Free Money Finance

Getting Financially Involved in Your Church

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Recently some of the Christian Financial Alliance members answered the question "What is one piece of advice you would offer to someone wanting to get involved in the financial arena of their church?"

The people asked took this question one of two ways:

• Some considered "financial arena of their church" to mean something like working in church administration, handling money, doing the accounting, and so forth.
• Some considered "financial arena of their church" to mean something like teaching/helping people manage their personal finances, usually with a study/plan developed by Crown Ministries, Dave Ramsey, or something similar.

I took it to mean the former, and here's my answer:

“Depends on the area, but generally I’d tell them to make sure their finances are solid before they start working on the managing the church’s money.”

Here's the deal: I don't want someone managing the tithe I give to the church if they can't manage their own money correctly. It's the same reason I won't go to a fat doctor. If they can't take their own advice and manage their affairs according to some set of "best practices" then I doubt that they'll do a great job doing it for someone else. I realize some (many?) people may disagree with this, but that's my take on the situation.

I'm interested in knowing your take on this issue. Please share your thoughts in the comments below.

Tips for Finding a Great Ministry to Donate To

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Recently some of the Christian Financial Alliance members answered the question "What is one tip you would give to people looking for a good ministry to donate to?" Here's my answer:

“I have found most of mine through word-of-mouth, then I check them out on Charity Navigator.”

Almost every organization I now give to first hit my radar as either a recommendation from a friend or someone I respected or was an organization I personally experienced in one form or fashion. Then I checked them out (their website, Charity Navigator, etc.) Once I decided they were doing something I could support, I generally started with smaller donations. This got me put on their mailing list (of course) and then I learned even more about what they were doing. If I liked it, I gave more. If I didn't, I stopped giving.

I'm interested in knowing how you determine what is and isn't a good charity to give to. Please share your thoughts in the comments below.

The Bible Says to Spend Less than You Earn

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Here are some verses from the Bible that relate to spending less than you earn as well as my take on each of them:

I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. Philippians 4:12

Contentment really is at the heart of spending less than you earn. If you're content with what you have, you can control your spending no matter what you make (as long as you make enough to cover true needs.) But if you're not content, you'll want more, more, more and will overspend no matter how much you earn. That's why we see people making $1 million a year (or more!) spending more than they earn -- they are not content with what they have so they keep buying even though they are out of money.

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." Hebrews 13:5

Again, contentment is key. But this verse also adds in "the love of money." I'd call this greed. Greedy people are very rarely content people IMO.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Galatians 5:22-23

Along with contentment, we all must have self-control if we want to spend less than we earn. We need to spend only what we can afford based on our other priorities. Those who can't control their spending get into a lot of financial trouble (think credit card debt.) 

In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish man devours all he has. Proverbs 21:20 

So, would you rather be wise and have plenty (because you controlled your spending) or would you rather devour all you have (and be a fool)? Seems like a pretty easy choice to me.

What are your thoughts on the verses above?

What the Bible Says about Your Career

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

As regular readers know, I talk often about your career being your most valuable financial asset. I've also discussed the fact that the Bible lists growing your career as one of the seven pillars of financial success. So today I'm going to expand on that a bit by listing several verses that talk about the importance of a good career and the benefits of working hard. Here goes:

Do you see a man skilled in his work? He will serve before kings; he will not serve before obscure men. Proverbs 22:29

Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not men, because you know that the Lord will reward everyone for whatever good he does, whether he is slave or free. Eph. 6:7-8

For even when we were with you, this we commanded you: that if any would not work, neither should he eat. 2 Thessalonians 3:10 

Laziness leads to poverty; hard work makes you rich. Proverbs 10:4

No matter how much you want, laziness won't help a bit, but hard work will reward you with more than enough. Proverbs 13:4

He who works his land will have abundant food, but he who chases fantasies lacks judgment. Proverbs 12:11

Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, buy hasty shortcuts lead to poverty. Proverbs 21:5

Any of these ring especially true for you? I gravitate most to the first one and the last one. The first says that if you work to develop your skills (through education, experience, hard work, etc.), you will be successful. The latter says there are no shortcuts. This applies to both your career and personal finances in general. If you plan well and work hard, in most cases you will be very successful over time (not immediately).

So, what's your take on the thoughts above?

Three Great Money Podcasts

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

I'm a fan of podcasts. There's almost never a time that I'm not listening to either a podcast or a book on CD while in the car. I also listen to podcasts while doing various manual tasks (like mowing, gardening, etc.)

Recently I've heard three great podcasts from pastors talking about what the Bible says about money and thought I'd share them with you.

Balanced

The Balanced series is from Andy Stanley, one of my favorite preachers these days. It's a six-part series that focuses on three main ways to have balance in your finances as follows:

1. "You have to be knowin' where your money is goin'." :-) In short, you need to track your money (via a budget) and know where you're spending it.

2. You need to make constant corrections as time goes on. This means corrections in how much debt you have (less is better), how you spend, and so on.

3. You need a clear objective. And for a Christian, your objective is honoring God with your money (just like you are to do with all areas of your life.)

Coping in Tough Financial Times
 
This series (video here) by Willow Creek's Bill Hybels (another great pastor IMO) deals primarily with the advantages of a 10-10-80 budget.

Recession Lessons

Again by Bill Hybels, this series discusses what the Bible says about the following areas of our lives:

1. Work
2. Saving
3. Debt (hate it!)
4. Contentment (counting our blessings)
5. Giving

If you're interested in hearing these, you can check them out via iTunes as well (that's how I got them.) They'll certainly be worth the time you'll spend listening to them.

Enjoy!

Your Checkbook Reveals Your Heart

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

The following is a quote from Billy Graham:

Give me five minutes with a person's checkbook, and I will tell you where their heart is.

I've also heard a spin on this that goes as follows:

Two things can determine what a person really cares about: their calendar and their checkbook.

Now many people don't use checks (or many of them) these days, but I think you get the point: how we spend our money reveals what we consider important in life.

For instance, if you look at someone's checkbook (or budget or bank statements) and see that they spent 10% of their income on vacations, you might conclude that they enjoy traveling and seeing new places.

Or if you see that they spend most of their money on housing related costs, you might conclude that they bought too much house or are in the midst of a major renovation.

Or if you notice that a large portion of their income goes to charitable causes, you might conclude that they are a giving person.

This line of thinking made me recall this series of verses:

Don’t store up treasures here on earth, where moths eat them and rust destroys them, and where thieves break in and steal. Store your treasures in heaven, where moths and rust cannot destroy, and thieves do not break in and steal. Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be. Matthew 6:19-21 (New Living Translation)

So, what do you think your checkbook, budget, and/or bank statements say about you?

Life is Not Measured by How Much You Own

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Check out this cool verse I ran into the other day:

Then he said, “Beware! Guard against every kind of greed. Life is not measured by how much you own.” Luke 12:15 (New Living Translation)

And by "cool" I mean "convicting." ;-)

If life is not measured by how much you own, what is it measured by? Some potential options:

• How much you love and are loved by others
• Kindness towards other people
• What you've done that will leave a positive, lasting impression

I'm sure you all can come up with some additional options -- I just wanted to get the conversation rolling.

The main point here is that while we talk about money most of the week, in the end, money isn't really that important. Sure, we need a basic amount to survive and with excess money we can live more comfortably and help others who are more needy, but there are really so many more things important than money that it's good to take at least one day and remember them, isn't it? ;-)

Four Keys to Helping You Find the Balance Between Saving and Hoarding

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

The following is an excerpt from The Bible and 21st Century Finances (a free eBook offered to people who subscribe to Money Help For Christians).

1.  Remember, you are not God’s standard.

Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but don’t consider the beam that is in your own eye (Matthew 7:3)?

 

The Christian community provides accountability. It is important that we are accountable to each other in our actions. However, accountability can cross a fine line and become judgment. That is a dangerous line to cross. Your job is not to monitor the saving habits of others, but to be a faithful steward with what you have been entrusted.

One could chastise a fellow Christian for owning a BMW or having a million dollars. A fellow third world citizen could just as easily condemn that person for owning a computer. And their neighbor might question why they own a pair of shoes.

Your financial situation is not God’s standard. In other words, you cannot say that if someone has more stuff than you they are hoarding. Nor can you say that if someone has less than you they must be squandering their money.

Who ultimately gets to decide?

The decision is one of proportion – proportionate to our income, proportionate to our call, proportionate to our faith, proportionate to our joy, and proportionate to our giftedness. Consider the following words by Elizabeth O?Connor (recorded in Devotional Classics):

Proportionate to what?  Proportionate to the accumulated wealth of one’s family? Proportionate to one’s income and the demands upon it, which vary from family to family? Proportionate to one’s sense of security and the degree of anxiety with which one lives? Proportionate to the keenness of our awareness of those who suffer? Proportionate to our sense of justice and of God’s ownership of all wealth? Proportionate to our sense of stewardship for those who follow after us? And so on, and so forth.  The answer, of course, is in proportion to all of these things.

In other words, we ought to focus on our financial decisions rather than being consumed with the decisions that others make.

2. Recognize your God given limitations.

 

Speaking directly in reference to missions, missiologist Paul Hiebert wrote, “There are limits to our ability to identify with another culture … we must identify as closely as we can with a culture, but not at the expense of our sanity and ministry.”

Hibert recognizes that we each have a different relationship with our stuff?.

Some families stay at home and avoid the restaurant to save money. They absolutely love the experience of eating at home. Another family eats out often because cooking is a burden and a chore. Is one family more spiritual than another? Absolutely not. Each is acting in accordance with their limitations.

Do we need to stretch and grow? Of course. But, at the same time, we do need to realize that God has not created us all alike. We all spend money on certain categories that others would consider to be extravagant.

3. What gives you joy?

I think the key to this question – what is the right saving balance? – revolves around this very important word: joy.

Mother Teresa, by all legendary accounts, was an amazing woman. While she lived in the slums of Calcutta, she lived life with joy. Her poverty was not a burden. She answered her call, recognized her passions, and lived a life that completely overflowed with joy. You can read part of an interview with Mother Teresa at the bottom of my post on characteristics of the wealthy, poor, and middle class.

Dave Ramsey, on the other hand, is a man who is passionate about helping people build wealth. He is happy to teach you how to become a millionaire. He seems to have little guilt associated with the wealth, and he often attributes his wealth as a blessing from God. He also recognizes his passions and lives a life that is, in his own words, better than he deserves.

4. Check your motives.

You might have unhealthy reasons for saving. You might save out of fear or greed. This leads to hoarding. Ultimately, your motivations dramatically impact the end result.

Saving becomes hoarding when you do it out of unhealthy motivations.

Remembering the Poor

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Here's what the Bible has to say about those who ignore poverty/the poor:

Whoever gives to the poor will lack nothing, but those who close their eyes to poverty will be cursed. Proverbs 28:27 (New Living Translation)

So there's a promise (if you give to the poor, you will be provided for) as well as a warning (if you don't give to the poor -- you ignore them -- you're cursed) in this verse. The first part also reminds me of Proverbs 19:17:

Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward them for what they have done.

So, what are you doing to help the poor?

Personally, my wife and I have allocated a portion of our giving the past several years to helping feed the poor in our city through Mel Trotter Ministries. But is this enough? Can/should we be doing more?

It's clear that the Bible instructs us to remember the poor/those in poverty and even suggests how to remember them (by "giving to the poor"), but are there other requirements? Is there anything else we should consider?

What suggestions do you have? What have you done to remember the poor?

Get-Rich-Quick Mentality Leads to Poverty

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Here's an interesting verse I ran into the other day:

Greedy people try to get rich quick but don’t realize they’re headed for poverty. Proverbs 28:22 (New Living Translation)

IMO, the Bible couldn't be more spot on. A few examples:

1. The millions of people who think they will get rich quick buy buying lottery tickets. They spend years and years (even decades!) spending money on the chance they will hit it big. In reality, all the money they are spending to "hit it bog" is driving them into the poorhouse (or, more common, farther into the poorhouse.)

2. The millions of people who join network marketing organizations each year, buy a ton of over-priced products, then expect riches to be on their way. They expect wealth will be both easy and quick -- and it is neither. Instead, they spend more and more money buying expensive products they will never use and often digging themselves a tough financial hole.

3. The millions (I'd guess) of people who got into house flipping (a few years back). Think most of them got rich quick or most of them took a beating. I'd guess the latter...

You probably have some more examples (maybe even better ones). If so, leave them below.

Now I'm not saying that no one gets rich doing what I have listed above. Obviously, some people do win the lottery, make it big in network marketing, and made a fortune flipping houses. But did the vast majority get rich quickly or did they lose money? I think we all know the answer.

The path to true wealth requires one thing that the ideas above lack: time. Yep, the way to become wealthy for most people isn't in an instant -- it's slowly and surely over many, many years. The truth is:

Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears; wealth from hard work grows over time. Proverbs 13:11

:-)

Thou Shalt Not Keep Up with the Joneses

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Is it possible that the Bible says "Thou shalt not keep up with the Joneses?"

Probably not. But I couldn't help making the connection to the fabled family that most Americans are spending to emulate when I read this recently (a verse I'm sure most of the readers here have heard before):

You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor. Exodus 20:17, New International Version

The Message bible puts it this way:

No lusting after your neighbor's house—or wife or servant or maid or ox or donkey. Don't set your heart on anything that is your neighbor's.

And just so we're all on the same page, I looked up the word "covet" on Dictionary.com. It said:

• to desire wrongfully, inordinately, or without due regard for the rights of others: to covet another's property.
• to wish for, esp. eagerly: He won the prize they all coveted.
• to have an inordinate or wrongful desire.

So while the Bible doesn't directly say "Thou shalt not keep up with the Joneses", it does hit at the underlying issues that cause people to try and keep up with the Joneses: to desire wrongfully, inordinately; to wish for, esp. eagerly; to lust after, and to have an inordinate or wrongful desire. Don't you think?

IMO, it's very close to saying that it's wrong to try and keep up with the Joneses (which we all know is something to be avoided anyway.)

What's your take on the issue?

Not Enjoying Your Wealth

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Here are some sobering thoughts from Ecclesiastes 6:1-3:

There is another serious tragedy I have seen under the sun, and it weighs heavily on humanity. God gives some people great wealth and honor and everything they could ever want, but then he doesn’t give them the chance to enjoy these things. They die, and someone else, even a stranger, ends up enjoying their wealth! This is meaningless—a sickening tragedy.

A man might have a hundred children and live to be very old. But if he finds no satisfaction in life and doesn’t even get a decent burial, it would have been better for him to be born dead.

A few thoughts on this from me:

1. We all know or have heard of people with great wealth whose lives are a mess (in fact, it's quite common.) They have "everything" but are not happy. It's a good illustration that money, by itself, does not buy happiness.

2. There are things, many things in fact, that are more important in life than money. I even have a category dedicated to them here at FMF.

3. You have to have outside interests/pursuits. If your whole focus is on "getting more money", you're likely setting yourself up for disappointment and heartache.

I thought this was a good reminder of the things that are "really important" in life. We talk about how to make more money, save more money, and on and on every day on this site. And those aren't bad things -- in fact they can be quite good. But when they become all-consuming, then they can become very harmful to you and those you love. So keep it all in the proper perspective. ;-)

The Bible Says to Diversify Your Sources of Income

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Here's an interesting verse I recently found in Ecclesiastes 11:6:

Plant your seed in the morning and keep busy all afternoon, for you don’t know if profit will come from one activity or another—or maybe both.

To me, this verse says that we all need to diversify our sources of income because we don't know which one will do well.

This is particularly true for a business, which is why you see many companies offering multiple products (some will sell well, others will not.) Having worked in the music business a long time ago, I know it for a fact that "you don’t know if profit will come from one activity or another". We'd release several records each year and some would fail while others would succeed -- but we could never tell in advance which would be the profitable releases (unless it was from a proven artist.)

It's a bit harder to apply this principle to an individual since we all usually have just one career. That said, there are things we can do to diversify our overall sources of income:

• As for your career, make yourself as marketable as possible so if one industry/company does not do well (like the automobile industry), you can move to another (like retail.) I've personally worked in consumer goods, food, retail, music, and the web in my career. At times, some fell out of favor, but because my skills were marketable to many industries, I was able to grow my career (and salary), not take a step backwards.
• You can concentrate on developing "multiple streams of income." If you want to make money outside your job, check out 11 Great Ways to Earn More Money, 20 Ways to Make More Money, and Eight Unusual Ways to Create Cash.  
• Of course, this principle certainly applies to your investments. You need to diversify, diversify, diversify because, as we all know, asset classes don't move up and down in lock-step. Some go up, and some go down. A year later, others go up and some others go down. No one knows which ones will perform in advance. So you invest in many asset classes -- with an asset allocation that makes sense for you.

I’m sure there are more. Anyone have any to add?

So how about you? Have you diversified your sources of income?

How To, Simple Exercises in Living Contently

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

The following is an excerpt from the book Christ-Centered Contentment.

Young people will do anything to make others think they are older.  They will walk taller, try to use big words, and slide into the driver's seat before they are big enough to see over the dashboard.  Boys use their dad’s shaver six years before their face has even the remotest signs of stubble, and girls experiment with mom’s make-up when no one is looking.  In youth, it is a compliment when people think you are older than you actually are.  Young people hate being told they look or act young.  Then, somewhere down the road of life, things begin to change.  I call this “the turning point”.  All of the sudden being called “old” isn’t exactly a compliment!  Quite the opposite in fact.  It can drive some to the mall seeking an entirely new wardrobe and arsenal of beauty products and cause others to drive home from the car lot with a flashy, new, red convertible!  However, being called “young” when we are not will bring a smile to our face and spring to our step.  We have pulled a complete reversal.

The funniest thing about this process is that it happens unbeknownst to us.  There is a gradual change in mentality and perspective as we move through life’s various seasons.  Our interests and priorities change along with our physical bodies.  We start out life wishing we were older, but when we finally get there—we find ourselves wishing we were young!

How To

In a lot of ways, I believe the journey down the road of contentment is like our progression through the turning point.  We gradually gain an entirely different perspective towards our age as our thoughts and priorities shift.  Similarly, there is no grand epiphany that sets true Christ-centered contentment into our hearts (though perhaps we can point to certain events and realizations as milestones).  Instead, we gradually begin desiring different things, and contentment gains momentum as we draw nearer to Christ.   
Therefore, I encourage you to recognize along with the apostle Paul that contentment is a learning process.  You will not set this book down a content Christian.  Instead, you must begin to focus on the challenges of God’s word and take seriously the call to live contently.  As you persist in seeking to live with such convictions, you will find yourself years down the road with a completely transformed heart.  Much like you one day realized that being told you looked or acted young wasn’t an insult anymore, you will find that your internal culture of contentment will eventually reverse.  Your heart's desire will slowly transition from consumption to contentment.  You will move through life finding more and more areas to lay aside the world’s empty meanings and put on the richness of Christ’s promises.  However, I will say again:  This transformation is for those who endure with perseverance not explode with passion only to fizzle out later on. 

Similar to Christ’s parable of the sower’s seed, we must seek to condition our hearts to be good soil.  Let us lay down good roots and begin to cultivate a lifestyle of Biblical contentment.  Moving forward with patience, let us be content with the pace with which Christ changes us.

Exercises in Contentment

As a way to wrap up this small book on contentment, I decided to provide some practical applications.  The following list is a good start down the road of pragmatically pursuing a real sense of Biblical contentment.

• Seek Ye First.  There is a temptation to seek contentment for contentment's sake.  We must seek Christ and let the rest fall into place.
• Learn to be content.  Recognize that this is a learning process that will take time.  Be patient and persistent. You will never complete this lesson as long as you are on this side of heaven’s door.  The Holy Spirit will continue to teach you new and deeper ways to live contently.
• Pray.  Nothing of spiritual significance was ever accomplished without prayer.  It should be an active part of your pursuit of contentment.  Pray specifically that the Spirit would reveal your individual needs and areas to strengthen.
• Give thanks.  Regardless of what is going on in your life, start thanking the Lord.  Do not do this with impure motives or sarcasm.  Make it a daily occurrence to thank the Lord for the things in your life for which you are truly thankful.  Doing this regularly will change your heart.
• Give money.  The discontent, by definition, never think they have what they should.  From this position generosity is impossible.  When you begin to give, not only do you follow God’s commands for your money, but you also expose the fact that you have more than you need.  It takes a certain level of contentment to be a generous person.  Giving will bring a peace and freedom to your soul that is not enjoyed in stinginess.  Generosity is consumption's worst enemy and contentment’s greatest ally.
• Downgrade your lifestyle (Or at least resist upgrading).  This is not necessarily a long-term solution; however, it should have long-term effects.  Stepping down your lifestyle will challenge you to be more honest about the value you place on possessions and status.
• Expose yourself to real need.  Take mission trips and do service projects.  Getting out of the suburbs can have a dramatic effect on the way you view your needs and wants.  Seeing real need humbles you and exposes how much you take for granted.
• Analyze your appetites.  What are the things you crave?  Jesus said:  “Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never thirst.” (John 4:14)  It is worth taking stock of the things you crave and reflect over whether or not those things are stealing your appetite for Christ.  In almost all cases, this will lead you towards simplification.
• Live within your means.  Debt and discontent love doing business together.  You must show caution and contentment before determining to borrow money.  In my observation, the content tend to leverage lightly (that is if they borrow at all); whereas, the discontent often drive themselves deeply into debt.
• Consider others before yourself.  I have found that the discontent find it nearly impossible to put others first.  However, the content have no problem esteeming others as greater than themselves.  This practice can do much to destroy your obsession with self-interest and self-indulgence.  Contentment is much easier to find when you take the focus off of yourself.
• Fast.  This is a practice rarely spoken of in the modern church, but Jesus said “when you fast” not “if you fast” (Matt. 6:17), and He promised the disciples of John that His disciples would fast after He left. (Matt. 9:15)  Begin to embrace this spiritual discipline that is made much of in the Bible but made little of in our culture.  It will expose you to how much you are enslaved to gratifying your own desires, reveal how much you take for granted, and heighten your sensitivities (among countless other spiritual blessings).
• Look further than your wallet.  People have a tendency to compartmentalize contentment into a financial issue.  As you now well know, it is a heart issue that transcends all of our daily life.  Seek to be content in your marriage, career, relationships, parenting, health, status, friendships, appearance, and on, and on.

The items outlined above are meant provide a starting point to begin living out Christ-centered contentment.  Don’t get hung up on the details or turn the list into legalism.  Begin attempting some of the challenges outlined above and feel free to make up your own. Start pursuing contentment with more passion than the world chases after riches and status.  Start seeking to reach your turning point.

Free Money Restoration Kit

For those of you interested, Crown Financial Ministries is offering a free Money Restoration Kit. It includes a 20-minute teaching video from Chuck Bentley, CEO of Crown Financial Ministries, the "Money Restoration Guide" (a practical budget planning guide), a Crown Money Map™, and "other tools that will assist you all year long." 

I thought my Sunday readers would especially be interested in this offer -- either for themselves or someone they know. Oh, and did I mention, it's FREE? ;-)

If you want more details or want to get a kit yourself, you can do so by following this link.

Living or Luxury?

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

The following is an excerpt from the book Christ-Centered Contentment.

Lifestyles of the rich and famous

“There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” (Prov. 14:12) 

While it might pain us to admit this, the Bible does not speak highly of luxurious living.  It fails to find the awe and wonder of so many TV shows that follow the lifestyles of the rich and famous.  It doesn’t seem to praise what we might call—“living high on the hog”.  Solomon’s description of his quest for wisdom in Ecclesiastes sounds almost as if it could be an excerpt from a Hollywood tabloid:

“I collected for myself silver and gold…I provided for myself male and female singers and the pleasures of men--many concubines. Then I became great and increased more than all who preceded me…All that my eyes desired I did not refuse them I did not withhold my heart from any pleasure…Thus I considered all my activities which my hands had done and the labor which I had exerted, and behold all was vanity and striving after wind and there was no profit under the sun.” (Eccl. 2:8-11)

Gold, girls, glory, and gluttony—it sounds straight off the billboard charts.  Admittedly or not, this is the life so many Americans aspire to attain (perhaps on a smaller scale than Solomon, but pursuing it nonetheless).  Fortunately for Solomon:  “My wisdom also stood by me.” (Eccl. 2:9)  Because of this, he was able to see that there was no profit to such a lifestyle.  The message of our culture—that more money, power, sex, and self-indulgence is everything—is a lie.  It is striving after wind.  Opulence is not the answer to our emptiness.

In order to understand this properly, we must ask the question “Why?”  To condemn luxury or living well in and of themselves would miss the point entirely.  We must look at the passages that criticize extravagant living and dig into the deeper issues hiding behind such a lifestyle.  This will enable us to live wisely.

Over-indulgence

The simplest place to breech this subject is gluttony.  The Bible clearly argues that over-indulgence has consequences:

“The glutton will come to poverty.” (Prov. 23:21)

“He who is a companion of gluttons humiliates his father.” (Prov. 28:7)

“Have you found honey? Eat only what you need, that you not have it in excess and vomit it.” (Prov. 25:16)

The scriptures describe excessive indulgence with words like:  humiliation and poverty.  This is the opposite of what the world teaches.  We are told to live it up because life is short.  The Bible says otherwise.

Proverbs 25:16 clearly is not a verse anyone is going to have cross-stitched and hanging in their hallway, but it illustrates an important concept.  Honey was a luxury item in Solomon’s day, and this verse shows us that enjoying nice things only becomes detrimental in excess.  Eating what you need provides enjoyment, but eating too much will bring anything from discomfort to sickness.  The following proverbs parallel this principle well:

“He who loves pleasure will become a poor man; he who loves wine and oil will not become rich.” (Prov. 21:17)

“There is precious treasure and oil in the dwelling of the wise, but a foolish man swallows it up.” (Prov. 21:20)

It is not the teaching of scripture that pleasure or treasure are evil.  Instead, it argues that a man who is overcome by his love of these things will be destroyed.  There are good things to enjoy in the house of the wise, but they do not devour all they have.  This should leave us with a simple question.

Is all luxury bad?

The natural response to questions of gluttony and self-indulgence is something to the effect of:  “Is all luxury bad?”  It is an understandable inquiry that must be addressed in order to properly comprehend the call of Biblical lifestyle.

I will state it as plainly as I can: The Bible does not say that enjoying riches or material things is evil in and of itself.  This is asceticism.  We are Christians not masochists.  The case must be made that a God who created a Garden of Eden, a “land flowing with milk and honey”, all the beauty and richness of our planet, and a heaven with streets of gold does not place the root of pleasure in self-denial:

“God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy.” (1 Tim. 6:17)

“It is the blessing of the LORD that makes rich, and He adds no sorrow to it.” (Prov. 10:22)

God does not forbid pleasure.  He created “all things to enjoy.”  The key to understanding this is found in self-discipline not self-denial.  How to hold all these concepts in balance and practically live out a Biblical lifestyle is found in the following chapter.

One final argument against an anti-luxury existence is beauty.  I remember sitting at a meeting that was, shall we say, less than invigorating.  There were fresh cut flowers in the center of the table.  They were totally unnecessary and served no purpose whatsoever other than being pleasing to the eye.  I started thinking about the significance of the flowers on the table (or lack thereof), and then moved on to consider that God created flowers and covered the earth with them.  There is something about the wonder of God that is evident in the beauty and extravagance of His creation.  The Lord most certainly gave us more than the bare bones of a subsistent existence.  We begin to lose something in our perception of God when we forsake all luxury and lavishness.  If we take this argument to its logical extent, then we must get rid of music, art, laughter, beauty, color, and on, and on.  Don’t get me wrong, you have to balance this paragraph with the rest of this chapter, but in a sense: Life becomes a little less beautiful when we start to think that God purposes us to desire nothing but the mundane necessities of daily survival.  Though difficult to wrap our minds around (and somewhat of a tongue twister!), we should never forget the aesthetic argument against asceticism.

Hiding in the shadows

The most important approach to interpreting the scripture’s instruction on luxurious living correctly is to ask the question “Why?”  In several of the passages that discuss this concept there is sin hiding in the shadows of self-indulgence.  There is usually a reason for such extravagance.  An obsession with luxury is almost always described as a symptom of a much greater evil.  For example, when James addresses the rich and says:  “You have lived luxuriously on the earth and led a life of wanton pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter,” (James 5:5) we cannot neglect the previous verses.  James noted that these men had stored up treasure on earth, withheld pay, and put to death the righteous.  They manipulated and mistreated others in order to maximize personal gain.  Another example of this can be found in the parable of the rich man and Lazarus.  The rich man’s “joyously living in splendor every day,” (Luke 16:19) was a sign of much deeper wrongs.

The verses below illustrate how an obsession with luxury can be telling of much deeper conditions of the heart.

Loving pleasure, money, and self instead of God:

“But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.  For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money…lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.” (2 Tim. 3:1-4)

“Do not love the world nor the things in the world.  If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” (1 John 2:15)

Worries of the world and wealth choke the word:

“The worry of the world and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful.” (Matt. 13:22)

“But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction.  For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith.” (1 Tim.  6:9-10)

Greed:

“He who loves money will not be satisfied with money, nor he who loves abundance with its income.” (Eccl. 5:10)

“The treacherous will be caught by their own greed.” (Prov. 11:6)

Forgetting God:

“Is it time for you yourselves to dwell in your paneled houses while this house [the Lord’s house] lies desolate?” (Hag. 1:4)

In light of these passages, we can better understand Christ’s simple statement:  “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” (Matt. 6:21)  There is nothing wrong with enjoying things in this world, but we must remember that we have a tendency to seek so much enjoyment in this life that we forget about the next.  Where our treasure is, there our heart will be also.  If a person is obsessed with wealth and living well, one must question whether he loves the world more than God.

American Christians, myself included, tend to want to “have our cake and eat it too”.  We desire to love God fully, that is, as long as it does not disrupt our lifestyle or cause any sort of sacrifice.  This can be seen in how few Christians give as the Bible instructs.  In the most prosperous nation in the history of the world, contributions are few and far between and seldomly generous. To make matters worse, most of this stinginess is due to the fact that we simply are more inclined to spend our money on our own enjoyment than invest in God's kingdom.  We want to live for God as long as it doesn’t cost us anything.  This is not the call of Christ.  We must begin to seriously ask ourselves what is hiding in the shadows of our desires and begin rethinking our approach to lifestyle.

Conclusion: Where do we go from here?

“You will make known to me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; in Your right hand there are pleasures forever.” (Ps. 16:11)

“This stinks!” is a common reaction to the message of this chapter, though we might not admit it.  We feel as if our hopes and dreams have been taken away, or at best, been covered with a sense of guilt for trying to enjoy ourselves on this side of heaven.  This is nothing more than the enemy’s ploy to rob us of finding joy in the only place it can be found.

If you come away from this chapter thinking that you are no longer able to enjoy a trip to the tropics, a premium cup of coffee, a nice meal out, or an extra bedroom in your house, you have missed the point.  We are not condemned to matinee movies, porridge, and sweat pants.  Instead, we must approach our luxuries with a proper perspective.  We must begin to honestly ask ourselves questions like these:

• Am I obsessed with luxury?
• In what areas am I tempted towards excess?
• What is hiding behind my desires?
• Do I own possessions or do possessions own me?
• Does it pain me to think of living more simply?
• Do I have an eternal or earthly perspective?
• Do I live for heaven or earth?
• Where am I storing up treasure?

As we begin to do this, we do not distance ourselves from a life of enjoying good things but instead move ever closer to real enjoyment, fulfillment, and satisfaction.  The scripture points us toward the fullness of joy and pleasure forever.  The Bible does not take enjoyment away from us—it makes known to us the path to find it.

Christian Financial Alliance

For those of you who like reading about what the Bible says about money, there's a new organization called the Christian Financial Alliance. The group has defined a set of core beliefs regarding biblical finance and holds itself accountable to it. If you're interested, you can check it out here.

Prosperity, The Sneaky Side of Discontent, Part 2

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

The following is an excerpt from the book Christ-Centered Contentment. You can read part 1 of this series here.

Why is contentment in prosperity so difficult?

Though it seems completely irrational, the Bible teaches that it is more difficult to find contentment in prosperity than poverty.  It’s utterly un-American, but scripture gives us several reasons for this occurrence.

• We have a hard time acknowledging that contentment comes from our heart not our tax-bracket.  Logically, we can understand the instructions for the impoverished and destitute to find solace in submitting to some sort of inner peace with their life’s circumstances, and thus we call such submission “contentment”.  Of course someone in poverty should learn to be “ok with what they have” because they don’t have much.  But this philosophy doesn’t hold water when we see the prosperous plagued with discontent.  I have a friend who went on a mission trip and was taken-back by the tremendous levels of poverty he witnessed.  After a couple of days, he asked one of the locals involved in the ministry with which he was working:  “How can you trust God when you have so little?  I just don’t understand how you can trust the Lord when you are in such great need.”  The person he asked responded:  “Simple—I have too.   What I don’t understand is how you trust God when you have everything you need.”
• We are tempted with the illusion that we don’t “need” God anymore.  When we experience little to no physical need, we sometimes make the mistake of thinking we no longer have need of God:

“Because you say, ‘I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,’ and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.  Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent.” (Rev. 3:17-19)

The greatest danger of prosperity is that we will say:  “I have become wealthy and have need of nothing.”  In this we must repent and seek to clothe our wretched, miserable, poor, naked, and blind body with garments of white.  When we think that we have no need of God, it is quite obvious to see why His peace and assurance would elude our hearts.  This is the reason why Jesus said:  “How hard it is for those who are wealthy to enter the kingdom of God!” (Luke 18:24)

• As more and more material goods surround us, we are tempted to search for life in them.  Materialism, worldliness, and trust in riches are real dangers for prosperous believers.  The Bible is full of warning in this regard.  Jesus Himself said:  “Not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.” (Luke 12:15)  When goods increase, we must actively fight against our sinful tendencies to define ourselves by our success, seek life in possessions, or trust in our riches instead of God.
• The more we have the more we want.  Experience has shown the truth of this statement.  Much like a drug addiction, our tolerance builds with consumption.  The more we consume the more it takes to satisfy us.  Like a spoiled child, nothing is ever enough.  Only Christ can break this cycle and teach us the beauty of simplicity.

Prosperity is the world’s prescription for contentment:  If you have x, y, and z, then of course you should be content.  This paradigm simply doesn't work.  We have all tried basing our contentment entirely on externals and found such a doctrine lacking.  In a sense,  many of us are living proof of this broken system.  We achieved whatever level of lifestyle we sought, yet still faced disappointment, emptiness, and dissatisfaction.  When we get what we thought we wanted and still find life lacking, we prove that it is impossible to define contentment apart from Christ.

Prosperity is not the pathway to contentment.  The sooner we abandon this notion the better.  We have to walk away from the world's idolization of affluence.  Room remains for many of us to learn how to live in prosperity in a Christ-centered manner.  We must be transformed.  Then, we begin to approach affluence with contentment instead of consumption, generosity instead of greed, and humility instead of haughtiness.  When Christians walk through prosperity with contentment, generosity, and humility, a case is made for the power of Christ working within them.

Conclusion: Third world contentment

After having spent a chapter exposing the reality of discontent in prosperity, I feel an excellent way to wrap things up is commenting on the contentment of those in great poverty.  I have gone on a few mission trips to the poorest regions of Mexico.  The people I worked with were in dire poverty—one room shacks made out of cardboard boxes and scrap wood, no running water, no electricity, and barely enough food to feed their children.  I remember working with a family of five that all slept in the same bed.  Exposure to the poverty of their lifestyle would have been lesson enough, but the Lord had a bomb to drop: their contentment.

The people I worked with in Mexico were the happiest, most appreciative, joyful, grateful, and heart-warming group with whom I have ever worked.  I remember being astonished with their joy and good-hearted nature.  I have heard countless stories with a comparable theme from other Christians who have traveled to similar nations.

Here I am a normal American—not rich, not poor—staring at heart wrenching poverty and thinking:  “These people have something my life is missing.”  In a sense, I looked at these people with a strange sense of jealousy.  In their poverty they understood secrets that were, and to some extent still are, a mystery to me.  I found myself hungry for a joy and gratitude that ran as deep as theirs.  My daily life is spent with lavishness unimaginable to them, yet I am plagued with discontent, deserving, and a general aura of orneriness when things don’t go my way.  There is a disconnect here—one God is still working on.

In conclusion:  If contentment is found in prosperity, then Americans would be the most content people on the face of the earth.  This is hardly the case.  We must take on the unique challenges of affluence and steward our resources well, but let us lay aside the silly notion that wealth will satisfy our souls:  “For not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.” (Luke 12:15)

Prosperity, The Sneaky Side of Discontent, Part 1

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

The following is an excerpt from the book Christ-Centered Contentment.

“There’s nothing to eat,” I murmured to myself as I stood staring endlessly into my kitchen pantry. You know the position—arms braced on each side of the door, slightly leaning back, gazing deeper and deeper into the dark recesses desperately hoping for something to appeal to my appetite. No luck. “Ehhh, there is nothing to eat,” I muttered under my breath hoping perhaps the fridge would host greater luck.  Then God spoke to me. As I was walking to the fridge, He urged me to look in the pantry again.  The items listed below are the contents of my pantry at that moment of despair:

4 boxes of cereal, 2 containers of oatmeal, box of pancake mix, large bag of raisins, bag full of leftover Christmas candy, 1/2 bag of chips, 1/2 bag of beef jerky, peanut butter, ready to make soup, jar of roasted peanuts, box of apple cider mix, hot chocolate mix, green tea, travel coffee singles, honey, syrup, salad dressing, potatoes, 2 sweet potatoes, crackers, cinnamon raisin bread, 2 packages of flour, 4 varieties of oil, rice, wheat, coconut, corn syrup, chocolate chips, nuts, brown sugar, sugar, baking powder, granola bars, canned food: chicken noodle soup, beef broth, chicken broth, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, chili, cream of chicken soup, cream of mushroom soup, navy beans, green beans, and re-fried beans.

It hit me like a ton of bricks:  “Is this what I have come to call an empty pantry?”  The realization left me humbled.  Three-fourths of the world’s population would be ecstatic to see such abundance.  I sheepishly found something to eat and with a little bit of embarrassment gave thanks for my food.  Similar arguments could be made for those of us who stand in our over-stuffed, walk-in closets claiming we have “nothing to wear,” or those of us who have heard our children say they have “nothing to play with”!  These are perfect examples of the paradox of prosperity.

We go about our lives believing that if we had this or that, then we would be content.  In this scenario, contentment more or less is having what you want (whatever that may be at the time).  It seems logical, but the Bible and experience have taught us otherwise.  Contrary to our innate instincts, the evidence clearly indicates that contentment is not the natural result of prosperity.  Ironically, accumulation often does more to drive our discontent.  The confusing and alluring nature of prosperity often clouds our understanding of true contentment.

We must look at the unique challenges of prosperity to walk wisely. Paul said:  “I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am.  I know how to get along with humble means, and I also know how to live in prosperity.” (Phil. 4:11-12)  Paul explained that he had learned how to be content in poverty and prosperity.  This dichotomy is enlightening.  It eliminates the prospect of prosperity as the pathway to contentment, yet it clearly states that contentment can be found amidst affluence.  We, like Paul, will only understand how to live in prosperity with contentment by learning.

Affluence = Amnesia?

The first danger prosperity poses in our pursuit of contentment is what I like to call “affluence-induced amnesia”.  We have to recognize this reality to walk wisely through prosperity.  The Bible makes a clear connection between money and memory loss.

“Feed me with the food that is my portion, that I not be full and deny You and say, ‘Who is the LORD?” (Prov. 30:8-9)

“Beware that you do not forget the LORD your God…otherwise, when you have eaten and are satisfied, and have built good houses and lived in them, and when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and gold multiply, and all that you have multiplies, then your heart will become proud and you will forget the LORD your God.” (Deu. 8:11-14)

“As they had their pasture, they became satisfied, and being satisfied, their heart became proud; therefore they forgot Me.” (Hos. 13:6)

We have to recognize that the Bible clearly states that it is the tendency of humanity to walk through prosperity with a sense of forgetfulness.  To our shame—as soon as the going gets good, we forget the Lord.  This is a sad condition, but it is something with which we can all identify.  When facing difficulty we live in close communion with our Maker, but when life is going well we are quick to turn our attention off of Him.

Why does this happen?  The answer is given in the passages above—our heart becomes proud.  In our poverty, humility stays close by our side.  However, when we begin to become successful, we are susceptible to the sneaky suspicion that we are the reason for our success.  The first step of living in prosperity contently is remembrance:  “But you shall remember the LORD your God, for it is He who is giving you power to make wealth.” (Deu. 8:18)  As we become more intentional to maintain a sense of remembrance, thankfulness, and awareness in our affluence, we begin to close the door on the awful sin of forgetfulness.

This concludes part 1 on this topic. Come back next week to read part 2. 

The 10 Commandments of Wealth and Happiness

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Money Talks News recently listed what they called the 10 commandments of wealth and happiness and I thought it would be fun to share them on a Sunday post. Here they are:

1. Thou shalt live like you’re going to die tomorrow, but invest like you’re going to live forever. In short, enjoy your life to the fullest every day – live like you’re going to die tomorrow. But since you’re probably not going to die tomorrow, plant part of your money in quality stocks, real estate or other investments; then hold onto them.

2. Thou shalt listen to thine own voice above all others. When you hear someone promising a simple solution to a complex problem, stop listening to them and start listening to your own inner voice.

3. Thou shalt covet bad economic times. Wealth is created when times are bad, unemployment is high, problems are massive, everybody’s freaking out, and there’s nothing but economic misery on the horizon.

4. Thou shalt not work. When it comes to work, you should try to do something that you regard as so fulfilling that you’d do it even if it didn’t pay anything.

5. Thou shalt not create debt. Paying interest is nothing more or less than giving someone else your money in exchange for using theirs. Rule of thumb: To have as much money as possible, avoid giving yours to other people.

6. Thou shalt be frugal – but not miserly. The key to accumulating more savings isn’t to spend less – it’s to spend less without sacrificing your quality of life.

7. Thou shalt not regard possessions in terms of money, but time. You go to the mall and spend $150 on clothes. But what you spent isn’t just $150. If you earn $150 a day, you just spent a day of your life.

8. Thou shalt consider opportunity cost. This is related to the commandment above. Opportunity cost is an accounting term that describes the cost of missing out on alternative uses for that money.

9. Thou shalt not put off till tomorrow what thou can save today. Fortunes are rarely made by investing big bucks, nor are they often made late in life. Wealth most often comes from starting small and early.

10. Thou shalt not covet thy neighbor’s stuff. Decide what really makes you happy, then spend – or not – accordingly. When your friends make an impressive addition to their collection of material possessions, be happy for them.

Here's my take on these:

1. Certainly there is a balance between living for today and saving for tomorrow. It's often difficult to achieve all the time and one goal most of us are working on regularly.

2. I get input from a variety of sources, but when it comes down to it, I listen to myself much more than I do others. This is sometimes good and sometimes bad, but for the most part it's worked out well.

3. There are many that believe that tough times like we're going through now set the stage for huge gains we'll reap later. I know that the finds I invested in during the lows of the recession are doing quite nicely now. It was tough putting that money into what seemed like a bottomless pit, but now I wish I had invested more.

4. I don't buy the "do what you love" line of thinking (I love sitting at home watching TV -- think I can make a fortune doing that?) No, I think "do what you like" is a better rule-of-thumb IMO.

5. I think you all know what I think of debt...

6. I like the way they put this: "The key to accumulating more savings isn’t to spend less – it’s to spend less without sacrificing your quality of life." That's a nice way of saying what I try to achieve.

7. I often calculate the time I need to work to buy something -- two hours for this, three days for that, etc. It helps me decide whether or not the purchase is worth it.

8. I think we are all considering opportunity costs on a regular basis. We know that if we buy X that we may not be able to afford Y.

9. Yes, time is the #1 way to maximize the return on your investments.  

10. In other words, don't worry about keeping up with the Joneses. Couldn't agree more.

What do you think of this list? Anything to add or comment on?

What is the "Right" Amount of Wealth?

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

A few weeks ago we talked about Dave's Ramsey's new house. Summary: it's huge and expensive.

As a money manager, I have no problem with someone saving their money, managing it wisely, and spending it as they like (responsibly, of course.) It appears that Dave has done this since he has no mortgage on the place -- so he must have paid cash for it.

But from a Christian perspective, the issue isn't that clear. The Bible talks a lot about guarding yourself against the lure of riches and also advises that we help those who are needy. When someone (like Dave in this case) seems to go over-the-top, it appears that he may have succumbed to the lure of wealth -- not to mention what he could have done with some of the money to help others (why not "settle" for a $1 million home and use the rest to feed the poor or something similar)?

But this argument leads to a slippery slope. If Dave is "wrong" in spending so much because he could have helped others, what about you and me? Do we need to live in homes that are as nice as the ones we live in? Do we need as good (or as new or as many) cars as we have? Do we need to save as much as we do? Do we need big screen TVs, four computers per home, cell phones, expensive vacations, and the like? Do we ever need to eat out, go to concerts, or play sports? Imagine the money we could save and use to help others if we really had their best interests at heart.

On the other hand, Solomon was (one of) the wealthiest person to ever live. And even Jesus had his financial supporters -- people who had to have had money to do so. And what about "those who sow generously will also reap generously"? Is it even possible to give away all you have considering that verse (won't you simply get it all back -- plus some)?

The basic issue seems to boil down to the question of how much wealth should each of us accumulate for our personal use versus use to help those who are needier. I'm interested in hearing your take on this subject.

Giving Grows Your Net Worth

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

A few weeks ago I spoke at a church luncheon. The topic was "money myths" and focused on several statements that most people consider to be true about money -- but are actually false. One of the sections dealt with giving away money and that many people believe that if you give away a certain amount, you are less wealthy by that amount. In other words, if I donate $100 to a charity, I'm worse off financially by $100.

By there's research to the contrary. We've talked about this before, but a series of studies by BYU professor Arthur C. Brooks found the following:

“My conclusion was, sure enough, that when people get richer, they tend to give more money away. But I also came up with the following counterintuitive finding—that when people give more money away, they tend to prosper.”

“Specifically, here’s what I found: Say you have two identical families—same religion, same race, same number of kids, same town, same level of education—everything’s the same, except that one family gives $100 more to charity than the second family. Then the giving family will earn on average $375 more in income than the non-giving family—and that’s statistically attributable to the gift.”

So, if you give $100 you're not worse off by $100. You're actually better off by $375.

Think of the implications of this at growing levels of giving. For instance:

• If you give $100, you're better off by $375.
• If you give $1,000, you're better off by $3,750.
• If you give $10,000, you're better off by $37,500.
• If you give $100,000, you're better off by $375,000.
• If you give $1,000,000, you're better off by $3,750,000.

Certainly makes a compelling case for giving as much as you can, huh?

But there's more!!! Here’s what Dr. Stanley says in his book Stop Acting Rich: ...And Start Living Like A Real Millionaire:

“Giving to charitable causes and wealth are complements, not substitutes, as logic might seem to dictate. Two groups of high-income producers were studied. Both groups were statistically identical in terms of income and age. The first group contained those who gave at least 10 percent of their annual realized income to charitable causes each year. The second group gave 1 percent or less. In terms of average dollar amounts [of net worth generated], the first group significantly outpaced the second [by about 20 to 1].”

So now it's "give away $100 and get back $2,000"? Cool!

Not surprisingly, the Bible makes similar claims in various books. Here are a few that line up with what we've discussed today:

One man gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds unduly, but comes to poverty. A generous man will prosper; he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed. Proverbs 11:24-25

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. 2 Corinthians 9:6

So, what do you think about this issue? The research seems pretty solid, but I'm sure some will disagree with it. Should be an interesting discussion...

Do You Prefer Wealth or Appearances?

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

A few weeks ago I spoke at a church luncheon. The topic was "money myths" and focused on several statements that most people consider to be true about money -- but are actually false.

One thing I shared was the fact that most people assume that if someone drives an expensive car or lives in a million-dollar house, then they are wealthy. According to the facts, this is not true (for details, see Cars Driven by Millionaires (And Me) and Why Many Homeowners are Having a Tough Time.) It's not true because most people who spend a lot on homes and cars are more likely to be spending most of their incomes in an attempt to "keep up with the Joneses." And since they are spending most (or all) of their incomes, they don't have much (or any) left over to grow their net worths.

On the other had, most millionaires live "common", quiet, less showy lives. They don't worry as much about appearances so they don't feel compelled to spend money to look wealthy. This, in turn, helps them do something very important: spend less than they earn. As a result, they become wealthy.

Interestingly, the Bible addresses the issue of showy people not having wealth and non-showy people having it several times in various verses. Here are a few of my favorites:

One man pretends to be rich, yet has nothing; another pretends to be poor, yet has great wealth. Proverbs 13:7

Better to be a nobody and yet have a servant than pretend to be somebody and have no food. Proverbs 12:9

As goods increase, so do those who consume them. And what benefit are they to the owner except to feast his eyes on them? Ecclesiastes 5:11

Insightful verses, huh?

How to Have God Reward You

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Here's an interesting verse from Proverbs 19:17:

Whoever is kind to the poor lends to the LORD, and he will reward them for what they have done.

What's interesting to me is that if you are "kind to the poor" then there's a promise of a "reward" from God. But just what do these terms mean?

For instance, how can one be "kind to the poor"? Some ways I can think of:

• Giving them some of your surplus to provide for their needs (food, clothing, shelter, etc.)
• Volunteering to help them with tasks, childcare, etc. -- burdens that may be crushing them in what is already a tough lifestyle.
• Being a friend to them and simply treating them as they should be treated. Giving them hope and encouragement in tough times.

Is this what the verse means when it says to be "kind to the poor" or is it referring to something else? What are your thoughts?

And what does "reward" mean? Does it mean earthly rewards (like money, better health, fewer problems, etc.) or some sort of heavenly reward? I'm interested in hearing what you think.

Personally, I believe that any of the ways above (and more) where you are helping the poor is something that will come back to you as a blessing in one form or fashion. In particular, I think it's most likely that you get back what you give (if you reap, you will sow -- see 2 Corinthians 9:6) -- if you give money, you get money back. If you give friendship, you get friendship back. If you give kindness, you get kindness back (and so on).

We've been allocating an ever-growing portion of our annual giving towards helping the poor -- specifically to feeding the poor. I think the economy has been especially hard on these people (since many others are just trying to stay afloat themselves, they don't have the time and resources to help the poor), so we've been trying to pick up the slack a bit.

How about you? Have you been kind to the poor recently?

If You Want to Be Wealthy, You Need Understanding

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Here's a verse from Proverbs 19:8 (New International Version) that summarizes the need for financial education about as good as anything I've ever seen:

He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; he who cherishes understanding prospers.

Quite simply: if you want to be wealthy, you need to learn what it takes to be wealthy. Then you need to apply that learning. Do those things, and it's almost impossible not to become rich.

And the good news is that the keys to becoming wealthy are both simple to understand and few in number. That's particularly good for me since I can't handle anything too complicated. ;-)

I think the reason many Americans are not as wealthy as they want to be is because they lack the basic understanding of how money works (yes, many others "get it" but simply can't discipline themselves to take the right steps). But if they took a bit of time and effort to understand a few basics, they would certainly improve their finances dramatically. That's why I agree that "he who cherishes understanding prospers."

The Bible's Suggestion for How to Become Wealthy

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

A reader mentioned one of my favorite Bible verses a few Sundays ago. It's from Proverbs 13:11 -- and here it is in the NIV:

Dishonest money dwindles away, but he who gathers money little by little makes it grow.

I also like the NLT translation, which goes like this:

Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears; wealth from hard work grows over time.

This verse really summarizes the Bible's viewpoint that wealth can be had over time, but if you try to get rich quick, you're destined to failure. I couldn't agree more.

As we've discussed previously, using time is one of the most powerful ways to grow your wealth. Simply spend less than you earn, saving the difference, and invest it year after year after year. From there, you simply need to let the power of compounding do its work. Over a few decades, you'll end up with quite a nice nest egg.

I know, it's not a creative, sexy, fun way to become wealthy, but it's as close to a "sure thing" when it comes to wealth as any other method out there. And it's done well by me. ;-)

Are Your Acquaintances Helping or Hurting Your Finances?

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Here's an interesting verse from Proverbs 13:20:

He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.

Let me put a personal finance spin on this:

He who associates with and listens to those who are doing well financially becomes wealthy. But someone who follows the advice of those who can't handle their money is destined for the poor house.

Ok, so I'm not a wordsmith (but you already knew that, didn't you?), but you get the idea. If you hang around people who follow the solid financial principles that can make you wealthy, then it's likely those principles will rub off on you and you'll do well too. But if you associate with people who continually make bad money mistakes, you'll probably do the same -- and thus kill your finances.

I'm not talking about having only friends who have it all together financially. But I am saying that it's wise to have friends, on average, who are doing fairly well or at least making good financial choices. And I'm not saying the friends have to be experts on everything. But I learn something from almost all of my friends -- how to save money from one, how to manage retirement from another, how to network for another, and so on.

If I spent most of my time with people who shopped for enjoyment, I'd probably want to do the same. If my friends spent every penny they had on "stuff" to fill up their houses, I'd probably follow suit. And if my friends all had boats and cottages, it probably wouldn't be long before I needed one (or both) too.
Let's face it, you're influenced by who you hang out with. So who do you want influencing you?

I once heard a speaker say that the person you'll be in five years will be determined by the people you know and the books you read. So choose your friends (and your books) wisely!!!

Is Ten Percent Enough?

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Here's an article that's bound to get some people riled up. ;-)

Crosswalk has a piece that asks if giving ten percent (tithing) is enough or if we should consider giving more. Their thoughts:

When I got married about 11 years ago, my bride and I continued to give 10%. Then, about five years ago, I read a book entitled Money, Possessions, and Eternity written by Randy Alcorn. I shared the book with my wife and we both agreed that 10% was no longer a sacrifice and we made a commitment to increase our giving.

Soon after, I read another of Randy Alcorn’s books called The Treasure Principle. This took our giving to another level. My wife and I made a commitment to limit our spending to a specific amount each month and then we would give the rest of the money away. As it is with many of us, our income generally increases each year and we realized that we didn’t need that much. We could live on less than we were earning. Last year, we gave away about a third of our gross income. I struggle with sharing that with others as I’m reminded of Jesus’ words in Matthew 6:3,4: "But when you give to someone, don't tell your left hand what your right hand is doing. Give your gifts in secret, and your Father, who knows all secrets, will reward you." So I don’t mention it to brag, but rather to encourage you.

The bottom line is this: God allows you to have things not for your own use, but for His use. I’m reminded of one of the treasure principles that Randy Alcorn gives in The Treasure Principle: "God prospers me not to raise my standard of living, but to raise my standard of giving." Everything we do must be for His glory. Otherwise, it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

Personally, I think ten percent is the starting point for giving -- it begins here, but should increase over time. As I said when I discussed the 10-10-80 budget (which suggests you give 10%, save 10%, and live on 80% of what you make), "As time goes on, I think you need to work to exceed the first two numbers and cut back on the third." That's what we've done (over time, of course) and it's worked pretty well for us.

And for those of you who think the author above (or perhaps even me) is bragging, there is scriptural support for sharing what you are doing financially in order to encourage others to do the same. It's found in Hebrews 10:24 and states:

And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.

One way to "spur one another on toward love and good deeds" is to tell what's worked for you and how others can apply the same principles. ;-)

Does the Bible Suggest Being a Millionaire Next Door?

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

As I was reading my Bible recently, I came across the following verses:

Better to be an ordinary person with a servant than to be self-important but have no food. Proverbs 12:9 (New Living Translation)

Some who are poor pretend to be rich; others who are rich pretend to be poor. Proverbs 13:7 (New Living Translation)

As I read these, I couldn't help but think that they were saying the same thing found in The Millionaire Next Door. The book essentially says that most millionaires in America aren't the glitzy, buy-big-homes-and-cars people that most assume are "rich" but instead appear to be "normal" people with little outside indication that they are wealthy. In other words, they are fine with being "an ordinary person with a servant" (i.e. appearing "normal" from outside appearances but actually being wealthy) versus being "self-important but having no food" (i.e. spending a lot to keep up with the Joneses but actually having a low net worth.) They don't "pretend to be rich" but instead live simple lives, content with themselves and their wealth. I wouldn't say they "pretend to be poor" but simply don't work to flaunt their wealth either.

For those of you interested in the book, I posted a summary of the seven principles of a Millionaire Next Door over five years ago. Principle #3 is the one that fits best with the discussion above:

3. They (millionaires) believe that financial independence is more important than displaying high social status.

BTW, this is the book that I read so many years ago, started to implement in my life, and have reaped massive financial rewards from. It's the foundation of much you read here at FMF.

So, do you think the Bible is suggesting being a millionaire next door? Or am I simply connecting two thoughts where no real connection exists?

Jewish Thoughts on Wealth: Extravagance and Frugality

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

In my Sunday posts we're currently digging into the book The Jewish Phenomenon: Seven Keys to the Enduring Wealth of a People. It notes that Jews are disproportionately wealthy and accomplished and much of this success is due to seven keys which can be traced to the teachings of the Jewish faith.

Today we're going to talk about one of the "seven keys to Jewish success" that the authors list: be selectively extravagant but prudently frugal.

The authors spend the first few pages of this chapter talking about the stereotype that Jews are "cheap." They conclude that what may be perceived as weakness is simply basic wealth management -- you need to control your spending if you want to become wealthy.

They also mention that Jews tend to splurge on things they really want. The general feeling between frugality and extravagance is summed up in this quote: "I do not like to throw my money away, but when something is important to me I want the best."

The next part of the chapter reads like something from the books The Millionaire Next Door or Stop Acting Rich. It tells how Jews (on average) don't buy huge homes, don't drive expensive cars, etc. -- all the things studies have shown are habits of most millionaires.

The chapter then ends with a laundry list of great ways to save money (including tips we discuss here all the time.) Some of them are:

• Take your lunch to work
• Use coupons
• Eat at home more frequently (versus eating out)
• Skip junk food and expensive coffees
• Don't smoke
• Buy term life insurance
• Stay married, divorce is expensive
• Avoid credit card debt
• Consult Consumer Reports for major purchases

And the list goes on and on...

In short, this chapter says that Jews spend less than they earn. As we learned last week, they also make more income than average. And we all know what happens to those who make high incomes and control their spending: they get rich.

Any thoughts?

Jewish Thoughts on Wealth: Gain Knowledge

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

In my Sunday posts we're currently digging into the book The Jewish Phenomenon: Seven Keys to the Enduring Wealth of a People. It notes that Jews are disproportionately wealthy and accomplished and much of this success is due to seven keys which can be traced to the teachings of the Jewish faith.

Today we're going to talk about one of the "seven keys to Jewish success" that the authors list: understanding that real wealth is portable; it's knowledge. (BTW, this "key" goes nicely with "key" #3: successful people are professionals and entrepreneurs.)

This whole chapter is an ode to higher education. The authors detail much of the information that we go over regularly here at Free Money Finance, in particular how much more those with a bachelor's degree earn over a lifetime versus those with no college education (and the more education, the better -- in general.) They also give statistics on Jewish higher education (from a 1990 study, so it is a bit dated):

87 percent of college-age Jews were enrolled in college versus 40 percent for non-Jews.

So, more education (in general) leads to a higher income and Jews have more education than average. Hence, Jews have more income than average.

Now of course we know that a higher income doesn't necessarily lead to greater wealth (they could spend all of their higher income), but it certainly helps. Plus, we'll see in a later post that Jews also have a good handle on controlling their spending. And we all know that a high income with an ability to control spending are keys to becoming wealthy.

The book goes on to list six ways we all can use what the Jews do in this "key" to the economic advantage of our kids. They suggest:

1. Build your child's self-esteem.
2. Build the ability to defer gratification.
3. Choose the best education possible.
4. Develop and demonstrate informed and literate habits.
5. Create the education expectation.
6. Keep your skills up to date (as an adult).

I would agree with most of these. The one I might take issue with is #3. I think you want to get the education that costs you the least and still gets you the job/pay you want. I've seen too many studies that say the "best" schools don't really end up getting you much for the extra cost. And I've also seen way too many people with enormous amounts of debt because they "had to" go to "the best" school. There's no such thing as "the best" school IMO.

Any thoughts to add?

The Jewish Phenomenon

 

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

I've been reading the book The Jewish Phenomenon: Seven Keys to the Enduring Wealth of a People and am intrigued by it. Here's a summary of the book in a nutshell:

• Jews are disproportionately wealthy and accomplished.

• This financial success can be traced to seven keys to "Jewish success" (many of which relate to teachings of the Jewish faith).

Over the next few weeks (could be two, could be ten -- we'll see how it goes) I want to explore this book and what it has to offer. Today, I want to highlight the foundations of what the author calls "The Jewish Phenomenon". Let's start with the facts regarding Jews and their accomplishments:

• Jews make up only 2% of the total U.S. population, yet 45% of the top 40 of the Forbes 400 richest Americans are Jewish.

• One-third of all American multi-millionaires are Jewish.

• The percentage of Jewish households with income greater than $50,000 is double that of non-Jews.

• The percentage of Jewish households with income less than $20,000 is half that of non-Jews.

• 20% of professors at leading universities are Jewish.

• 40% of partners in leading New York and Washington D.C. law firms are Jewish.

• 25% of all American Nobel Prize winners are Jewish.

What explains the fact that Jews as a cultural/ethnic/religious group are so successful? Here is what the author calls "the seven keys to Jewish success":

1. Understand that real wealth is portable; it's knowledge.

2. Take care of your own and they will take care of you.

3. Successful people are professionals and entrepreneurs.

4. Develop your verbal confidence.

5. Be selectively extravagant but prudently frugal.

6. Take pride in individuality: encourage creativity.

7. Be psychologically driven to prove something.

We'll explore many of these issues along the way (I especially want to get into #1, #3, and #5) as we look at this book in weeks to come. Stay tuned.

Counting Your Blessings

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Nestled in the middle of what could be the most well-known Psalm of all time is this one little verse:

My cup overflows with blessings. Psalm 23:5 (NLT)

We talk about money, money, money here every day. And that's fine because money is important and handling it well impacts so many other parts of our lives. But I think we can all agree that there are many things that are more important than money. It's often these blessings that we list when we think of our "cups overflowing."

It's been several years since I shared what I'm thankful for and on this holiday weekend I want to sit back a bit and be thankful for all of the non-money blessings in my life. Strangely (or maybe not so strangely), the list is the same as it was in 2006. Here's what I'm thankful for:

• My faith
• My family - immediate family and my mom, dad, and several close relatives
• Good friends
• Good health
• A wonderful job with great co-workers
• Time to relax and enjoy it all

Of course I could add to this (I'm thankful for living in a free country, for being able to make a difference in the world by volunteering, etc.), but the items above make up my "main" list.

How about you? What are you thankful for?

The First and Last Times that Money is Mentioned in the Bible

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Ok, I'm on a Bible quirk kick. Lately I've been finding interesting tidbits about the Bible and Money (such as last Sunday's post on the cost of Roman citizenship). Today, I'm going to share something else I found interesting along these lines.

A couple years ago I bought a new Bible. I then read through it and highlighted every verse that had to do with money in some form or fashion. As you might imagine, there's a lot of yellow in this book -- because the Bible talks a lot about money.

I use the Bible often to easily find verses for my Sunday posts. While looking through it recently I wondered what was the first set of verses where the Bible addressed the issue of money (want to guess before I tell you?). Here's what I have as the answer (let me know if you find something that appears earlier):

When they grew up, Abel became a shepherd, while Cain cultivated the ground. When it was time for the harvest, Cain presented some of his crops as a gift to the Lord. Abel also brought a gift—the best of the firstborn lambs from his flock. The Lord accepted Abel and his gift, but he did not accept Cain and his gift. This made Cain very angry, and he looked dejected.

“Why are you so angry?” the Lord asked Cain. “Why do you look so dejected? You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.” Genesis 4:2-7 (NLT)

Most of you know what happens from here. Cain is mad and ends up killing his brother. Then God asks him where his brother is and Cain answers in what is still a phrase used now and then these days: "Am I my brother's keeper?"

Of course God knows what happened and punishes Cain, banishing him from the area and cursing his efforts to grow crops. Cain goes to live in a place "east of Eden." Some of you may remember that this became the title of a popular John Steinbeck novel, a 1955 movie (James Dean played the lead), and a 1981 TV mini-series.

I often wondered why Cain's offering was not accepted and Able's was. I've heard it taught that the reason was because Cain offered "some of his crops as a gift to the Lord" while Able offered "the best of the firstborn". Notice that Cain just gave "some" while Able gave "the best and first." What implication does this have for us today? Think about it in context of our own giving and, in particular, whether giving should be done on gross or net income. It certainly conjures up some interesting thoughts. ;-)

Anyway, see how these mini-tidbits can be so fascinating. Ok, maybe it's just me. ;-)

Next I wondered what the last time was where the Bible mentioned money (again, correct me if I'm wrong). I found these as the last money-mentioning verses (FYI, they are talking about a wicked city, though in Revelation everything seems to have two or three different symbolic meanings):

“The fancy things you loved so much are gone,” they cry. “All your luxuries and splendor are gone forever, never to be yours again.”

The merchants who became wealthy by selling her these things will stand at a distance, terrified by her great torment. They will weep and cry out, “How terrible, how terrible for that great city! She was clothed in finest purple and scarlet linens, decked out with gold and precious stones and pearls! In a single moment all the wealth of the city is gone!”

And all the captains of the merchant ships and their passengers and sailors and crews will stand at a distance. They will cry out as they watch the smoke ascend, and they will say, “Where is there another city as great as this?” And they will weep and throw dust on their heads to show their grief. And they will cry out, “How terrible, how terrible for that great city! The shipowners became wealthy by transporting her great wealth on the seas. In a single moment it is all gone.” Revelation 18:14-19 (NLT)

BTW, you could say that Revelation 22:12 was about money because the Lord said he'd "repay" people for their deeds, but that's a stretch IMO.
 
What strikes me is the phrase, "In a single moment it is all gone." I know it wasn't "in a single moment", but the recent collapse of the US economy seemed like it was pretty fast. So this phrase really hit home with me.

And I wonder -- is this a real city the Bible is talking about? And if so, what city is it (Revelation is forward-looking, so it's either a current city or one yet-to-be.) The Bible calls it "Babylon", but what's the name in current times?

Again for this week, no spiritual thoughts -- simply some things I found interesting and thought you might as well. ;-)

How Much Did It Cost to Become a Roman Citizen?

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

If you're a Bible reader, you've probably come across this exchange in Acts 22:27-28 (NIV):

The commander went to Paul and asked, "Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?"

"Yes, I am," he answered.

Then the commander said, "I had to pay a big price for my citizenship."

"But I was born a citizen," Paul replied.

I read this the other day and wondered what the "big price" was for Roman citizenship. Was it a year's salary? A decade's salary? Something else?

So I got online to see if I could find out. Unfortunately, I couldn't. It seems that Wikipedia has covered Roman citizenship (benefits of being a citizen, etc.) and in the process said:

"One could also buy citizenship, but at a very high price."

Then every other site I found quoted Wikipedia. Ok, so we know that it was a "very high price." But what EXACTLY was that price (in modern dollars.)

Does anyone else find things like this interesting or is it just a quirk of mine? ;-)

It just strikes me that as our country debates immigration policies, here we have an example of how citizenship was up for sale (though many could not afford it, I'm sure.) Maybe this is a solution for the US. Perhaps we should start charging $50 million to become a citizen? (FYI, I'm JOKING -- don't get all upset.)

Anyway, if anyone has an answer regarding the actual cost of becoming a Roman citizen, I'd be interested in it.

Do We Favor the Rich?

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Here's an interesting piece of Scripture I was reading the other day (James 2:1-9, NLT):

My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people over others?

For example, suppose someone comes into your meeting dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in dirty clothes. If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, “You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor”—well, doesn’t this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives?

Listen to me, dear brothers and sisters. Hasn’t God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith? Aren’t they the ones who will inherit the Kingdom he promised to those who love him? But you dishonor the poor! Isn’t it the rich who oppress you and drag you into court? Aren’t they the ones who slander Jesus Christ, whose noble name you bear?

Yes indeed, it is good when you obey the royal law as found in the Scriptures: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin. You are guilty of breaking the law.

Ouch.

Is he talking to me? Unfortunately, I think so.

Our society as a whole tends to favor the rich over others. People with nice cars, big homes, and the finer things in life get extra perks and privileges. They get the better seats and all that goes with them. They are different (in a good way) and thus given preference.

The poor, on the other hand, are often despised and ignored. They are often seated in the back or aren't even invited to events. They don't get the nicer seats and extra perks. They are different (in a bad way) and thus shunned.

This is the standard all across America. Even in our churches. Maybe "especially in our churches" since such organizations survive on donations. It's not supposed to be this way and those in authority (pastors) generally don't want it to be this way -- but it often is.

And, like I said, it's true in my life as well. Just like most others, I judge books by their covers and give preference to those who are perceived to be more "well off" or "like me." Sure, I give to organizations that help the poor, but when it comes to actually meeting and dealing with poor people, they get to play second fiddle.

I don't have a solution for this issue other than I need to try and love my neighbor as myself -- with "neighbor" being anyone, no matter their financial situation.

I know it's an introspective post, but it's meant to be that way. Maybe you're in a similar situation to me. If so, perhaps the Scripture above will inspire you to better things. If you're not in a similar state as I am, then good for you. Keep on loving and honoring people no matter how much they make or own.

Do We Favor the Rich?

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Here's an interesting piece of Scripture I was reading the other day (James 2:1-9, NLT):

My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people over others?

For example, suppose someone comes into your meeting dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in dirty clothes. If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, “You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor”—well, doesn’t this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives?

Listen to me, dear brothers and sisters. Hasn’t God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith? Aren’t they the ones who will inherit the Kingdom he promised to those who love him? But you dishonor the poor! Isn’t it the rich who oppress you and drag you into court? Aren’t they the ones who slander Jesus Christ, whose noble name you bear?

Yes indeed, it is good when you obey the royal law as found in the Scriptures: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin. You are guilty of breaking the law.

Ouch.

Is he talking to me? Unfortunately, I think so.

Our society as a whole tends to favor the rich over others. People with nice cars, big homes, and the finer things in life get extra perks and privileges. They get the better seats and all that goes with them. They are different (in a good way) and thus given preference.

The poor, on the other hand, are often despised and ignored. They are often seated in the back or aren't even invited to events. They don't get the nicer seats and extra perks. They are different (in a bad way) and thus shunned.

This is the standard all across America. Even in our churches. Maybe "especially in our churches" since such organizations survive on donations. It's not supposed to be this way and those in authority (pastors) generally don't want it to be this way -- but it often is.

And, like I said, it's true in my life as well. Just like most others, I judge books by their covers and give preference to those who are perceived to be more "well off" or "like me." Sure, I give to organizations that help the poor, but when it comes to actually meeting and dealing with poor people, they get to play second fiddle.

I don't have a solution for this issue other than I need to try and love my neighbor as myself -- with "neighbor" being anyone, no matter their financial situation.

I know it's an introspective post, but it's meant to be that way. Maybe you're in a similar situation to me. If so, perhaps the Scripture above will inspire you to better things. If you're not in a similar state as I am, then good for you. Keep on loving and honoring people no matter how much they make or own.

Tithing, Zakat, and Giving

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Here's a piece from the NY Times that details various thoughts on how much people should give. It's supposed to be from the perspective of the world's major religions, but it doesn't deliver. I had hoped to have a list of Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, and so on. But in the end, they only covered a few different philosophies.  The highlights:

The concept of tithing appears in several places in the Bible, including the book of Genesis, where Jacob promises to give a 10th of what he receives back to God. In Deuteronomy, meanwhile, there is the commandment to tithe “all the increase of thy seed, that the field bringeth forth year by year.” The year-by-year yield does indeed sound like an ancient agrarian version of what we now think of as annual income.

Muslims, however, take a different approach, according to Omid Safi, a professor of religion at the University of North Carolina. In Islam, there is a required charitable contribution known as Zakat, but instead of tapping income, the Koran specifies a donation of one-fortieth (2.5 percent) of one’s accumulated wealth each year.

“He advised Hopkins that if he wanted to become familiar with the nature of Christian belief, to begin by giving alms and giving to the point of personal inconvenience, so that something that you wanted to do, you wouldn’t be able to do because you had given goods to the poor,” Mr. Anderson said. “It’s not giving to the point of utter impoverishment, but it’s not just giving pocket change either.”

Our personal giving is a combination of tithing and "giving alms." Some details (plus additional thoughts):

• We tithe (give 10% of gross income) to our local church.
• Above that, we give "offerings" to a variety of other organizations. Here's a list of some of them (go to the bottom of the page linked to).
• We started at 10% and have been adding to the total we give every year. From looking at our finances you can see these amounts have grown over the years.
• I think this is a good way for people to grow in their giving. Start small and add incrementally through the years.
• We have given to the point where we won't be able to do something we want to do -- retire 10 years earlier than normal. Even so, I am happy to have given (and to keep giving). In my view, there's a relationship between sowing (giving) and reaping (earning) so I'm thrilled to give more (and thus reap more.) ;-)
• If we gave 2.5% of our net worth, we'd actually be giving less than what we're giving now. That said, the concept of giving from your net worth rather than your income is a new/interesting one to me.
• The Christian basis for giving from your income can be found in Proverbs 3:9-10 (as well as other places) where it says:

Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.

From this I get two major points:

1. "firstfruits of all your crops" equates to income for the year (and since it's "first", before anything else including taxes, it's based on gross income.)

2. "filled to overflowing" and "brim over" offers the promises that result from giving.

Finally, let me say that I'm not trying to brag in any way about our giving. How can I be -- none of you knows who I am anyway? But I am trying to encourage you to do the same (Hebrews 10:24) and to start blessing others with some of your surplus. I'm living proof that you can both give a lot and grow your net worth to a very high level. I wish the same for all of you.

Is Bankruptcy Ever Okay for a Christian?

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

With the economy in the toilet for a few years now, people are hurting financially like they never have. And many are trying to get out of financial trouble by declaring bankruptcy. As such, I thought it would be interesting to look at the issue from a Christian perspective and see what various teachers are saying about it.

We'll start with Crosswalk who says bankruptcy is permissible for Christians:

Many biblical money management teachers say that Christians who file for bankruptcy should still pay back what is owed, even if it takes the rest of their lives. For a long time, that's what I believed.  However, during the process of writing Money Strategies for Tough Times, that teaching just didn't sit right with me.  As I thought about it and sought God's guidance, what kept coming to mind was the fact that Jesus didn't say to those he forgave, "Go now, leave your life of sin, and show up every Saturday to sweep the temple for the next twenty years." He gave them a fresh start. Likewise bankruptcy offers a fresh start for those who need one most, have owned up to their role in their financial problems, and have taken steps to avoid trouble in the future.

The Christian Courier comes to the same conclusion, but qualifies their stance a bit:

In conclusion, it is possible that, under certain dire circumstances, the child of God might be able to utilize the temporary protection of the bankruptcy code. He must be sure, however, that he does not abuse his creditors, and that he makes a diligent and honest effort to take care of his financial obligations — even should such require a protracted period of time.

Christian personal finance guru Mary Hunt has a different take on bankruptcy:

"It's absolutely legal, but it is not moral."

"I would say, 'You accepted these credit cards. You had the obligation to know what you were getting into,' " says Ms. Hunt, author of "Living Your Life for Half the Price." " 'You spent the money, and sure you had a big medical bill, but it probably would not have put you over the edge had you not already been deeply in debt.' "

To make this case, bankruptcy's critics often cite Psalm 37:21: "The wicked borrow and do not repay, but the righteous give generously." From sources such as Crown Financial Ministries and Dave Ramsey's nationally syndicated radio show, advice seekers hear they have a duty in most cases to keep their payback promises even when life throws them a curve ball.

Finally, here are the results of a survey given to Christians on the subject:

• 37.3% said that Christians should not file personal bankruptcy.
• 33.9% said it depends on the circumstances and that sometimes even Christians make mistakes and feel that this is the only answer to their debt problems.
• 28.8% agreed that sometimes it may be necessary to file personal bankruptcy to manage financial disaster.

So, what's the right answer? I think we can say that it's up for debate. ;-)

Here are my thoughts:

• Bankruptcy is a legal financial tool and I think it is ok for Christians to use it.
• That said, I think that they REALLY need to exhaust EVERY other option before they file.
• Personally, I think that even if they do get some debts forgiven, they still owe that money and should work to repay it. That's what I would do -- even if I never was able to pay it back completely.
• I think debt negotiation is a viable solution. For instance, if I owe someone $10,000 and they agree to take $5,000 and call it even, then this is acceptable. And this can be tried before or after bankruptcy (though doing it after would be strange -- they would surely take $5,000 over nothing.)
• This conversation just makes it that much clearer how important it is to focus on taking basic financial steps to be prosperous as well as avoid big money mistakes that can get us off track. If we do these, we should never have to worry about bankruptcy.

What's your take on the issue?

Advice to the Rich

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

I've been running into these verses several times the past few weeks:

"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life." (I Timothy 6:17-19, NIV)

Crosswalk uses these verses to list Paul's advice to the rich. Their suggestions:

1) First, Paul signals who he's writing to: Those who "are rich in this present world."

2) Next, Paul gives two "not to" commands. He says that those with money are not to be "arrogant" or to "put their hope in wealth."

3) But, now Paul turns his attention to the positive side of wealth. Without any explanation or apology Paul says that it's okay to have nice things. He says that God provides us with "everything" (presumably this includes financial blessings) for our enjoyment!

4) Paul's last directive is a positive one: "Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share." Sure it is perfectly fine to enjoy some of your wealth personally. But Paul also reminds us of the greater good we can do with our wealth.

5) Like a loving counselor, Paul seems unable to leave the topic without reminding his readers of the blessings that follow such a lifestyle.

In particular, this specific point is something I've been grappling with -- how rich almost anyone in America is compared to most people in the world:

Let me suggest that the "rich" people to whom Paul is speaking would probably include most of us today. Although you may not think of yourself as wealthy -- compared to most of the world (especially in Paul's time) we are all filthy rich! If you have a bathtub you're better off than 70% of the rest of the world. Only 30% of the world's population can read, and less than five percent own a computer! If you have never faced the horror of war, the pain of imprisonment, or the pangs of starvation, you are ahead of 500 million people throughout the world. If you have clothes in the closet, food in the fridge, and a place to sleep, you are richer than 92% of the rest of the world!

A few comments from me:

• Much of this line of thinking is similar to Andy Stanley's series on how to be rich. It's a great set of teachings if you're looking for some Christian-based financial guidance.
• In Stanley's series, he notes that rich people have many advantages that others don't:

• They have "homes" for their cars. Many people in the world are lucky to live in what we would call a shack. But many of us in America have nice homes even for our cars (we call them garages.)
• They have so much drinking water that they spray it all over their lawns to make sure their grass doesn't die. Many people around the world drink filthy water they have to haul miles to get. But we use gallons of perfectly good drinking water to make sure our plants live.
• They have times when they don't have to work and they still get paid. It's called vacation time.

Of course, his point is that compared to world standards, we're all pretty well off.

• If you want to see if you are "rich", you can check out this post.
• There's a line of thinking in Christianity that we should all "give it all away." I like that these verses have balance -- we should enjoy some and we should give some. Very similar to my line of thinking in Giving is a Complement to Wealth, Not a Hindrance.

Do any of you have anything to add?

13 Timeless Finance Tips from The Bible

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Online Christian Colleges lists 13 timeless finance tips from the Bible (along with reference verses) as follows:

1. Make a budget so that you can anticipate your expenses ahead of time. Luke 14:28-30

2. Be honest without fail in your financial dealings and never try to cheat others. Proverbs 13:11

3. Be content with the things that you have. Philippians 4:11-13

4. Don’t be afraid of having success in your life. Deuteronomy 30:9

5. Pay off your debt as soon as possible. Proverbs 22:7

6. Avoid co-signing for other people. Proverbs 6:1-2

7. Don’t fall prey to get-rich-quick schemes. Proverbs 13:11

8. Be a cheerful giver, remembering the blessings you have been given. Luke 6:38

9. Seek wise counsel when you prepare to invest your money. Proverbs 15:22

10. Freely lend your money to those who need it, without worry of being repaid. Luke 6:35

11. Do not place money in a place of importance above God and your family; do not treat money as an idol. 1 Timothy 6:9-11

12. Plan for the future by saving your money wisely. Proverbs 6:6-8

13. Pay your taxes. Romans 13:5-7

Sounds similar to the seven financial pillars I recently shared, huh? For a refresher, they are:

1. Spend Less than You Earn

2. Grow Your Career

3. Beware of Debt

4. Save

5. Invest

6. Get Insured

7. Give

What's your take on this list? Any to add? Any you disagree with?

Will Following the Bible Make Your Career Successful?

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

I've been writing a lot lately about how to make the most of your most valuable financial asset -- your career.  In addition to working hard and demonstrating you deserve raises, you need to be likeable to succeed in your career. And it turns out that the qualities that go into "being likeable" are ones that the Bible addresses.

But I'm getting a bit ahead of myself. Let's start with the facts.

The Harvard Business Review conducted a study to determine who people would hire: the lovable fool or the competent jerk. Here’s what they found:

In most cases, people choose their work partners according to two criteria. One is competence at the job. The other is likeability. Ask managers about this choice and you’ll often hear them say that when it comes to getting a job done, competence trumps likeability. But despite what such people might say about their preferences, the reverse turned out to be true in practice in the organizations we analyzed.

“We found that if someone is strongly disliked, it's almost irrelevant whether or not she is competent; people won't want to work with her anyway. By contrast, if someone is liked, his colleagues will seek out every little bit of competence he has to offer. Generally speaking, a little extra likeability goes a longer way than a little extra competence in making someone desirable to work with.”

So if you can enhance your performance – and, as we’ve learned, your pay as well – by being more likeable, then that begs the question – how can you become more likeable?

Here's a list from William Cottringer, a Ph.D., business consultant, college teacher, sport psychologist and writer. He lists the ten main groups of behaviors that make a person likeable.

Interestingly, these are also characteristics promoted in the Bible.

Here are the ten along with some selected Bible verses:

• Be honest.

Kings take pleasure in honest lips; they value a man who speaks the truth. Proverbs 16:13

• Be humble.

Humility and the fear of the LORD bring wealth and honor and life. Proverbs 22:4

• Show empathy.

Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. 1 Peter 3:8

• Laugh often.

A cheerful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones. Proverbs 17:22

• Be positive.

All the days of the oppressed are wretched, but the cheerful heart has a continual feast. Proverbs 15:15

• Control hostility.

For man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. James 1:20

• Be polite.

Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Colossians 3:12

• Act smart.

Even fools are thought wise when they keep silent; with their mouths shut, they seem intelligent. Proverbs 17:28

• Appear attractive.

You should be known for the beauty that comes from within, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is so precious to God.  1 Peter 3:4

• Listen more.

My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry. James 1:19

So, did any of you know that following the Bible can make you more likeable as well as help to grow your career? ;-)

The Seven Pillars of Financial Success, Pillar 7: Give

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

The Bible discusses the keys to personal finance success quite plainly. If you read the book of Proverbs in particular, you'll see that the path to financial success isn't that difficult or extensive. In fact, the wisdom to be prosperous can be found in a few simple steps.

Over the next few weeks, I'll be sharing what I consider to be the seven pillars of financial success from the Bible.  I picked up on the number seven from Proverbs 9:1 where it says:

Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn out its seven pillars.

Today we'll be discussing Pillar #7: Give.

There are numerous verses I could quote regarding giving (and I've covered many of them here previously), today I prefer this one from Ecclesiastes 11:1 where the Bible says:

Be generous: Invest in acts of charity. Charity yields high returns. (The Message)

The Contemporary English version says it like this:

Be generous, and someday you will be rewarded.

Now I'm not going to go into whether the rewards you receive are here on earth or "treasures in heaven" that the Bible talks about regularly, but instead I'm going to focus on the benefits of giving -- what you receive when you give. For instance (click the links if you want more details on the thoughts listed):

• Givers become richer faster. 
• Giving makes you wealthy. 
• Giving is the golden magnet. 
• Givers are happier (and happiness is something money can't buy)
• Givers have better, longer, more-fulfilled lives.

I could go on and on. There are many great financial and non-financial reasons to give.

Now, how can you go about giving -- even if you "can't afford to" (it's in quotes because almost everyone can afford to give, they just choose other spending as priorities)? Here are some suggestions:

• Start by giving of your time. Volunteer.
• As soon as possible, start to budget for giving. 
• Stretch the budgeted money you have for giving as far as possible. 
• See if your company will match your gifts.
• Over time, increase your giving so that it becomes a higher and higher portion of your "spending."

There are so many wonderful benefits (for you and others) to giving that I simply HAD to make it one of the seven pillars. Do you agree or disagree?

The Seven Pillars of Financial Success, Pillar 6: Get Insured

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

The Bible discusses the keys to personal finance success quite plainly. If you read the book of Proverbs in particular, you'll see that the path to financial success isn't that difficult or extensive. In fact, the wisdom to be prosperous can be found in a few simple steps.

I've been sharing what I consider to be the seven pillars of financial success from the Bible.  I picked up on the number seven from Proverbs 9:1 where it says:

Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn out its seven pillars.

Today we'll be discussing Pillar #6: Get Insured.

In Ecclesiastes 11:2 where the Bible says:

Give portions to seven, yes to eight, for you do not know what disaster may come upon the land.

This verse is often quoted when someone talks about diversifying investments, but I like it for insurance discussions as well. After all, insurance is needed for disasters that may come upon the land, right? Of course! It's a cushion that helps protect you from financial disasters.

I think of insurance as a very big emergency fund that supplements a cash emergency fund in case a person experiences a BIG emergency -- a major accident, death, or injury. It's there to cover an amount that's impossible for most people to save (like the loss of an income, house, and so on.)

The types of insurance we all need to at least consider include health, life, and disability insurance (to replace the income from your career – your #1 financial asset), homeowner’s insurance, car insurance (to replace your vehicle and also to cover potential liability claims), and umbrella insurance to cover general liability (for example in case you’re sued.)

I've heard it said on more than one occasion that insurance is not acceptable for a Christian, that we should be trusting in God and not trusting in insurance. I agree -- we shouldn't be trusting in insurance over God. And I haven't said anything about trusting in it. Our trust is in God for everything, even the air we breathe. But He's given us instructions throughout the Bible on how to be good money managers. Some of these directions cover planning for times that could mean financial trouble. The wisdom of the Bible tells us to prepare when times are good for future times when things might not be as good -- and insurance is one way to do that. I don't trust in insurance any more than I trust in savings, credit cards, budgets, or any other financial tools. I simply use it to help me be the best money manager I can be of the money God has entrusted to me.

Do you agree or disagree?

Come back next week as I discuss Pillar #7!

The Seven Pillars of Financial Success, Pillar 5: Invest to Make Your Money Grow

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

The Bible discusses the keys to personal finance success quite plainly. If you read the book of Proverbs in particular, you'll see that the path to financial success isn't that difficult or extensive. In fact, the wisdom to be prosperous can be found in a few simple steps.

Over the next few weeks, I'll be sharing what I consider to be the seven pillars of financial success from the Bible.  I picked up on the number seven from Proverbs 9:1 where it says:

Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn out its seven pillars.

Today we'll be discussing Pillar #5: Invest to Make Your Money Grow.

The Bible says a lot about making your money grow over time, being diligent in managing your money/finances, and applying wisdom to money management. But the verse I like best about investing is from Proverbs 13:11 where the Bible says:

Dishonest money dwindles away, but he who gathers money little by little makes it grow.

I love the idea of making money grow "little by little." For me, it's a perfect picture of what it takes to be successful: saving money (last week's pillar) from your surplus (the first week's pillar) and then investing it to make it grow bit by bit over time. This strategy is successful because taking advantage of time is the best way to maximize your investments. If you invest early and invest (save) often, your money will accumulate and grow over time -- slowly at first and then more rapidly as it gains momentum -- until you become a wealthy individual.

Saving alone won't get your there -- you need to invest your money to make it grow/compound. I think of it this way: Savings provides the fuel, investing lights the spark! ;-)

Do you agree or disagree?

Come back next week as I discuss Pillar #6!

The Seven Pillars of Financial Success, Pillar 4: Saving for the Future

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

The Bible discusses the keys to personal finance success quite plainly. If you read the book of Proverbs in particular, you'll see that the path to financial success isn't that difficult or extensive. In fact, the wisdom to be prosperous can be found in a few simple steps.

Over the next few weeks, I'll be sharing what I consider to be the seven pillars of financial success from the Bible.  I picked up on the number seven from Proverbs 9:1 where it says:

Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn out its seven pillars.

Today we'll be discussing Pillar #4: Saving for the Future.

In Proverbs 6:6-8, the Bible says:

Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise! It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest.

The ant saves in a time of plenty (summertime and harvest) for a time when there will be lack or need (like the winter.) If we're wise, we'll do the same thing -- we'll save now for future expenses that we can be pretty sure will occur. Some to consider saving for:

• Emergency fund
• Retirement
• A home
• Cars (yes, you can pay cash for them)
• College costs for kids
• Upcoming vacations

This, of course, is just a starter list (though it does cover the most expensive things most people save for). Really you want to save for every future purchase you make -- so you don't have to borrow for any of them.

I'm a big believer in saving a portion of every paycheck you receive (I save/invest directly into my 401k as well as have some of each paycheck sent to a personal Vanguard account.) A good rule-of-thumb is to start out by saving at least 10% of your income, and from there the amount should increase over time (I'm currently saving about 1/3 of my income).

Do you agree or disagree?

Come back next week as I discuss Pillar #5!

The Seven Pillars of Financial Success, Pillar 3: Beware of Debt

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

The Bible discusses the keys to personal finance success quite plainly. If you read the book of Proverbs in particular, you'll see that the path to financial success isn't that difficult or extensive. In fact, the wisdom to be prosperous can be found in a few simple steps.

Over the next few weeks, I'll be sharing what I consider to be the seven pillars of financial success from the Bible.  I picked up on the number seven from Proverbs 9:1 where it says:

Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn out its seven pillars.

Today we'll be discussing Pillar #3: Beware of Debt.

In Proverbs 22:7, the Bible says:

The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.

And that's about the best thing the Bible says about debt! In fact, the Bible discourages the use of debt EVERY TIME it mentions the subject.

I've covered what the Bible says about debt previous here on FMF. The summary: stay out of debt -- and if you're in it, try to get out as soon as possible.

A few more thoughts on this topic from me:

1. Being deep in debt is one of the worst money moves anyone can make. It can cost you hundreds of thousands of dollars over the course of your lifetime and thus be a very large drag on your net worth.

2. Unfortunately, there's a HUGE difference between the debt Americans "should" have (though I'd say these numbers are high) and what they actually have. 

3. If you're in debt and want to get out, see my seven steps to get out of debt (and here are some follow-up tips to remain debt free once you get there.)

4. Usually the last debt to fall is a person's mortgage. Check out this link if you want some thoughts on how to be mortgage free in five to seven years. 

5. I know someone's going to say (or be tempted to say) something like: "Yeah, but I can make more with the money by investing it than by paying off debt." Really? Can you really? My experience shows me that a very small percentage of people have the discipline, wisdom, insight, patience and skill to actually make this work. Sure, you may be one of them. Then again, you may be fooling yourself.

Do you agree or disagree?

Come back next week as I discuss Pillar #4!

The Seven Pillars of Financial Success, Pillar 2: Grow Your Career

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

The Bible discusses the keys to personal finance success quite plainly. If you read the book of Proverbs in particular, you'll see that the path to financial success isn't that difficult or extensive. In fact, the wisdom to be prosperous can be found in a few simple steps.

Over the next few weeks, I'll be sharing what I consider to be the seven pillars of financial success from the Bible.  I picked up on the number seven from Proverbs 9:1 where it says:

Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn out its seven pillars.

Today we'll be discussing Pillar #2: Grow your career.

In Proverbs 22:29 (New Living Translation), the Bible says:

Do you see any truly competent workers? They will serve kings rather than working for ordinary people.

Here's what I take away from this verse:

• People who are competent at their jobs will advance (they will serve the top levels in their fields -- presidents, CEOs, etc.)
• I think we all know that the people who "serve kings" today make more money than those who work for "ordinary people." (BTW, I'm not saying that "regular people" can't/don't have successful businesses/people making a lot of money working for them. Certainly many small business operators are "below the radar" and yet are quite wealthy and have highly-paid employees. But I think the Bible is talking about average-earning/performing people/businesses when it says "ordinary people.")

Your career is your most valuable financial asset and what you do with it either makes it more or less valuable. If you do nothing, simply "go with the flow" at work, and are passive in managing your career, you won't make the most of it by any means. On the other hand, if you work your career to make the most of it, you could earn much, much more over the course of your working career. The difference between the two can be millions of dollars which can obviously make a gigantic difference in your overall financial situation. This is why growing your career is Pillar #2 of being successful financially.

So, what do you need to do to make the most of your career? Here are a few suggestions:

1. Work to over-deliver against expectations so that you deserve regular, above-average raises and promotions. Doing this can deliver steady pay growth throughout a career.

2. In addition to over-delivering, develop a long-term plan to increase your pay.

3. Ask for raises when you don't get the increase you deserve.

If you do these you can get regular pay increases in any economy.

Do you agree or disagree?

Come back next week as I discuss Pillar #3!

The Seven Pillars of Financial Success, Pillar 1: Spend Less than You Earn

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

The Bible discusses the keys to personal finance success quite plainly. If you read the book of Proverbs in particular, you'll see that the path to financial success isn't that difficult or extensive. In fact, the wisdom to be prosperous can be found in a few simple steps.

Over the next few weeks, I'll be sharing what I consider to be the seven pillars of financial success from the Bible.  I picked up on the number seven from Proverbs 9:1 where it says:

Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn out its seven pillars.

Today we'll be discussing Pillar #1: Spend less than you earn.

In Proverbs 21:20, the Bible says:

In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish man devours all he has.

Let me paraphrase and expand this passage:

Wise people have plenty left over because they don't spend all they make. On the other hand, fools spend all they get (and maybe even more).

As I've said numerous times, the core principles for personal finance success are fairly easy to understand -- you need to spend less than you earn for a long time and you'll more than likely be wealthy. Notice what's VITAL in this success? It's spending less than you earn. Without this one, simple step, you're dead in the water financially -- you're going nowhere. With it, you have extra amounts left over that you can save and invest -- and thus grow your net worth. This is why spending less than you earn is the one, main key to financial success (and thus my best piece of financial advice).

If you spend more than you earn, you're going backwards financially -- whether you're making $40,000 a year and spending $41,000 or making $4,000,000 a year and spending $4,100,000. No matter what your income is, if you spend it all and then some, your finances are doomed (yes, I've collected lists of many "rich" people that have spent all that they've earned despite making a boatload of money). So having more income isn't the main issue. It's important, that's for sure, but spending less than you earn is crucial. That's why it's Pillar #1 on the road to financial success.

Do you agree or disagree?

Come back next week as I discuss Pillar #2!

The Seven Pillars of Financial Success, Introduction

For those of you new to Free Money Finance, I post on The Bible and Money every Sunday. Here's why.

Over and over again, the Bible promises blessing/favor/prosperity/success. A few verses to illustrate what I'm talking about:

For surely, O LORD, you bless the righteous; you surround them with your favor as with a shield. Psalm 5:12

For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Joshua 1:8

But this prosperity doesn't come without some effort on our part. We have to do something -- namely we need to become wise in handling our finances. As we do, this wisdom then leads to wealth. A few verses that illustrate this point:

By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled with rare and beautiful treasures. Proverbs 24:3-4

In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish man devours all he has. Proverbs 21:20

He who gets wisdom loves his own soul; he who cherishes understanding prospers. Proverbs 19:8

The Bible also highlights the fact that you don't have to memorize a long list of do's and don't to gain wisdom. Instead, it can be found in a relatively few number of steps.

Wisdom has built her house; she has hewn out its seven pillars. Proverbs 9:1

Over the next seven weeks, I'll be detailing what I call the "seven pillars of financial success" here on Sundays. These are the seven financial principles that can make anyone wealthy -- as long as those people apply the principles (which, I think we all can agree, is the stumbling block for many people.)

Many people want prosperity to simply drop in their laps, but it doesn't work that way. God promises that He even cares for the birds of the air and supplies their needs (Matthew 6:26), but he doesn't spoon feed them. When was the last time you saw God dropping worms into birds' mouths? Never. Certainly there is provision for them, but they need to go out and get that provision -- they need to apply the gifts God has given them. And if they do, they will prosper. If they don't, they'll lack and may eventually die.

So as we begin this series, consider how many financial principles you think it takes to be successful. I listed several different options recently when I revisited the Richest Man in Babylon.

Also, let me know what you think my seven principles will/should be. It will be kinda fun to see if we agree. ;-)