Programs And Podcasts

Healthy connections with others don't happen on their own. They take practice, time, and knowledge of yourself and others. Jason VanRuler will join us to help us discover our communication type. Using the acronym PATHS, Jason will introduce us to five different communication types and the weaknesses and strengths that go with each one.

Become a Parshall Partner: http://moodyradio.org/donateto/inthemarket/partners

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Oppression isn’t always obvious, but it can take many forms. Dr. Tony Evans explains how God brings freedom regardless of what’s holding you back.

How much can you safely spend in retirement without running out of money?

It’s one of the biggest questions retirees face. For years, many people have looked to the well-known “4% rule” for guidance. But as helpful as that rule may be, it’s not as simple—or as reliable—as many assume.

Today, Mark Biller, Executive Editor and Senior Portfolio Manager at Sound Mind Investing, joined us to revisit this widely used guideline and explain why a more flexible, personalized approach may better serve retirees.

Saving for retirement is often more straightforward than spending in retirement.

During working years, many people invest consistently, contribute to retirement accounts, and let time and compound growth do their work. But retirement introduces a new challenge: no one knows exactly how long their money needs to last.

That uncertainty changes everything. Retirees must make decisions while facing several unknowns:

Because of those variables, determining a “safe” withdrawal rate becomes one of the most difficult parts of financial planning.

The 4% rule originated with financial planner Bill Bengen in the early 1990s.

Instead of trying to predict the future, Bengen studied historical market data. He examined how retirees who began in difficult economic periods—such as the mid-1920s—would have fared over a 30-year retirement.

His conclusion: an initial withdrawal rate of 4.15%, followed by annual inflation adjustments, would have sustained every portfolio in his study for at least 30 years, even under the worst historical conditions.

That’s an important detail.

The 4.15% figure wasn’t intended to be the ideal spending strategy for everyone. It was the lowest common denominator—the floor that worked even in the toughest scenarios.

Over time, that finding was simplified into the “4% rule.” Many people began to treat it as the optimal answer for nearly every retiree. But according to Biller, that was never the point.

Rules of thumb can be helpful as rough planning tools, especially for someone years away from retirement who is trying to estimate future needs. But once retirement draws near, more precision is needed.

A single percentage cannot account for your income sources, goals, spending habits, tax picture, or life expectancy.

Sound Mind Investing conducted its own analysis under different assumptions, including a 50/50 stock-and-bond portfolio that became more conservative over time. Their findings showed:

Meanwhile, Bengen later revisited his original work with broader investment options and updated tools. His revised conclusions suggested:

These updates reinforce an important truth: retirement planning is more dynamic than a single number can capture.

Rather than anchoring to one percentage, retirees should build a plan around their full financial picture. That includes:

Financial planning software or a trusted advisor can help run simulations, stress-test scenarios, and make adjustments

Friendship hasn’t always been this hard. Author Drew Hunter looks at historical friendships, and some of the ways we get it wrong.

Show Notes and Resources

• Connect with Drew Hunter and read his articles "7 Tips on being a good friend " and "4 steps on Cultivating True Friendship"
• And grab his book, "Made for Friendship" in our shop.

• Thanks to the Christian Standard Bible for sponsoring this episode. Learn more at CSBible.com.
• Follow us on all social platforms: Facebook | Instagram | YouTube
• Find resources from our podcast at shop.familylife.com.
• Download FamilyLife's app!
• Help others find FamilyLife. Leave a review on Apple Podcast or Spotify.
• Check out all the FamilyLife's podcasts on the FamilyLife Podcast Network

See cru.org/us/en/about/privacy FamilyLife’s Privacy Policy

A lot of big things have happened in our world recently. In the last weeks, months, and even a few years, we’ve seen earth-shaking developments, many of which seemed to pop up overnight. Well, God’s Word tells us about some changes coming that we can’t even imagine. It’ll be a time of Great Tribulation! And today on A NEW BEGINNING, Pastor Greg Laurie answers our questions and gives us the reassurance we need. We’ll see God has a plan, and that plan includes us.

—

Become a Harvest Partner today and join us in knowing God and making Him known through media and large-scale evangelism, our mission of over 30 years.

Explore more resources from Pastor Greg Laurie, including daily devotionals and blogs, designed to answer your spiritual questions and equip you to walk closely with Christ.

Support the show: https://bit.ly/anbsupport

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

British evangelist J.John and his wife Killy share real stories and practical advice from the ups and downs of 42 years of marriage and global ministry. You’ll hear how “The Four R’s” – respect, responsibility, romance, and resolve can shape your marriage to go the distance.

Receive a copy of Marriage Works and an audio download of "Tips for Making Marriage Work from a Seasoned Perspective" for your donation of any amount! Plus, receive member-exclusive benefits when you make a recurring gift today. Your monthly support helps families thrive.

Get More Episode Resources 

If you enjoyed listening to Focus on the Family with Jim Daly, please give us your feedback.

There were a lot of dramatic images from the military action known as Operation Iraqi Freedom - but I think few were more dramatic than the middle-of-the-night rescue of a prisoner of war, Jessica Lynch. If you were around at the time, you probably remember it. As Coalition forces advanced quickly from the Kuwaiti border to the capital of Baghdad, Pfc. Lynch's unit of Army maintenance troops made a wrong turn, ended up in the middle of an enemy ambush, and no one knew Jessie Lynch's fate. She was listed as missing in action. But acting on the tip of Iraqi sympathizers, a Special Operations Force fought their way into the hospital where she was imprisoned, found her, and quickly carried her to a waiting helicopter. And then, they had to fight their way out, too. But Private Lynch was safe - saved by rescuers who risked it all to bring her out.

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about "The Day You're Rescued."

I'll never begin to know what it must have been like to be a prisoner of someone like Saddam Hussein's brutal regime. But I do know a little bit about how it feels to be rescued from a situation that I couldn't get out of, that otherwise would have been fatal. I know what it is to be rescued by someone who risked it all - actually, who gave it all, to bring me out. It's a life-saving experience shared by millions of people over 2,000 years. It's a rescue that can happen to you.

This rescue was planned in heaven and executed by no one less than the very Son of God, Jesus Christ. It's described by God Himself in Colossians 1:13-14, our word for today from the Word of God. It says of God that "He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

We don't realize it, but we are in as deadly a situation as that rescued POW was in - actually a lot more deadly, because without a rescue we will be imprisoned forever in an awful place the Bible calls hell. That's where the death penalty is carried out for a human being who has run their own life instead of letting their Creator run it. Who has dared to say, "God, you run the universe. I'll run me." Which, according to the Bible, describes all of us, no matter how religious we might be, and no matter what religion we're from. We're sinners. We are unable to get ourselves out of our own dark side, we're unable to get ourselves out of the penalty for our sin. We are trapped in what the Bible calls "the dominion of darkness."

But Jesus came, fighting his way to rescue us. Dying on a cross to pay the penalty we deserve, so we could have (as the Bible says) "the forgiveness of sins" instead of the punishment for our sins. No religion can get you out - only a rescue can. And only Jesus did what had to be done to rescue you. This very day - maybe through these very words - He is breaking into your life, offering to be your personal Rescuer from your personal sin and its eternal penalty. If you'll grab Jesus by His hand and just say, "Jesus, You're my only hope. You paid for my sins when you died on the cross. You proved you're alive by walking out of your grave. I want you to walk into my life today. Beginning today, I am Yours, Jesus."

Don't you want to know that you're right with God? Don't you want to know that eternity is settled? If you want to know you belong to this Rescuer that loves you more than anyone ever could, let this be the day you give yourself to Him.

Let this be the day that you check out a website that is all for you at a moment like this. It is literally designed for this crossroads moment in a person's life - ANewStory.com. I invite you, I urge you, I encourage you to go there as soon as you can.

Jesus paid the ultimate price; made the ultimate sacrifice to