living, so you're knowing where it's going.”
Giving during our lifetime creates two meaningful opportunities.
First, it allows us to experience the joy of seeing how those resources bless others. Whether we're helping a child purchase a home, supporting a grandchild's education, or contributing to a ministry, we can witness the impact of what God has entrusted to us.
Second, it creates opportunities to help prepare the next generation.
Rather than transferring a significant inheritance all at once, families can consider distributing resources gradually. This allows heirs to gain experience managing money while parents or grandparents are still available to offer wisdom and guidance.
It also provides an opportunity to observe how those resources are being used, which may inform future decisions.
Of course, Ron cautions that giving during our lifetime requires discernment. Financial gifts should be handled thoughtfully so they don't unintentionally interfere with marriages, parenting responsibilities, or family relationships.
The goal isn't to control how heirs use their inheritance. It's to help them develop the wisdom and character necessary to steward it faithfully.
Remember That the Process Never Ends
Another important consideration is that our heirs' needs will keep changing.
As children establish careers, raise families, and become financially independent, they may no longer need the same level of financial support they once did. Meanwhile, opportunities to bless grandchildren, great-grandchildren, or charitable organizations may become more apparent.
This makes inheritance planning an ongoing process, not a single transaction.
The question isn't simply how much we should leave behind. It's how the resources God has entrusted to us can accomplish the greatest good, both now and in the generations to come.
Ecclesiastes 7:11 says, “Wisdom is good with an inheritance, an advantage to those who see the sun.”
Wealth and wisdom aren't mutually exclusive. In fact, an inheritance accompanied by wisdom can become a tremendous blessing. That's why preparing the next steward matters so much.
An inheritance may provide financial security or open doors to new opportunities, but its lasting impact depends largely on the person receiving it. By modeling faithful stewardship, creating opportunities to learn, and approaching wealth transfers with prayerful intentionality, we can help equip the next generation to handle God's resources wisely.
After all, the greatest success in passing down wealth isn't measured by how much the next generation receives, but by how faithfully they steward what they've been given.
If you'd like to explore this topic further, Ron Blue's wisdom helped shape our newest FaithFi Field Guide, How Do I Prepare the Next Steward? This resource offers biblical wisdom and practical guidance for families preparing the next generation for faithful stewardship. You can find it atFaithFi.com/Shop.
On Today’s Program, Rob Answers Listener Questions:
My wife and I are considering a reverse mortgage. Could it pay off our existing mortgage, provide a line of credit, and give us some cash for expenses like dental work? And would we need to bring money to closing?
If I retire at 65 but wait until 67 to claim Social Security, will my benefit still grow even if I’m no longer working? Could those two years with no earnings reduce my benefit?
Remember, you can call in to ask your questions every weekday at (800) 525-7000. Faith & Finance is also available on Moody Radio Network and American Family Radio. You can also visit FaithFi.com to connect with our online community and partner with us as we help more people live as faithful stewards of God’s resources.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
