Faith and Finances

If we were to sit down and, as a Registered Investment Advisor Representative, I were to measure your financial success or shortcomings, I would compare your assets versus your liabilities. If your assets exceeded your liabilities, we may agree that you are doing well.

If we are not careful our pursuits of financial success could easily turn our hearts inward—toward self, and away from God.

In This Episode, We Look At:

There is a difference between being wise and honoring God.

It may seem wise to put years of effort into getting out of debt and building up your savings but, if in the process you have neglected giving cheerfully, sacrificially, and regularly, as worship unto God, how can we say that that is God-honoring?

God-honoring success does not look like the success the world recognizes.

Was the Apostle Paul successful? Absolutely. Yet he wrote that he was instructed both to abound and to suffer need.

The Christ-honoring life involves seasons of failures, times of suffering need, and experiencing setbacks. These do not make us failures. It is our response to the times which determine success or failure, in God's eyes.

Resources and Links:

Faith and Finances—Link to book

Improve Your Faith and Finances:

In your seeking to improve your finances, commit your ways unto the Lord, and do not wait until you have reached your own financial goals before giving to the Lord. We all have today to live for and honor the Lord.

Share Your Thoughts:

If you have a question or comment about today's topic, we invite you to share your thoughts.

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What is the most impactful element in your finances, whether negative or positive?

We submit that it is your ability to earn money

In This Episode, We Look At:

A wage-earner making $13 an hour is not destined to be imprisoned in that hourly rate forever.

What are your aspirations? How do you view employment?

Some of the largest companies that are household names started in a garage.

Moving on up (the corporate ladder)

Doug Mcmillon worked his way up from entry level employee to CEO of Wal-Mart

Liz Murray lifted herself from homeless to Harvard graduate.

Resources and Links:

Homeless to Harvard: The Liz Murray Story. Lifetime

Breaking Night: A Memoir of Forgiveness, Survival, and My Journey from Homeless to Harvard —book

Improve Your Faith and Finances:

Consider your strengths and abilities and ask yourself (and pray about) whether you are fulling applying yourself to maximize your earning potential—to the glory of God

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If you have a question or comment about today's topic, we invite you to share your thoughts.

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There is an unsettling interest in socialism rising in our country, and at an alarming rate. Recent election results should serve as an eye-opener for sleepy voters.

In This Episode, We Look At:

While Capitalism is not found in Scripture, most of its tenants are.

Property rights.

Rule of law.

Just weights (fair business practice)

Capitalism has built in checks-and-balances.

Profit is not bad, profit is good.

Job creation

Resources and Links:

Godonomics—Chad Hovind

Money, Greed, and God—Jay Richards

Improve Your Faith and Finances:

Be keenly aware of the platform and background of your state's elected officials and vote accordingly in the next election.

Share Your Thoughts:

If you have a question or comment about today's topic, we invite you to share your thoughts.

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The good news is, there is a ton of resources available to help us with our personal finances. The bad news is, there is a ton of resources available to help us with our personal finances!

It is very easy to get overwhelmed in our financial pursuits.

Some put undo pressure on themselves to be like others, or to reach certain levels of financial success, and always finding themselves just short of those goals.

The downside of expectations.

When expectations are not met the result is frustration. We can easily lose of joy and peace.

Constant comparisons

Just as each marriage is unique, so also are our finances.

God's principles are perfect

In following God's financial principles, we will still be different from other families and individuals—financially speaking. But should be very similar in our godly attributes of being generous, gracious, patient, avoiding debt, and being kind to others.

Free Download of Bible Steps: Receiving God's Financial Promises and Peace

Determine to commit to memory one scripture related to finances, this week. Below are a few recommendations:

Matthew 6:20 But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:

Psalm 84:11 For the Lord God is a sun and a shield: the Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.

Proverbs 3:9-10 Honour the Lord with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.

If you have a question or comment about today's topic, we invite you to share your thoughts.

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Continuing our series on Bible Steps: Receiving God's Financial Promises and Peace, we've look at Dependence on God alone, Faithfully laboring, Saving a portion, and today we discuss the next step; Giving.

Giving is a vivid reminder that it is all about God, not about us.

He does not exist for us, we exist for Him.

The Purpose for Giving:

It is to further the cause of Christ through; Worshipping in giving (Acts 10:1-4), Supporting Missionaries who bring the Gospel here and abroad (2 Cor. 8 and 9), helping other Christians (2 Cor. 8:13-15), to show the love of Christ to the world (Acts 17:24-25).

One of the prominent obstacles to giving is sight: we see that if we give we will have less. That is not the way God works.

God's Word still teaches that God will provide when we give (Proverbs 3:9-10, Luke 6:38).

Bible Steps Book-Free Download

Giving, and tithing requires faith, which is by design. God is the Rewarder of faith. Try Him, trust Him, hold Him to His Word.

If you have a question or comment about today's topic, we invite you to share your thoughts.

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Government shut-downs, layoffs, and market crash; oh my! Could you survive, financially, if you missed on paycheck? Two paychecks?

Could you meet your required financial obligations for one month? Two months?

Fewer than 60% of American households say they are putting away money for an emergency.

It is estimated that 10% of households fell behind in their bills last year.

Do a drill—a financial drill. Kids participate in fire and earthquake drills at school. Why not run through a money drill.

Assume that you will not receive a Paycheck next week. Do you have the liquid assets to cover your most basic needs in life, keeping a roof over your head, buying groceries, keeping the lights on, and not letting your Health Insurance coverage lapse?

• Determine your "Minimum Survival" number.
• Be proactive rather reactive.
• Jump start your survival savings today.

Sell some stuff. Take on a side job (Drive for Uber or Lyft, perhaps? Just an idea to get you thinking)

40% of Americans only one missed paycheck away from poverty

Avoid assumptions (see James 4:13-15) and get serious about saving.

If you have a question or comment about today's topic, we invite you to share your thoughts.

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We have no problem spending. Americans spend 90% of their income. We are not so great at savings, but it does not have to be so in your family finances.

Why Save?

The Bible teaches us that it is wise (Proverbs 21:20) and, practically speaking, expenses come up as well as God-appointed opportunities and when we are not saving we miss out on those opportunities, and are tempted to take on debt for expenses we cannot afford.

When to save?

With every paycheck, commission, sale, however you earn your living.

How much?

The earlier you can start saving, the more beneficial it is to your finances. We tend to limit ourselves within the conventional guidelines handed down from generation to the other, try to save 10%.

Why not 15%, 20%, or more?

There is a saying, If you think you can, you're right. If you think you can't, you're right.

There is a trade off.

There are countless pleasures that money could be spent on rather than saved. Obviously we each to make saving a priority in our financial picture if we expect to accumulate a reasonable sum.

Save and trust. Pay yourself, preparing for the future and trust in the Lord as Provider and Protector.

If you have a question or comment about today's topic, we invite you to share your thoughts.

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There are many statistics measuring the savings and investing successes and short-comings of Americans. But you are not a statistic and you do not have to compare yourself with the Average American Joe.

You should ask yourself a couple of questions regarding your finances:

"Am I on pace to replace my income at retirement (or, such a time when I can no longer work?)"

"What are the obstacles holding me back from preparing for my financial future?"

In today's episode, we will tackle the most prominent obstacles families face in planning for their financial future, and discuss ways to overcome them so that you can press forward.

Make a decision that planning for your financial future is important, and proactively look for money that you can set aside. Start with something and stick with it.

Social Security

Teichert site

If you have a question or comment about today's topic, we invite you to share your thoughts.

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People seek fulfillment.

Those without Christ seek to find fulfillment in everyway imaginable, and even beyond our imagination.

Christians are drawn (tempted) to seek fulfillment outside of Christ as well.

On average, Christians retain the same amount of debt as non-followers of Christ.

The divorce rate among Christians and non-Christians is about the same.

What do these have in common?

Money and the pursuit of happiness.

Psalm 4:7 Thou hast out gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased.

"Money has never made man happy, nor will it, there is nothing in its nature to produce happiness. The more of it one has the more one wants."— Benjamin Franklin

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Health enthusiasts may say "You are what you eat."

In the area of finances, are we "What we earn?" I someone who earns $200,000 somehow better than someone who earns less?

Comparison and discontentment are the problem.

Though the world may measure you by income, we are not what we earn.

Net worth vs. true worth.

1 Timothy 6:6 But godliness with contentment is great gain

If you have a question or comment about today's topic, we invite you to share your thoughts.

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