Christian Faith and Stock Investment

Last night, I had a strange dream about a brother from Hangzhou who has stepped away from his faith. This morning, I reached out to him again, and we had a simple exchange.

Since we hadn’t talked in over a year, our conversation ranged wide, touching on faith, life, and work. I found out he’s into stocks now, and suddenly had the thought to discuss the relationship between stocks and Christian faith with him.

There are many stock options in the world, just as there are many religious faiths, but there’s a big difference between the two. For a person, you can choose not to buy any stocks, but faith isn’t quite the same. Even if you don’t choose to believe in any religion, like Christianity, by not choosing, you’re still, in a way, practicing a type of faith. Thus, some say it’s not about choosing to have faith or not, but what to have faith in. Not choosing any faith is, in itself, a type of faith.

So why does someone actively choose a faith, or why choose to buy a company’s stock? A big reason is because they see inherent value and long-term potential.

I candidly shared with my friend that even though I’ve “held” Christian faith for nearly twenty years, I still often doubt if God exists. Sometimes, I feel isolated from my faith—an unfortunate state. Yet, because I believe in the long-term value of faith, I continue to “hold” it. Of course, this is from a human perspective. It’s really God’s mercy and protection that keeps me in the faith.

This is much like the value investing I admire. If you truly believe in the long-term value of a company or stock, then you should “hold” without frequent buying and selling. It’s the same with faith; my faith journey has ups and downs, and if I’ve truly committed, I “hold” long term.

In this “holding” process, it’s not about doing nothing, just like with stock investment, where continuous learning is needed to understand intrinsic value. Christian faith is the same; we need daily practice—practicing our relationship with God, with others, and with ourselves.

If we must compare Christian faith to stocks, I think the strategy for “buying into” Christian faith is very bold. It requires us to be all in. As Matthew 13 says, the kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man finds it, he hides it again and then in his joy goes and sells all he has and buys that field. The kingdom of heaven is also like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it. I love this investment strategy. Once you see clearly, you decide to invest fully and hold steadfastly.