A guy once told me: “I used to be a member of the jet set. But now I am a member of the debt set.”
This man is not alone. In fact, our whole country is a debtor nation now. Individually, most people are the “debt set.” These statistics prove it:
· The average American household with at least one credit card has nearly $6,591 in credit card debt with interest rate running in the mid- to high teens.
· Student debt balances average is $46,954.
· The average auto loan balance is $27,798.
· Overall U.S. consumer debt stands at $15 trillion.
· 28% of Americans have more credit card debt today than they have in a savings fund.
· Just 51% of Americans have more emergency savings than credit card debt.
· 40 million households have no retirement saving at all.
· The mean balance for retirement accounts is $228,900, which should pay for 4 years or less of retirement including Social Security.
· Most Americans owe more than their net-worth
Money is on the list of the 10 top reasons that marriages fail. Poor use of money is the cause of much discouragement and many personal disasters. Money problems have led people into addictions, despair, and even suicide. Many aged people are in dire straits because they didn’t do as Proverbs 3:9 says and “honor God with your wealth.” That’s why we all need to manage our money better. We need God’s help to manage our money with wisdom and His blessing.
Perhaps you are financially struggling? Or you in deep debt and don’t know what to do. Or maybe you just want to honor God more with your money. This week, I want to share ten principles that I have learned from God about money that might help you:
1. All I have and all I own belong to God. In Leviticus 25:23, God told Israel: “And remember, the land is Mine, so you may not sell it permanently. You are merely My tenants and sharecroppers!" In Psalm 50:10, God says: “every animal of the forest is Mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills.” Deuteronomy 8:18 reminds us: "Remember the Lord your God, for it is He who gives you the ability to produce.” Since our money, possessions, and abilities belong to God, we have to be careful with the assets He gave us! If we believe that God owes it all and we are merely caretakers, we should want to be wise stewards of the money God gives us. One day, God will hold us accountable for how we use His assets. So, commit your money and your financial plan to the Lord.
2. Put God first and not money. Proverbs 11:4 “Wealth is worthless in the day of wrath, but righteousness delivers from death”: Proverbs 15:16: “Better a little with the fear of the LORD than great wealth with turmoil.” Over the years, I have seen people who put money ahead of God, only to have few assets at the end of their lives. So, don’t let money replace God Live for Him, not for money! Jesus said: “Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33). If you live for eternity’s values and God’s Kingdom, God will take care of the rest.
3. Use and live in the age and stage you are. Ecclesiastes 3:1ff teaches that “There is a time and season for everything …” Youth is the time for education, investment, and building a foundation for later life. There are many who spend their youth finding themselves, accruing debt and neglecting education in their youth will pay a heavy price in their later years. If you not going to college, get a skill, a license, or a credential for some specialized job that pays a living wage. If you don’t, you better learn the question: “you want fries with that?” Proverbs 22:29 says: “Do you see a man skilled in his work? He will serve before kings; he will not serve before obscure men.” Also, people who learn “deferred gratification” in their younger years enjoy blessing later in life. If you are old and you have been a good steward, this is the time to spend and enjoy the fruit of your labor. Proverbs 13:22 says: “A good man leaves an inheritance for his children’s children …”
4. Live on a cash-basis. Somebody once said: “Modern Americans are buying things they don’t need with money they don’t have to impress people they don’t like.” Folks, that is stupid! Paying interest on things that depreciate is foolish. Debt makes you a slave. Keeping up with the Joneses will make you poor as poor as the Joneses. Proverbs 22:7 says: “The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender.” Don’t buy cars, furniture, or just about anything on time-pay! Never, ever have consumer credit debt. If you can’t pay cash, don’t buy it! Roman 13:8 says: “Owe no man anything but love and good deeds.”
5. Live on less. People who learn “deferred gratification” in their younger years enjoy blessing later in life. Spending on furniture, cars, travel, restaurants, clothes, hobbies, and a few other things will make you poor. So, minimize buying these things. Then, economize, and spend less than you make! Use only what you consume and consume less. One of my “Plattitudes” says: “When your outgo exceeds your income, it will be your downfall.” So, spend less and invest the rest! For decades I have lived on 70% of my income. Then, I give 10% to God’s work, 10% goes to savings, and 10% goes to investments. Over 30 or 40 years, it will be one of life’s biggest surprises to see how God and compounding of dividends will have blessed you. The earlier you start the better off you will be, so start today!
6. Give back to God. Give God a percentage of what He has given to you. In a simple word, tithe! Some teach that this is a 10% of what you make. Invest in eternal things! Proverbs 3:9-10 says: “Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the first-fruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine.” As 2 Corinthians 9:7 says: “God loves a cheerful giver.” You will have more and God will bless you more when you give back to Him a portion of what He gives to you. You can’t out-give the Lord so put giving to God’s church and God’s work first. I have been doing this since I was ten years old and can testify that it works! You can’t expect God to bless your money when you are robbing Him (Malachi 3:8-10).
7. Be a good investor. Using the imagery of a rice farmer, Ecclesiastes 11:1 encourages us to invest: “Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again.” You can’t dig a hole and just put it in the ground like the worthless and slothful servant of Matthew 25:24-28. For years, my personal plan has been: “live on less and invest the rest!”
Be like the godly woman who “considers a field and buys it” as a part of her investment strategy plan (Proverbs 31:16). Why not lock in your house payment for the next 30 years and eventually own the house? Except for eternal life, real estate is about the safest investment in the world. Mark Twain said: “Buy real estate because they aren’t making any more of it.” You need a house anyway so buy at least one!
Also, put away money in America’s best companies. There are many mutual funds that invest in the S&P 500 index or better yet, the Russell 2000. Don’t follow “get rich quick” Ponzi schemes that prey upon the greedy and gullible. Proverbs 21:5 says: “Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty.” You don’t have to be an expert. Read Dave Ramsey and others to learn how to invest. Then, just put away 10% of every paycheck. Regardless of the up and downs of the economy. don’t touch it for at least 30 years. From personal experience, you will be surprised how it will grow if you do this over the long-term. You will be able to retire and serve the Lord besides!
Proverbs 28: 19-20 says: “Whoever works his land will have plenty of bread, but he who follows worthless pursuits will have plenty of poverty. A faithful man will abound with blessings, but whoever hastens to be rich will not go unpunished.” So, just be faithful! Get an education. Get a skill. Start a business. Work hard at a job or two. Become knowledgeable about money and God. Be discipled. Proverbs 24:3-4 says: “By wisdom a house is built, and through understanding it is established; through knowledge its rooms are filled …”
8. Learn to be content. So many people get their thrills from spending or simply having wealth, but they never find peace. Many people cope with disappointments and stress by acquiring and spending more. Don’t do that! Ecclesiastes 5:10 makes a key point: “Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless.” Contentment is more important that the accumulation of wealth or possessions. Hebrews 13:5 gives some great advice “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have.” 1 Timothy 6:6 tells how to find this contentment when it says: “But godliness with contentment is great gain.” Be happy and thankful for what God has given you. Count your blessings. Rejoice in the blessings of God.
9. Cut your yearning and increase your earning. Don’t go shopping unless you truly need something. Just as you never go to the grocery store on an empty stomach, you never go shopping unless you truly need something. Never go to malls, car dealerships, and stores unless you actually need something in those places. When you play near a cliff, you will eventually fall off the cliff! So, so stay away! Remember what Jesus said in Luke 12:15 that: “life does not consist in the abundance of things.” When you get your yearnings below your earnings is when you will begin to make progress on getting your financial house in order and build your net-worth.
10. Be careful about your attitude toward money. 1 Timothy 6:10 warns: “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” Money is not bad but loving it sure is. Greed is the sin, not having the money. In Luke (12:15), Jesus warned: "Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.'" But Proverbs 11:28 gives this truth: “Whoever trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf.” So, put righteous living first and God will take care of the rest. Read God’s Word. Serve the Lord. Pray. If you honor God by living with wisdom, integrity, and godliness, God will take care of the rest.
Folks, I cannot over-emphasize how important these things are! Our spouses, our kids, our grandchildren, and so many others depend on whether we honor God with our money and get our finances in order. Most of all, remember what “Colossians 3:2 says: “Set your affections of things above, not on things below.”
Well, that is my letter for this week. I am praying for you all every day! God is in control! We can trust Him for everything!
I love being your pastor!
Pastor Mark Platt
