Womens Bible Cafe™ |
| A Biblical Method For Self-Discipline Posted: 12 Mar 2015 05:56 PM PDT
In his book Fasting For Financial Breakthrough, Dr. Elmer Towns identifies four truths about our financial obligations:
We become better money managers as we fast and pray. Fasting alone is not going to strengthen your finances or resolve your money issues. Through the act of prayer, as you communicate with God, you’ll learn what His will is for your money. Perhaps you already know the answer in your heart, and now you need a solution from God. The time to ask is not when you get a foreclosure letter in the mail, a stack of unpaid medical bills, or a lose your job on a Friday afternoon. Ask. Seek. Pray. By now you’ve realized that through fasting, we learn self-control. Dr. Towns says, “…it’s really not about money; rather, it’s a discipline problem.” Whether fasting from food or spending, create a regular habit and seek insight from God regarding self-discipline. Ask God how you arrived at your place of need, and then ask Him for a solution to your problems. Keep a journal of your prayers, and look back at your spiritual growth. Continue fasting once a month, such as the date your mortgage or rent is due, or the birthday of a prodigal child, or your anniversary date. For example, if your anniversary is July 11th, then fast on the 11th of each month and pray for your marriage. As we learn financial discipline, it spills over into other areas of our spiritual lives. We learn to discipline our mouths from speaking gossip, negativity, curse words and insults. We learn to discipline our time and prioritize those things that have eternal value. We learn to discipline our health, by eating better, getting outdoors and exercise. We learn to follow Christ and walk inside God’s will. While running errands today, I felt the consequences of poor time management. I missed the deadline to return a gift my daughter dislikes; like most teenagers she said “give me cash instead.” As a consequence to missing the 30-day return period, I had to pay extra shipping charges to make sure the package arrived quicker. Praying on this, I was convicted that poor time management costs money! Similarly, disorganization and stacks of junk in my home or office make it harder to see those items with deadlines or due dates. Does this happen to you? Every aspect of a Christian life is faith-oriented, including your money. Write out a budget and money management plan based on Biblical values. Seek God when you are deprived of spending or saving money. If you struggle with stewardship, listen to your church sermon archives or make an appointment to meet with your church pastor. Learn to prioritize both money and time. Dr. Towns recommends these expense priorities:
Financial experts have a different set of priorities, so be sure to search for more ideas. In my budget, I’ve set aside money for college funds, emergency funds, and also “wedding funds.” I’m a California Mom raising two daughters and from the time they were born, I started putting $25 per month into a wedding savings account for each child. If they choose to marry then I know we’ll have a little money set aside to celebrate their special day. Some of the best financial books I read include:
I read these books to help me serve my clients in the California real estate market and years later I still remember the key concepts. After attending a Marriage Retreat by Focus on the Family and then reading “Your Money or Your Life,” we downsized our dream home, got rid of the nanny, housecleaner and gardener, and I became a stay-at-home mom. When the kids were older I started a home business and later started online Bible studies and the Womens Bible Cafe ministry. We move through seasons of life, and this includes financial seasons as well. You’ll have seasons of drought; seasons of sowing seeds; seasons of harvesting fruit. No matter the season, be faithful to God and to His Word. Scriptures to Study or MemorizeIt is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. Hebrews 11:6 (NLT) I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. Galatians 2:20 (NIV) You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don't give reluctantly or in response to pressure. "For God loves a person who gives cheerfully." 2 Cor. 9:7 (NLT) Tip: using your cell phone, snap a photo of these verses so you can find them easily Steps For Spiritual Growth
With love,
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| 40 Day Financial Fast | Budgeting Tips Posted: 12 Mar 2015 10:13 AM PDT
My elderly father-in-law used a simple Financial Ledger and once a week he would itemize and balance his columns. He died a wealthy man, using a financial ledger until the age of 92 and his vision and handwriting failed him. You can find these ledgers at office stores, or on Amazon in numerous styles when you search “financial ledgers.” Another simple method of budgeting is using a binder which you create yourself. Financial expert Dave Ramsey has a free downloadable set of budget sheets when you CLICK HERE. With this binder format, you can store “bills due” inside a binder sleeve, or even use monthly tabs. Keep your postage stamps and return address labels inside your binder for easy access. If you’re a creative woman and dislike anything that looks like a budget, then perhaps this will encourage you to track expenses and create a budget. Design a beautiful cover for your binder, add colorful tabs, Scripture verses to motivate you, and be blessed! I’m the money manager in our home, so I’ve used Quicken Financial Software for many years. There is a learning curve on this software and the format keeps changing. When talking to family and friends many have stopped using this software because it’s time-consuming. Others enjoy the automated spreadsheets showing where money is spent and saved. For me the program was beneficial until…get ready to gasp…the day my husband DELETED seven years of financial records. Yes…I nearly had a heart attack! He thought he was being helpful and created an entirely new database, deleting the old one. Remember my warning the “format keeps changing?” This is a consequence when a family member does not understand the software. Though I forgave him for erasing our budgets, spending and spreadsheets…I did not resume using the software for fear my work would be useless and deleted again. Notice the word “fear?” in the last sentence? One of the reasons we do not budget is FEAR. We’re afraid to look at what we have or do not have. We’re afraid to deny ourselves and cut back on our dreams. Many couples are afraid to budget and track spending because it often escalates in to an argument. Rather than confront fear, we often hide our expenses and ignore the reality of our budgets. Pray for the courage to confront and overcome this fear. Trust God with your everything, and especially your money. Learn money management from the Financial Peace University offered at many local churches when you CLICK HERE As part of the financial fasting, I recognize that we need a family budget and spending plan. Maybe you do too? Start looking at methods to record your expenses and budget. BUDGETING TIP from WBC Guest Mary Ann MillerMvelopes is a virtual envelope budgeting system. Unlike other financial programs that show where your money went, with Mvelopes you'll decide where your money will be spent. If you've never heard of envelope budgeting, here's a brief explanation: A manual envelope budgeting system works like this. You are paid weekly and your budget amount for groceries is $800 per month. When you get your paycheck, take out an envelope and write "Groceries" on the outside. Put $200 in the envelope. Now, when you need to buy groceries, you use only the money in that envelope. The first time you do this, be sure to buy some beans and rice because, if you're like most people, you WILL run out of money. Once you've been on beans and rice three or four days, you will not run out of money in that envelope again. Here's how Mvelopes works: Register for a free Mvelopes account or use the paid version for more envelopes. Now, set up your accounts (checking, savings, credit card, etc.) and envelopes (mortgage, groceries, clothing, etc.) Mary Ann sayss, “Next, set up a spending plan (think— I plan to spend $800 on groceries, $100 on entertainment, $900 on my mortgage, etc.) and a funding plan (think—- now I need to how much to take out of each paycheck to put in my envelopes to reach the amount I've decided to spend.) Once this step is complete, you're ready to us Mvelopes.” Before making a purchase, check the balance of the appropriate "envelope" in Mvelopes —they have a mobile app for that. Once the purchase is made, enter the expense into Mvelopes. (You don't have to do it right away. Just keep your receipts and enter it each day or every few days.) Each day, Mvelopes pulls the transactions from your accounts into a "pending transaction" window. You simply click on the pending transaction that matches the expense you entered. (Some users do this step once a day or once week.) Paychecks and deposits are moved to the Income Cash Pool, where they sit until you fund your envelopes. NOTE: Some people are uncomfortable entering their bank login information into Mvelopes. However, Mary Ann has been using Mvelopes for over seven years, and she’s never had a problem. You can sign up for a free Mvelopes account. Free accounts are limited to four accounts and 25 envelopes. “Mvelopes has been an answer to a prayer for me. Prior to finding it, I tried everything—Excel spreadsheets, various financial software, etc. Nothing worked for me like Mvelopes. I won't sugarcoat it, budgeting is hard. But, Mvelopes makes it a little easier,” says Mary Ann. “I have no affiliation with Mvelopes, other than being a satisfied customer.” LET’S HEAR FROM YOUPost a comment below and share your budgeting tips too!
With love,
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