Finance 101 For 2012
January has been promoted from the International Office of the COGOP and promoted in our recent Thrive Tour in November as stewardship month. Pastors are encouraged to preach on stewardship which is a very important topic. You may think, "What does finances have to do with seeking God and His Kingdom?" As we will see in this message they are much related.
A newspaper in a metropolitan county published a poll of how the residents of their county feel. The results were that the residents are very satisfied. 70% are satisfied with their job. Over 70% of the residents are satisfied with their families. Over 70% of the residents are satisfied with the weather. But there is one area where the residents are intensely dissatisfied.
That is their finances. Only 26% are satisfied with their finances. Seventy-four percent of the people who live in that county are not satisfied with their finances. It seems that no matter how much some people make it's never enough. Gallup released a poll that said 64% of all couples argue over money. It is a major issue of concern in marriages – finances. In fact, they've discovered that it's the number one cause of divorce – 54% of couples who divorce do so over money. It's almost as if the vows have been changed – "Till debt do us part." So this Sunday and perhaps next I would like to share some thoughts about how to handle our money.
The Bible says that God uses money to test your spiritual maturity. He uses the issue of money management, how you handle money, as the acid test of whether He can trust you with genuine spiritual blessings. It's all through the Bible but Jesus said this:
(Luke 16:11) If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? (KJV)
Notice "unrighteous mammon". The NIV uses "worldly wealth." Jesus is talking about money management. He's saying if you are not wise in managing your money, why should God trust you with genuine riches – spiritual wealth? In other words, the amount God is able to bless your life is, to a large degree, dependent and determined by the way you handle the material blessings of life. If you're not a very good money manager, God is saying you're not very responsible. That's a pretty important thing.
FIVE PRINCIPLES FOR FINANCIAL STABILITY
There are some common sense precautions that you can take to avoid financial collapse in 2012. These are common sense, Biblical, financial principles that you should be following to make sure that your finances are on stable ground.
The wisest man who ever lived was King Solomon with the exception of course of Jesus Christ. He wrote a book called Proverbs and wrote down the wisdom of God. Solomon was not only the wisest man; the Bible tells us he was the wealthiest man. He'd put Bill Gates to shame! Solomon gave us important truths in the Book of Proverbs. Today I want us to look at God's five financial principles for financial stability.
1. KEEP GOOD RECORDS
This is the first principle, the Principle of Accounting.
(Proverbs 27:23-24) Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds. For riches are not for ever: and doth the crown endure to every generation? (KJV)
Obviously in those days many folks raised livestock. Their assets were tied up in sheep or cattle. God says "Know the condition of your flocks." Today, God would say, "Know the condition of your finances, your savings account, your retirement account—know your assets." The idea is know where your money is going, know where it's coming from, be conscious, and be aware. This is the starting point.
Do you ever find yourself saying, "I just don't know where all my money goes!" That is a giant warning light that you are in trouble if you don't know where all your money goes. You are not keeping good records. People say money talks. It doesn't talk, it just sneaks away quietly. It doesn't tell you it's leaving either!
(Proverbs 23:23) Buy the truth, and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding. (KJV)
The Living Bible says it this way, "Get the facts regardless of the cost." In other words, be realistic. "How are we really doing financially?" If you don't know where you're going, if you don't keep good records, you're in trouble.
Formula: Ignorance + Easy Credit = Disaster.
You're going to end up spending more than you make, getting further and further in dept and one day you'll wake up and it's a major problem in your life.
There are four facts that we need to know.
1. We need to know what we own. Keep an inventory of our possessions.
2. We need to know what we owe; our debts, our liabilities.
3. We need to keep records on what we earn.
4. We need to know where it goes.
We need to know what we own, what we owe, what we earn, and where it's going. To not know is a recipe for financial disaster. You need to keep good records. Write it down.
There are a lot of good financial programs out there – Quicken is what I use—or you can get a notebook and write it down. It doesn't matter but keep good records. You say you don't have time. Do you have time to worry? If you have time to worry about your finances, you have time to write it down. In fact, if you wrote it down, if you kept better records, you'd have a lot less to worry about. The Bible says riches disappear fast. Know the condition of your flocks. Know the state of your financial well being. So the first principle is the principle of accounting.
2. PLAN YOUR SPENDING
This is the Principle of Budgeting. You have to set some financial goals and stick with them. I would encourage you to not just drift along, paying this bill, buying that expense, doing this/that… not really knowing, just guessing, not having any clear goals, not having any clear record, not having any parameters….You just kind of muddle through the year. It's time to get your financial house in order! Don't go drifting and spending and guessing.
(Proverbs 21:5) The plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty, But those of everyone who is hasty, surely to poverty. (NKJV)
If you don't get anything else I say, get this. Financial freedom is not based on how much you earn—it is based on how you spend it. Even if you make three times what you make today, if you're spending more than you make you're still going to go in the hole. If you don't know how to live on less than you're making now, what makes you think you're going to live on less when your income goes up. You won't. You're developing a habit that you always spend more than you make.
(Example of my mother-in-law).
A couple went to a financial planner at NC State University. Both were doctors but their financial house was in shambles. They didn't know what to do. The financial planner instructed them to bring all their records to him. After reviewing their records he told them: "You make $625,000 a year but your spending more than that each year."
I read a book a few months back by Gary Keesee, "Fixing the Money Thing." He has helped thousands of people to get out of debt. He states in the book that most folks can resolve their debt problem, including their mortgage, with their current income, in five to seven years. Of course accomplishing that goal does require lifestyle changes.
Freedom is not, "If I just make this amount of money then I'll be financially free." Freedom comes not by making more. It comes from spending less. This is the Principle of Budgeting—planning your spending.
I read that the average American spends six hours a week in shopping related activities. I also discovered that the more educated you are, the more you tend to shop…Like you go to the mall to get an education.
If you're spending, you'd better be planning your spending. Notice the verse again, (Proverbs 21:5) The plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty, But those of everyone who is hasty, surely to poverty. (NKJV) The phrase "who is hasty" is talking about impulse buying. Impulse buying is unplanned buying. It's based on emotions. You see it, you smell it, you hear it, you taste it, and you feel it. You see something in a store window and you've got to have it! And you impulsively buy it. Have you ever bought anything without thinking and then later regretted it? Have you ever gotten home and thought, "Why did I buy that? Where am I going to get the money to pay for this? Where am I going to store it? How am I going to insure it? How am I going to maintain it?" You bought impulsively. The Bible says "If you act too quickly, you will never have enough."
You need to understand that capitalism is geared around advertising. And advertising is geared around getting you to buy impulsively. They don't want you to think about it, they want you to buy based on emotion, not based on your budget. So they create the sizzle in the steak and they create the ice cream that's dripping down and it looks so great. Cars never look as good as they do in the ads.
There is one thing they do to get you to buy impulsively. They use a word. This word for some of you is almost irresistible. When you hear this word, you immediately get in your car, back out of the driveway, and head for that store. You're almost addicted to this word – "sale". Some of you cannot resist a sale, especially a "clearance" sale. You say, "But look how much I saved!" You don't need it. You can't afford it. You don't have the money to buy it. But "Look how much I saved!" It is almost impossible for you to resist a sale. You act too quickly. And as a result you never have enough.
But we always use this excuse, "If I don't buy it now, it will always cost more later." So what? If you can't afford it now, you still shouldn't buy it.
(Proverbs 21:20) There is treasure to be desired and oil in the dwelling of the wise; but a foolish man spendeth it up. (KJV)
We could just close the Bible and go home. We've had our lesson for today. This is God's IQ test. If you are spending everything you receive, the Bible has a word for that – foolish. Dumb. Not smart! One version says it this way, "Stupid people spend their money as soon as they get it."
Spending can be just like any other addiction. You say you can handle it. That's what an alcoholic says. But soon you get deeper and deeper into debt and then you're hooked. In a magazine article "Are you a shopaholic?" It said, "Compulsive spending is a full fledged addiction just like gambling, alcoholism and taking drugs." In fact it's become such a prevalent addiction in our society that there are a couple of national organizations called Debtor's Anonymous and Shopper Stopper. They create all kinds of creative ways to help you break the impulse of the buying habit.
One lady keeps her credit cards in a bowl of water in the freezer. If she gets the urge to spend, she has to wait for them to thaw first and then the urge may pass and her sanity returns! One husband buried his wife's credit cards in the cement of the new room addition because ice cubes melt."
How do you break the habit of impulsive buying? Of spending more than you've got? How do you spell relief? You spell relief, BUDGET. What is a budget? A budget is simply planned spending. A budget is telling your money where you want it to go, rather than wondering where it went. Everybody needs a budget. If you want to break this habit of spending more than you've got, if you want to build resistance to sales and resistance to impulsive buying, you've got to nip it in the budget.
The principle of accounting: keep good records. The principle of budgeting: plan your spending.
3. SAVE FOR THE FUTURE: This is obviously the Principle of Saving.
(Proverbs 21:20) In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish man devours all he has. (NIV)
I read recently that the average Japanese family saves 25% of their income. The average European family saves 18% of their income. But the average American family saves 5% of their income. Why? Because we're spending it all keeping up with the Jones'. They just refinanced but we're still going to try to keep up with them. As a result we're not saving anything. But the Bible says, "The wise man saves for the future."
(Proverbs 13:11 NIV) Dishonest money dwindles away, but he who gathers money little by little makes it grow.
Look at this verse. First, "Dishonest money dwindles away." Did you know the Bible says many times in Proverbs, Do not get involved in get rich quick schemes. Easy come, easy go. They are a sure sign for disaster. Instead it says, gather it little by little. That is consistent regular savings. You need to set three goals. You need to have some giving goals. You need to have some spending goals. You need to have some saving goals. What am I going to save?
Read Proverbs 6 where it talks about the ant. "Watch the ant. They go out in the summer and store up little by little so that when the harsh winter comes, they're well fed." It's the principle of setting a little aside so you're prepared no matter what kind of storm, no matter what kind of crisis comes. That's legitimate, intelligent financial planning. Save for the future.
American Demographics magazine stated most baby boomers are going to be flat broke in retirement. They're going to be in far worse condition in retirement than their parents are right now because they are not saving anything. Why don't we save for the future? Why do we spend all that we get? One of the reasons is envy. We look around and see what other people have and we want to live at the same standard that they're living. But they're over extended too. They're not saving anything either. So to keep up with their level of standard of living – the clothes, the cars, the homes – of other people around you, you end up being on the same dumb track everybody else is on. God says that's not wise. It's all because of envy.
There's a fourth principle of Finances 101.
4. RETURN TEN PERCENT TO GOD.
The Bible calls this the Principle of Tithing. Ten percent of what we make goes back to God. Most of you are familiar with this truth but review is certainly not out of order.
(Malachi 3:10) Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it. (KJV)
Notice that's a promise. God says the first ten-percent of all I make goes back to Him. Why did God say to give ten- percent back to Him?
Beats me! I haven't the slightest idea of why He said to give ten percent back. He could have said to give fifty percent. He could have said give ninety percent and you live on ten percent.
But God instituted the principle of tithing for three reasons. It takes care of your past. It takes care of your present. It takes care of your future. Whenever I tithe, if I make ten bucks, the first dollar goes back to God. If I make a hundred bucks, the first ten bucks goes back to God. Why? Three reasons.
First, tithing speaks to my past—it's a statement of gratitude. Whenever I tithe I'm saying, "God, I realize all this came from You and if it wasn't for You I wouldn't have any money anyway. I wouldn't have my life. I wouldn't have my intelligence, my health to work. So in gratitude realizing it all really comes from You the first ten percent goes back to You in gratitude. I'm very grateful for what You've done in my life. So here it is." I can say I'm grateful but if I don't tithe I'm not grateful. I'm kidding myself.
Second tithing speaks to my present—it's a statement of priority. It says, "God, I want You to be number one in my life so the first part of my money goes back to You as a statement of priority that You're number one in my life." I could say God's number one but if I'm not tithing He's really not number one. What I do with my money and what I do with my time really show what's important to me.
Third tithing is a statement of faith in God for the future. "God, You've said, (Matthew 6:33) "But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. (NKJV)
You said that You'll take care of me if I put You first in my money. So, I'm going to tithe. Even though I don't have it, I'm going to give the first ten percent back to You in a statement of faith that I believe that You will take care of me in the future."
Tithing is Gratitude for the past…Priority in the present….Faith for the future. Notice that God says "prove me in this, says the Lord." Notice "test me. There's only one place in the Bible where God says you can prove He exists. He says, "Prove Me, test Me. See if I won't keep My promise. Tithe."
So I dare you. I dare you to tithe. I dare you to say, "Ok, God the first ten percent goes back to you. See if God won't keep His promise.
(1 Corinthians 16:2 NIV) On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made.
It's to be a weekly reminder. God, You're first. Obviously God doesn't need my money. He doesn't need your money either. So why does He say to do this? It's what it represents. The Bible says "Wherever your treasure is, your heart is also." We spend a lot of our lives talking about money, thinking about money, earning money, spending money, saving money, investing money, getting anxious about money. God says He wants this area of our life to be in His control too. He doesn't need my money but He wants what it represents – my heart. If I can't do that, my heart really isn't with Him.
- Biblical Principle: Wherever you want God to bless you—put Him first!
- If you want God to bless your family, put Him first in your family.
- If you want God to bless your career, put Him first in your career.
- If you want God to bless your relationships, put Him first in your relationships.
- If you want God to bless your schedule, your time, put Him first in your schedule.
- If you want God to bless your finances, put Him first in your finances.
There are more promises in the Bible about issues related to money than any other subject. Why? Because God wants you to learn to be like Him. God is a giver. He wants you to be faithful tithers and givers. It's a character building thing. If you want God's blessing, just do what He says.
The Bill Gates of the previous generation was John D. Rockefeller. He was fabulously, incredibly wealthy. Someone asked him one time, "How did you amass such wealth?" He said, "Simple. Save ten percent. Give ten percent. Live on the rest." That's called living on a margin. Save ten percent, give ten percent, live on the rest. If you can't save ten percent and you can't give ten percent, you're spending too much money. You need to reduce your lifestyle. You're living above your means, because you can't do what God tells you to do.
(Proverbs 3:9-10 KJV) Honour the LORD with thy substance, and with the firstfruits of all thine increase: So shall thy barns be filled with plenty, and thy presses shall burst out with new wine.
He doesn't say honor the Lord with the leftovers but with the firstfruits. Then the promise "He will fill your barns with plenty."
Keep good records, plan your spending, save for the future, and return ten-percent back to God. One more principle if you want to be financially stable.
5. ENJOY WHAT YOU HAVE--This is the Principle of Contentment.
(Hebrews 13:5-6) Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content with such things as you have. For He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." So we may boldly say: "The LORD is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?" (NKJV)
This verse of Scripture tells us to keep our lives free from the love of money and to be content with what you have. You need to understand that the more you have and the more you buy and the more that you acquire, the more it costs to maintain it. The more it costs to insure it. The more it costs to keep it updated. The more time it takes to use it—and on and on. So maybe you just need to get off that track of always wanting and getting more and say, "I don't care what other people are doing. I want to be able to have a comfortable retirement. I want to be able to care for the needs of my family in case of another "Great Recession." So enjoy what you have.
The Bible tells us that you will never ultimately be satisfied by things.
(Isaiah 55:2) Why do you spend money for what is not bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And let your soul delight itself in abundance. (NKJV)
Why do things not ultimately satisfy? They do for a while. You get a new gizmo and it's cool! But six months later it's not cool any more. You get a new car and it's great but in six months, a year, it's not new anymore. Things don't change so human beings get bored with them. We like to see some change. Human beings are constantly changing. But things don't change. That's why you have to redecorate, because the things you use to think were so cool, isn't cool any more. It isn't appealing any more. Things don't change. No-thing is ever going to satisfy you ultimately.
In the majority of cases the root of all your financial difficulties, the root of your financial stress and problems is an issue of values and trust. What's going to be more important? People or things? Things or relationships? And what am I going to trust in to make me happy? God or material blessings?
Whatever I trust for my happiness, whatever I trust for my security is my god.
(Job 31:24-25) "If I have made gold my hope, Or said to fine gold, 'You are my confidence'; If I have rejoiced because my wealth was great, And because my hand had gained much; (NKJV)
(Job 31:28) This also would be an iniquity deserving of judgment, For I would have denied God who is above. (NKJV)
Here's the fact: If you are feeling the pressure of finances in your life today, and if you are spending it all and saving nothing and if you find yourself, as a couple, constantly arguing about this issue, that is a warning light of a deeper problem. It's not your real problem. There's a deeper problem. All the financial pressure is a symptom.
What's the real problem? Out of control finances are a symptom of an out of control life. Mismanaged money is a symptom of a mismanaged life. Yes, you do need God's principles of money management but you need more than that. You need a life manager. His name is Jesus Christ. He can do the job that you can't do.
You may be a Christian. You say Jesus is your Savior. You need more than a Savior. You need a manager. You need a Lord, a CEO and a CFO, a chief financial officer and it is not you. It's Jesus Christ. So you have to settle the issue of trust. Are you going to trust that God knows more about money or are you going to continue to falsely believe that you more?
Am I going to do what God says – these five principles?
- Keep good records,
- Plan my spending,
- Save for the future,
- Return ten percent to God,
- Enjoy what I have – or do I think I know better and I'm going to ignore these principles and do my own thing. Do you really think you're wiser than God? You're not. Do it God's way and get God's blessing. If you don't do it God's way, you're on your own.
Do these principles really work? Yes they absolutely do. But there's the catch. You have to do all five. You can't pick and choose. You can't say, "I'm going to save for the future, but I'm not going to budget my money and I'm not going to tithe." Or you can't say, "I'm going to tithe and enjoy what I have but I'm not going to plan my spending." It won't work. You've got to do all five principles.
Some of you may be really sliding into the pit of debt. God wants to help you get out of debt. But you have to do your part first. Take the outline and use it as a self-evaluation tool. Looking at these five principles; put a checkmark by the ones you're already doing. Put a star by the ones you're going to start this week. You've got to do them all if you want God's blessing on your finances and you want to be financially stable.
[Title Slide]
Prayer:
Father, no doubt there are those today who are experiencing financial stress and difficulty today. As they follow Your principles, I pray that You would miraculously turn around their finances. Replace their debt with the light. Replace their pressure with Your peace. Help them to get out of the hold and onto Your pathway to financial freedom. I pray for a miracle of finances in their lives.
Now you pray. Pray this in your heart.
- "Father, I want to follow Your financial principles.
- Forgive me for spending more than I make. Forgive me for unwise purchases that I made. Help me to get on track with Your plan.
- Today, I commit myself to Your financial principles.
- With your help I'm going to start keeping better records.
- I'm going to learn to plan my spending.
- With Your help, I'm going to save some for the future.
- I'm going to put You first in my finances by returning the tithe back to You.
- Help me to enjoy what I have.
- Jesus Christ, I invite You to be the manager of my life. I want to trust You with my finances and my future.
- In the Name of our Lord Jesus I pray. Amen."
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