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“If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and He will give it to you.”

That promise from James 1:5 is a powerful reminder that wisdom is not something we have to manufacture on our own. It is a gift from God, and He invites us to ask for it.

When we think about financial decisions, we often turn first to budgets, spreadsheets, calculators, or professional advice. Those tools can be helpful, and wise counsel has an important place in biblical stewardship. But for followers of Christ, wisdom begins with prayer.

Sharon Epps, President of Kingdom Advisors, FaithFi’s parent organization, joined the show today to talk about inviting God into our financial lives and seeking His guidance with trust and humility.

When people think about managing money, prayer may not be the first thing that comes to mind. But Sharon says it should be central to the way believers make financial decisions because we are not ultimately managing our own resources.

We are managing God’s.

She offered a simple illustration: imagine being asked to care for someone else’s home while they were away on an extended trip. Would you let them leave without asking for specific instructions about how they wanted things handled?

Of course not.

In the same way, because everything we have belongs to God, we should want His instruction for how to steward it. Prayer reminds us that we do not have to carry financial decisions alone or rely only on our own understanding. It helps us approach money with dependence, trust, and humility.

Prayer also shifts our posture. Instead of trying to control every outcome, we begin to ask what faithfulness looks like with what God has entrusted to us.

So what does this look like in everyday life?

Sharon says it starts by bringing financial decisions to the Lord before we act. Whether we are deciding how to spend, save, give, invest, or pursue work, prayer gives us the opportunity to seek God’s wisdom first.

Our friend and mentor Ron Blue has often said that one of the most powerful questions we can ask is:

God, what would You have me do with Your money?

That question changes everything. It reminds us that money is not merely a tool for personal comfort or security. It is a resource entrusted to us by God for His purposes.

Sharon shared a personal example from when she and her husband were praying about their oldest daughter’s college tuition. They had not saved enough to pay for her education in full, and they were committed to avoiding debt. As they prayed, God brought something to mind: He had already provided what they needed, but they had mentally set those funds aside for another purpose.

Once Sharon and her husband sat down and talked it through, they realized God had shown them an option they had never considered. Prayer did not simply give them peace; it gave them perspective.

That is one of the gifts of prayer. Over time, it shapes our desires, priorities, and motives. It trains us to seek God first rather than simply react in the moment.

One of the great financial questions every believer must wrestle with is, “How much is enough?”

Our culture constantly pushes us to want more. More income. More comfort. More security. More possessions. But Scripture points us toward contentment.

Paul writes in Philippians 4:11, “I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content.” That word learned is important. Contentment does not come naturally. It is formed in us as we walk with Christ and learn to trust Him more deeply.

Prayer helps us bring our desires honestly before the Lord. It gives us space to ask whether our financial choices are being driven by needs, wants, fear, comparison,

Jerrad Lopes, founder of "Dad Tired," is exhausted. There's a silent struggle of fatherhood marked with feelings of inadequacy and loneliness. Jared shares how vulnerability, community, and faith can have a profound impact on dads who need help.

Show Notes and Resources

• Host a high-impact church event without starting from scratch by using code STRONGFAMILIES between June 16–30 to get a FREE video-based study and planning support when you buy 10+ workbooks go to shop.familylife.com
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• And grab his latest book, Dad Tired and Loving It, in our shop.

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Many products have labels noting where they were made. Maybe Made in China, Japan, Mexico, or Made in the U.S.A. Metaphorically, if we were to look at our label – the label of man himself – it would say “Made in the Garden of Eden . . . by God.” You and I were handcrafted by our Heavenly Father. And today on A NEW BEGINNING, Pastor Greg Laurie points out, not only were man and woman handmade by God, the institution of marriage was, as well. Today we’ll get the full story.

Harvest Crusade tickets are fully claimed—but it’s not too late to participate and witness what God does on July 11. Invite your loved ones to watch online with you and make sure you join the waitlist in case more tickets become available.

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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.

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Dr. John Townsend shares practical tips for parents struggling to set boundaries with their children. He’ll provide insights into relatable situations spanning every stage of the parenting journey, from teaching unruly toddlers to dealing with adult children who still live at home. Hear his advice for teaching kids to take responsibility and grow into healthy adults.  

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This message from Chip comes with a warning. What you hear may completely upset your world. It may turn your relationships inside out. It may even make you question your spiritual activity or ministry involvement. Join Chip as he explores death by lethal religion.

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Before D. L. Moody became the greatest evangelist of the 19th Century, he ran a storefront Sunday School to reach some of the street kids of Chicago. The story is told of one tough little guy who was seen on Sunday after Sunday. He lived a long way from his destination. Well, on one brutally cold and snowy Chicago day, one man saw the boy walking into the wind, making his usual Sunday morning journey to Moody’s Sunday School. He asked the boy why he would make that effort every Sunday, even on a day when no one else was out, especially when he passed by a lot of churches that were a lot closer to his home. The boy’s explanation was pretty clear and pretty simple, “I go there Mister, because they really make a fellow feel loved there.”

I'm Ron Hutchcraft and I want to have A Word With You today about “A Leader’s Real Assignment.”

The first portrait of Jesus I can ever remember seeing as a child was one that portrays Him as the Good Shepherd, with His sheep following Him closely and this one little lamb cuddled in His arms. Interestingly enough, now that I’m in Christian leadership, I realize that picture is also what I’m supposed to be about. And you, too, if God has entrusted you with any kind of influence or direction in people’s lives. Your template is supposed to be that of a shepherd of whom people say, “He or she sure makes a person feel loved.”

Listen to 1 Peter 5, beginning with verse 2. It’s our word for today from the Word of God, and it’s a picture of leadership worth planting deeply in your heart. Writing to those in leadership God says, “Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, serving as overseers...” OK, quick timeout here! Notice whose sheep your people are—your children are. They’re God’s; they’re not yours. Don’t ever start acting like they’re yours. And notice, too, that they are given to you to be under your care, not under your thumb.

Peter goes on: “Not because you must, but because you are willing…not greedy for money, but eager to serve; not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock.” OK, what’s the Biblical picture of being a leader? Right, shepherding. Leading the sheep, not lording it over them. Loving the sheep, not using them for your own ends. Modeling more than demanding.

So if you’re a shepherd, what should you be doing? Well, a shepherd always leads the sheep to what they need. If you’ve been entrusted with people to lead, it’s your job to gently direct them to what they need emotionally, spiritually, physically, mentally, and to know when they need encouraging, and when they need correcting, and when they just need loving. Christian leadership is all about you meeting their needs, not them meeting yours.

Shepherding also means keeping your sheep from wandering—establishing clear boundaries and pulling them back at the first sign of wandering. Being a shepherd also means protecting your sheep from the enemy. A few verses later in this passage, Peter talks about resisting the roaring lion who’s looking for someone to devour. It is the Christian leader’s job to keep his eyes open for where Satan might get in and then to defend his flock from the stalking of the lion.

And Jesus taught us one other thing the “good shepherd” does. He said, “He calls His own sheep by name” (John 10:3). I love that! In other words, if you’re a good shepherd, you will give each of His sheep individual attention, the kind that street kid in Chicago must have felt at D. L. Moody’s Sunday School. Make each one feel like the most important person in the world when they’re with you. There’s nobody else for you right now, than them. Don’t treat them just like another nameless face in the flock.

Jesus was a shepherd, and now He’s called you to be one, trusting you with some of the sheep that He died for. Your children, your grandchildren, your