Mary Helen Klingen, Financial Advisor, on the Growth of Generosity Amongst Singles (Ep. 136)

Mary Helen Klingen began her career in accounting but transitioned to financial advising after a few years in the corporate world. Currently with Blue Trust, she regularly supports clients in embracing deeper generosity. As a single woman in a male-dominated field, Mary Helen has grappled with her singleness in relation to her faith, career, and purpose. This journey has inspired her to encourage other women in similar situations to find their voice in the space God has given them.   

Mary Helen is passionate about empowering single women to integrate their faith and finances. She actively participates in the stewardship and singles ministries at her church and offers practical advice that you won’t want to miss!   

Major Topics Include:

• Mary Helen’s faith background and career journey
• Integrating faith and finances in the unique culture of Blue Trust
• Being the only woman in the Houston office
• How her struggles led into ministry
• Common barriers to generosity for spenders and savers
• Viewing singleness as an asset in generosity 
• Navigating the search for purpose and contentment in the single season
• Mary Helen’s experience setting a finish line as a saver
• The importance of talking about money in the Church

QUOTES TO REMEMBER

• “We are called to generosity not because God needs our money, but because He wants to do something through us.”
• “The way you know you care about a mission is if you pass it on to someone else.”
• “In the moments when I feel different, I remember that at the end of the day, these men and I have Christ in common. We’re all Believers, and that’s the most important thing about us.”
• “Jesus asked more questions than He answered. So as financial advisors, we follow that model to get to the heart level.”
• “I had to learn contentment in the stage and season of singleness that God had for me before I could move into a more open-handed, generous space with my own finances.”
• “I didn’t find the answer I was looking for, that marriage was guaranteed or promised to me, but what I did find was a good God who loves me and has provided for me.”
• “We get the opportunity in singleness to see the beauty of following Jesus and to have Him, and in having Him, to truly have all that we need.”

LINKS FROM THE SHOW

• Julie Wilson, President of Women Doing Well (see our past interview here)
• Blue Trust (see our interview with founder, Ron Blue)
• God and Money (see our interviews with coauthors Greg Baumer and John Cortines)
• Journey to Generosity (JoG) with Generous Giving (see our interviews with cofounder, Todd Harper and CEO, April Chapman)
• 7 Myths About Singleness by Sam Allberry
• Compass Financial Ministries (see our interview with CEO, Brian Holtz)
• The Finish Line Community Facebook Group
• The Finish Line Community LinkedIn Group

BIBLE REFERENCES FROM THE SHOW

Hebrews 10:39 | Don’t Shrink Back  

But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.  

1 Timothy 6:17 | Set Your Hopes on God  

As for the rich in this present age, charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy.  

Psalm 37:4 | Delight in the Lord  

Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.  

Psalm 34:10 | Seek the Lord  

The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.  

Psalm 23:1 | The Lord Provides  

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.  

1 Corinthians 7:6-8 | Better to be Single  

Now as a concession, not a command, I say this. I wish that all were as I myself am. But each has his own gift from God, one of one kind and one of another. To the unmarried and the widows I say that it is g