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July 8, 2009
Guest Post: How to Be Rich - Good News & Bad News
Fact is most of us have been at a dead end with our money. I've come to the end of the month, and there is more month than money. I stop, scratch my head and wonder where it all went. Those are not easy times. But they can get easier. No, the process of moving to money left at the end of the month is not easy, but it is possible.
It was at that place where I had to understand the "good news & bad news" that goes along with finances. Man, I am blessed. God has given me a great job, a beautiful wife, a loving family and all kinds of blessings along the way. We make decent money, but my spending habits and debt have us in a corner or on the edge of a cliff. Did you hear that? "My spending habits.." I had to first own the issue before something could change in the situation.
The good news is that we are rich. In America we are among the highest money earners in the world. If you make $37,000 a year, you are in the top 4% of wage earners on the planet. We are blessed by God. Ecclesiastes 5:19 says that what we have is a gift from God. Claim that. Know that. Now, it is time to do something about it.
The bad news is not much different. The bad news is we are rich. Yep! Because we are blessed we see ourselves as being indestructible. We look at the extra we get (tax return, gifts and such) and say what can I buy, what trip can I take and things like that. Unhealthy for sure. The problem with being blessed and being rich is that we rarely see our need for God. The blessings can distract us from what really matters in life. That leads us to see that we have a responsibility to use these things that God has given us.
Julie and I sat down and began to work together last November after 15 years of just hoping each month would work out. Joe Sangl helped us get a budget in place and make it work. We heard him often say something like this: "you've got to do what you don't want to do for a while so you can do what you want to do for a long time." It has become an issue of self-discipline, and for those of you who know me, you know that is no easy task. But it is working.
We have got to admit the truth. Far too often we waste the things we have to make us feel good, and those wasted things and blessings we cannot get back. Paying off debt is hard. But it is right. As those debts disappear one by one, we are seeing more and more victory in our lives and finding more and more peace. We are also able to give more to the cause of Christ.
This is really a spiritual issue. Jesus reminded us that people with wealth have a tough time following God (see Luke 18:24-25), but I want God to have first place in my life. I also want to live the way that God intends me to live. Know the biggest part of that? That is being able to give the way I want to give. I love missions and missionaries. I love helping those who are in great need. I love coming behind a friend who is in a whole and lifting them out. Those things are not to make me look good, but to help others see and know that God is good.
My heart is to share with our people at The Community Fellowship and beyond that we can win in our finances and build margin into our lives (not just with our money). The series I taught grabbed my heart and many others. Some were already giving to the church. Some were not. Some were already winning with their money. Most were not. It is the job of the church to teach people how to follow God in all areas of life. Money is not a taboo subject. We've got to talk about it, see what God says and apply some basic principles that will put margin back into our lives.
I've got to give a shout out to Craig Groeschel of Lifechurch.tv and Andy Stanley of Northpoint Church for the series they taught that inspired our series. Some great stuff.
Next week we are going to talk about how we can be debt free and some of the pitfalls of debt. Thanks for letting me share with you.
Michael Harrison has impressed me with his commitment to building the Kingdom through the ministry of the local church. And he has struggled through what that means as it related to personal finances as well as church financial development. He preached a series recently called How to Be Rich. I've asked him to share some commentary on what happened both in and out of the pulpit as he bravely dealt with what some pastors believe to be a four-letter word ... cash. I'm delighted he agreed to share his thoughts. Be sure to check out his blog too.
Related Post:
Guest Post: How to Be Rich - Love More ... Expect Less
Posted by bstroup at July 8, 2009 4:14 AM
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