Recently I was asked to lead a class at church about women and money. The individual that asked is a reader of our blog, and clearly knows that I have a passion for preaching at people teaching people.
I began by thinking back to my posts with the most views...which would be the most appropriate to discuss in our class. Which are most universal, not directed at a particular age group or circumstance? I determined none of these posts get to the crux of the importance of managing your money.
I've left a very important person out of most of my posts, and that is God. We are called to be stewards of our money. God gives us money as a blessing, and wants us to bless others with it.
It isn't a post about God's will and managing money for a household without a brief discussion on household roles. I'll leave my interpretation of women's roles in the home/church at my personal dwelling for this one, but I will say I don't believe God requires the man to manage the finances. I don't believe any one person should control the money in the home (although Kevin would laugh and say "then why do you control it?") But seriously, Kevin and I discuss financial decisions for the family on an almost daily basis, and financial decisions should be made as a team. That being said, each team member has their own strengths and while mine is the numbers and budgeting, I've taken that role in our relationship.
I strongly believe both spouses should be knowledgeable about the family's finances. More often than not the husband takes on this role, whereas statistically speaking they will die earlier...meaning at some point in time the wife will likely have to take on the role as well. Talking about finances and making decisions for the family should be a task that both spouses take an active part in.
I strongly believe both spouses should be knowledgeable about the family's finances. More often than not the husband takes on this role, whereas statistically speaking they will die earlier...meaning at some point in time the wife will likely have to take on the role as well. Talking about finances and making decisions for the family should be a task that both spouses take an active part in.
Have you ever heard of Maslow's hierarchy of needs? It looks like the below:
The idea is that someone needs to master the bottom needs, before being able to focus on the needs above it. One could argue that as a Christian we should strive to make our relationship with God as part of our basic needs. I don't disagree with that, but I don't believe God requires us to go so without or that we should want for any of our basic needs. He provides for us, and we are to care for ourselves and our bodies that God has given us. Here is how I think of it: If I'm on a diet, I could try to prove to myself how strong-willed I am by having a dairy queen cake (my ultimate food-love) in the freezer at all times, and tell myself I can't eat it...with the high chance of failure. Or I could remove the temptation, and act in a way that best allows me to preserver in my goal of dieting. That means...I don't buy the cake in the first place.
This is, in part, how I believe God asks us to live in a world with money. We are best able to focus on our spiritual life, if our needs are taken care of. He doesn't ask us to go without all things, living a life of poverty and expect us to have a fulfilling relationship with him. As humans, we are better able to focus on our spiritual needs when our other basic human needs are taken care of. This is the same reason that churches often have community outreach of feeding the homeless, or going abroad to help countries in poverty. You are better able to reach someone's spirit if their basic needs of food, water, shelter are met. It is difficult to focus on God if you have no idea where your next meal is coming from. God doesn't call everyone to take the Mother Theresa approach to life...or as I like to put it "No money, no problems"or the scriptural removal of the eye if it causes you to sin. If having money causes you to love money more than other things, then I do believe God says it would be better to go without money, than to have it and sin by loving it. When Christians talk about money, we usually think about the lady with the gold coins, who gives all that she has to the church. The importance of the story is where her heart is, not that we are commanded to live a life of poverty.
This is, in part, how I believe God asks us to live in a world with money. We are best able to focus on our spiritual life, if our needs are taken care of. He doesn't ask us to go without all things, living a life of poverty and expect us to have a fulfilling relationship with him. As humans, we are better able to focus on our spiritual needs when our other basic human needs are taken care of. This is the same reason that churches often have community outreach of feeding the homeless, or going abroad to help countries in poverty. You are better able to reach someone's spirit if their basic needs of food, water, shelter are met. It is difficult to focus on God if you have no idea where your next meal is coming from. God doesn't call everyone to take the Mother Theresa approach to life...or as I like to put it "No money, no problems"or the scriptural removal of the eye if it causes you to sin. If having money causes you to love money more than other things, then I do believe God says it would be better to go without money, than to have it and sin by loving it. When Christians talk about money, we usually think about the lady with the gold coins, who gives all that she has to the church. The importance of the story is where her heart is, not that we are commanded to live a life of poverty.
God warns us, though, that the LOVE of money is what is evil. Not money itself.
1 Timothy 6:10 "For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil."
Take Job for example, he was incredibly wealthy and he was incredibly Godly. He lost everything, and still had amazing faith. God did not leave him impoverished either, after he lost everything God gave him twice as much as before. God blessed him by giving him wealth! There is nothing inherently evil in having money and having wealth.
The bible has many verses warning us not to borrow money. but to give freely, to forgive debts, and to be content. In order to give freely, we must have something to give! Even more so, God tells us through Solomon that it is okay to enjoy your wealth.
Being a good steward of your money means asking the question
"How can I serve God with my money?"
"How can I serve God with my money?"
To each person, this will look differently. There is no one right way. That being said, there are a few steps that can assist us in being good stewards of our finances.
1. Be aware of your finances
As mentioned earlier, this is a stereotypical a struggle for women. There are a variety of reasons that women struggle with this, either the man automatically takes on the role, the woman doesn't feel "smart enough" to learn about the finances, or perhaps it is an issue of leadership.
God calls us not to be poor, or to hate money, but rather to be a steward of your money. Wealth is a responsibility. Many of the wisest people in the bible, were also men of wealth. Being a steward of money requires wisdom.
Wisdom does not mean knowing all the financial jargon there is. As you know, I love talking about money, and our blog aims to reach people at where they are in their lives. My blog doesn't help a financial planner, accountant, or other financial guru become more educated on the most complicated of financial issues, my goal is to help the average person be just a little more educated about money.
Awareness of your finances can be simple, look at your checking account and see the money coming in/out. Know where your assets and debts are. Have a general understanding of your net worth (Assets-Debts = Net Worth)
Wisdom does not mean knowing all the financial jargon there is. As you know, I love talking about money, and our blog aims to reach people at where they are in their lives. My blog doesn't help a financial planner, accountant, or other financial guru become more educated on the most complicated of financial issues, my goal is to help the average person be just a little more educated about money.
Awareness of your finances can be simple, look at your checking account and see the money coming in/out. Know where your assets and debts are. Have a general understanding of your net worth (Assets-Debts = Net Worth)
As part of that awareness, God calls us to budget, and be wise about our spending:
Luke 14:28-30 "For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does
not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise,
when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin
to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish."
A budget looks differently to different people, depending on your needs and personality. It may be a strict written budget every week, down to the dollar. It may be a overarching understanding of what goes in/out of your account. We need to be wise about our money, what goes in, what comes out, and ultimate that requires a level of awareness of where we are, and where we would like to be.
2. Spend less than you make
This is basic math, if you have more going out than coming in, you'll eventually be in the negative. This is not a sustainable path and leads to debt, which leads you to focus back to your basic needs of food and shelter because in a place of debt you are no longer able to focus on God. (The caveat here is in retirement, if you have diligently saved for retirement you have budgeted and planned to spend more than you have coming in.)
God warns us of this, when he states in Proverbs 22:7
"The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender"
We simply are not able to do all of God's wonderful works when we are a slave to indebtedness. This isn't a talk on why you should start a Dave Ramsey debt payoff program, but our blog is a testament to the wonders that you can do when you strive to live debt-free. As a result of Kevin and I paying off our $100,000 of student loan debt, we were able to make amazing life choices based on what was best for our family, rather than what jobs gave us the most money to pay off our student loans.
Although debt in itself is not bad, God does state it is wrong not to repay your debts. Psalms 37:21 states "The wicked borrow and do not repay."
Overall, debt is a struggle. It is not bad or good inherently, but is a slippery slope, a temptation for potential sin, and a burden that you do NOT have to struggle with if you make wise choices.
Overall, debt is a struggle. It is not bad or good inherently, but is a slippery slope, a temptation for potential sin, and a burden that you do NOT have to struggle with if you make wise choices.
3. Pray and Talk about your money
If you are married, you should discuss your finances to be on the same page. Talk about how you will be praising God with your finances. Pray and ask God to give you wisdom to make good financial decisions, and to use the money for his will.
Money can drive a wedge between you. Money is emotional and I recently read that men tend to use money as a scorecard and can struggle with self-esteem when there are financial problems, whereas women tend to see money more as a security issue. Talking about money helps to understand the emotional aspect of money and each other's points of view.
Being a good financial steward means asking God how to use money to bless others. So go ahead and ask him through prayer!
Money can drive a wedge between you. Money is emotional and I recently read that men tend to use money as a scorecard and can struggle with self-esteem when there are financial problems, whereas women tend to see money more as a security issue. Talking about money helps to understand the emotional aspect of money and each other's points of view.
Being a good financial steward means asking God how to use money to bless others. So go ahead and ask him through prayer!
4. Give Back
Tithing is addressed in the bible, and something God calls us to do. However, giving back means giving above and beyond your tithe. Tithing in and of itself doesn't mean you are a saved person.
Tithing is addressed in the bible, and something God calls us to do. However, giving back means giving above and beyond your tithe. Tithing in and of itself doesn't mean you are a saved person.
Ephesians
2:8-9 "For it is by grace you
have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of
God— not by works, so that no one can boast."
Giving back can take a lot of different forms. I quickly learned that I would rather give cash to church events to allow them to buy Costco cookies in bulk for the teens, then to spend an hour and allow those teens to suffer through some sort of home made cookie. Sometimes you give time, other times money, but money becomes the crux of giving back. You are able to give of your time, if you are financial stable to spend your time doing something other than making money (working for "the man"). Time is money, so find what makes sense for you and how you can give back.
So what is the takeaway here? God calls us to manage our money in a way that blesses others, and glorifies him. Ultimately, it is our heart for God that should drive our mind and our finances. It's okay to enjoy wealth, but God says this:
"Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" Luke 12:34
Think about that, where do you spend the most money? A great reality check is to look at your bank account to find your priorities. Is it your family, your outward appearance, food? Not one of these is a bad things, but in writing this post, I was reminded to do this check on my life to remember where my priorities lie.
Think about that, where do you spend the most money? A great reality check is to look at your bank account to find your priorities. Is it your family, your outward appearance, food? Not one of these is a bad things, but in writing this post, I was reminded to do this check on my life to remember where my priorities lie.
Ecclesiastes 5:10 "Whoever loves money never
has enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with their
income. This too is meaningless. "
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