Cody Hobelmann, cofounder of The Finish Line Pledge and a Certified Kingdom Advisor, talked with us about how he integrates his faith with his career. As a young professional, Cody believes oftentimes the best way he can serve his clients is by encouraging them to give more.
We learned how one pivotal conversation with his brother led Cody to flip the way he thought about money and discover his calling to share the message of biblical generosity.
How did generosity become important to you?
I’ve been in financial planning my entire career, but I hadn’t heard any good teachings about generosity until my brother, Kealan, really challenged me. He asked me, “So you’re a Christian, and you’re an advisor. How does your faith impact the way you advise clients?” That bothered me because I didn’t have a good answer.
So, I started to explore what Scripture says about money. I felt super convicted I wasn’t applying these principles in my own life. I needed to live the example – not just for my family, but so I could be a better advisor. The dominant theme I found is that God is a generous God, and we’re made in his image. Everything belongs to him. And we’re just stewarding his resources.
When I set a finish line, it was transformational almost overnight. I realized that there’s enough somewhere, and I wasn’t all that far from it. That ignited this passion to invite others to experience that same transformational realization that there is such thing as enough.
Eventually, we found out there’s a community and a legacy of people who’ve been doing this for a long time: NCF, Blue Trust, all the way back to John Wesley, all the way back to the Israelites. We found examples of this concept all over the place, everywhere we looked, and it powerfully aligned our hearts with what God (rather than the world) was calling us into. Then I could answer the question, “What does your faith have to do with the advice that you give to clients?” I started asking clients, “How much is enough?” either as an income question or as an accumulation question.
Why do you think some advisors don’t discuss generosity with their clients?
I’ve lived this. I think, at first glance, it seems counterintuitive that if you encourage your clients to give more, that means you’ll be managing less. There’s an inherent conflict of interest there because we’re typically paid on what we’re managing. You really have to believe it’s what’s best for your clients, especially those seeking to deepen their faith.
I also really subscribe to the idea that Ron Blue talks about, that you can’t take someone somewhere you haven’t been yourself. If I haven’t really figured this out, it’s hard to give advice about it.
Why did you choose to work with NCF?
NCF has been an amazing partner because of the quality of content and the network built around excellent service. I’ve talked through all kinds of strategies with probably a dozen different NCF relationship managers across the country. It’s just really thoughtful, loving expertise. There’s tremendous value in it. They equip me to think bigger, to optimize what I’m already doing.
I’ve been able to make a couple of connections with people who saved and accumulated far more than they needed, and they’re looking for tax-efficient ways to give. And what they find with NCF is someone who wants to provide solutions, but who also really loves them and cares for their soul (not just their wallet).
How have you helped your clients by encouraging generosity?
I’ve got a client who clearly has more assets and income than they’ll ever spend. Their default strategy was to have a growing net worth throughout the rest of their lives and then pass that on to their kids, which is a lot of people’s default.
They were already doing some charitable giving. But we challenged them to think less about how much they could spend every year without running out and more about how much they really needed to maintain their lifestyle and how much they might be able to give.
What we showed them is every year, going forward, they could give four times as much as they were giving without significantly impacting their likelihood of running out of money.
It’s been a journey because I think it has to be lived and experienced to really believe it. I think it’s just giving permission, using the numbers, going through the process, and saying, “You have capacity to give significantly more than you’ve believed possible. We want to give you permission to think about what it would be like to give four times as much every year from now on for the rest of your lives. What could that look like?”
To see them get involved in ministries for the first time and to see them really start to believe that – not just by the numbers, but by lived experience – has been super rewarding. They didn’t have to increase the cost of their lifestyle to actually experience fuller life.
What has been the result of making generosity part of your business?
Honestly, it’s so much more fun. I find myself celebrating with clients. I’ve had multiple conversations in the last couple of months where a client said, “I just made my largest gift ever, and I wanted to call you and tell you about that!”
It attracts the type of people who are filled with joy because they’re living generously, and it’s really fun to walk alongside them. It encourages me and spurs me on to greater generosity. And when word gets out that there are advisors who can help you give better, it tends to attract people who want to give better. That’s been my favorite thing: to celebrate clients pushing themselves in giving and celebrating what God has done in their lives.
Do you have a favorite Bible verse about giving?
Mark 10: 17-27. I feel like the Lord has been really showing me the heart behind the Rich Young Ruler. He was really looking for Jesus to answer the question, “How much do I need to give to be righteous?” But Jesus says, “Everything.” He says, “I can’t do that,” and walks away, sorrowful, because he had many possessions.
I think the lesson for us is we’re not working toward 10 percent or 90 percent. We can get lost in the details and numbers, but God’s after our hearts. If there’s still a shred of love for money and the things that it promises left in our hearts, God’s still working on us. I don’t know that it means that we should sell everything and give it to the poor, but it does mean that God’s after 100 percent of our hearts.
