Zak Lutz here, partner and Chief Investment Officer at LifeGuide. I was skiing with a friend recently and, on the ride up between runs, our conversation kept coming back to the markets. (Which I’m sure is the center of your conversations during ski outings as well!) My friend was eager to know, ”What’s driving up stocks so much right now??” So I told him, “It’s all about artificial intelligence right now.” Let me explain why: Note: This video was originally produced for our monthly client newsletter, Guidepost. AI > Inflation Right now, the US stock market cares MORE about artificial intel ..read more

Over the last ten holiday seasons, we’ve randomly selected and invited a small number of our clients to participate in our annual “Share the Blessing” campaign. We send these clients a $75 cash gift and ask them to think about someone they feel could use an unexpected blessing. Then, we ask that they simply give that person the cash—no strings attached. Every year, we see the incredible ways God works and often multiplies the impact of these unexpected blessings! As Christians, we’re called to a life of extravagant generosity as a response to Christ’s generous love toward us. And this generosi ..read more

Zak Lutz here, Partner and Chief Investment Officer at LifeGuide. I was talking to a client the other day about how stocks and bonds are both going down right now, making this an unusually challenging investing environment. And they asked me, “The markets seem really weird right now…why are things going down if the economy is actually so good?” So, in today’s post, I’d like to do two things: Explain that what’s going on is more math than weird or mysterious Share why the future of the markets is brighter than it may seem right now Ready? Let’s go! Note: This video was originally produced fo ..read more

As we have walked with hundreds of clients over the years, we’ve found over and over that one of the most effective ways to increase the financial peace, freedom, and impact you can experience is to cultivate a practice of generosity. It’s so important, in fact, that we specifically identify the amount of funds available for giving and generosity as one of the key areas we address in our planning process! Often, once we do that, we hear questions like, “It’s great that we now know how much we can give, but how do we get started?” or “How do we decide where the best place is for us to give?” Th ..read more

Today, we want to talk about something that tends to “fly under the radar” in many conversations about investing: the importance of setting proper expectations. Note: This video was originally published in our monthly client e-newsletter, Guidepost. The importance of proper expectations Today, I’d like to talk about something that seldom gets much attention when it comes to investing. In fact, it’s something that can profoundly impact how we experience virtually every aspect of our daily lives, from our relationships with family and friends to our business interactions and even to our vacati ..read more

Today, we want to provide a brief market update and share a story we believe has the power to change how you view your investment portfolio.  Note: This video was published in our monthly client e-newsletter, Guidepost. 2023 Q2 Market Update Both US and international stocks have recovered from their March lows when regulators took over Silicon Valley bank. In March, many experts acknowledged that Silicon Valley was an unusual situation. But the general public was fearful that other banks would run into serious trouble—a narrative hyped up in the media— which thankfully has not come to fruiti ..read more

Over the past nine holiday seasons, we’ve randomly selected and invited a small number of our clients to participate in our annual Share the Blessing campaign. For this campaign, we send these clients a cash gift (usually around $75) and ask them to think about someone they feel could use an unexpected blessing. Then, we ask that they simply give that person the cash—no strings attached. We’ve seen time and again how this little unexpected blessing can leave a lasting impact greater than its financial worth. Today, we’d like to share the stories we received from this year’s Share the Blessing ..read more

Today, we want to unpack a question we get asked a lot this time of year: “What do you think is going to happen with the market this year?” To explore this question—and the question behind the question—is Chief Investment Officer, Zak Lutz. Take it away, Zak! Note: This video was originally published in our monthly client e-newsletter, Guidepost. So, what is going to happen with the market this year? Believe us—we are right there with you! We want to know what is going to happen as well. Bob Doll, Chief Investment Officer at Crossmark Global Investments and a veteran of the financial in ..read more

We’re excited to announce that Matt Hess, CFP®, CKA® has been promoted to LifeGuide Partner! For our clients who work with Matt, you already know how fantastic he is as an advisor. Now as an official partner of the firm, Matt will adopt even greater responsibility for driving LifeGuide’s mission forward for the long term while continuing to serve his clients in his role as Lead Advisor. The post Welcoming Matt Hess as LifeGuide Partner appeared first on LifeGuide Financial Advisors ..read more

I recently had an opportunity to lead a workshop called “God, Stuff, & Money” at my church. During this workshop, we talked at length about how money is powerful. When our relationship with money is out of alignment, it can cause stress, anxiety, pride, and jealousy. It too often leads to relational conflict. It can pull our hearts away from God. Yet, in its proper place, money has enormous power to help us experience a life of financial peace, freedom, and impact. One of the best ways to refocus our relationship with money is by practicing generosity. Generosity can help us ..read more