No. 5 Two Lies We Believe

   It's my money and I can decide what to do with it.  Wow, doesn't that sound true?  I mean, we earned it, right?  We worked for it, went to school for it, invested blood, sweat and tears for it.  Sacrificed for it!  It's ours.  Sorry...that's a lie.  Truth is, it's all God's and we are just managers of it.

   Notice a parable of Jesus:
   The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop.  He thought to himself, "What shall I do?  I have no place to store my crops."  Then he said, "This is what I'll do.  I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.  And I'll say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years.  Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry."  But God said to him, "You fool!  This very night your life will be demanded from you.  Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?"  (emphasis added)

   Now don't misunderstand.  I don't think God is against us having some things.  But where this guy missed the point is in thinking he had everything and could just sit back and enjoy.  The truth is, when we die, all that "stuff" goes to someone else.  Sometimes (oftentimes) to someone who may not deserve it.  We're going to leave it all behind.  It's not ours.  It belongs to God.

   So we need to understand our relationship with this stuff.  It is all on temporary loan from God and we are blessed to be a steward of it while we are here.  We are tasked to be a faithful manager of it.

   Money and possessions can satisfy me.  This is another lie that sounds true.  Sure, things can give some measure of satisfaction and enjoyment, but only for a while.  Some will read this and say, "I know that already."  But they will walk out of their house tomorrow thinking, "If I had a better car...if I had that big house overlooking the lake...I wish I could get that new..."  Even when we know things don't satisfy, we still want them.  And that's my point.  It takes a constantly renewed awareness to overcome this deception.  Everyday we are bombarded by advertisements and temptations to acquire things we think we need.  Ecclesiastes 5:10 says,
   "Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income.  This too, is meaningless.  As goods increase, so do those that consume them.  And what benefit are they to the owner except to feast his eyes on them?"

   We need to change our attitude.  Money and possessions will never satisfy us.  Only God can do that.  And, it's not our money, it belongs to God.  Today I discussed two lies that we believe.  Tomorrow I will present three truths we don't believe.

Thanks for reading.

No. 4 Who Is Responsible?

   Before I tell you who's responsible for your financial troubles I'd like to clarify something.  Plato said, "The greater part of instruction is being reminded of things you already know."  As the author of this web journal, what I'm trying to do is simply help people understand in a new and clear way something that they have long sensed inside of them.  I want to create "aha moments."

   I never want anyone who reads this journal to feel like the Charlie Brown cartoon I once read where he built a sand castle on the beach only to have it washed away by a huge downpour.  As he looked at the bare spot where his efforts once stood, he says, "There must be a lesson here, but I don't know what it is."  You don't have to be an expert to understand what I'm trying to teach.  You don't have to be "super smart."  My goal is to share financial gold that I've learned through painful trial and error.  The purpose isn't to impress you.  It's to be a friend who helps you.

   So, how can I help you?  Today I'm going to identify the person responsible for all your financial hardships.  It's not who you might think.  When you find out it's not you, you're going to be in shock.  I hope that gets your attention.  However, with you...is a good place to start.
We begin with your attitude toward money.

   Read the words of David from 1 Chronicles 29:10-14:
David praised the Lord in the presence of the whole assembly, saying "Praise be to you, O Lord, God of our father Israel, from everlasting to everlasting.  Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours.  Yours, O Lord is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all.  Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of all things.  In your hands are strength and power to exalt and give strength to all.  Now, our God, we give you thanks, and praise your glorious name.  But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this?  Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand."

   David understood the sovereignty of God over everything he had.  If you and I are looking for financial success in our life, our family, our business, or for our children, then we must do the same.  We're going to have to change our attitude toward money.
We need to live by another verse of the Bible that says, "The earth is the Lord's and everything in it."  Our attitude toward money is what keeps us from the blessings of God.  So then, who influences our attitude?

   Christians should be leading the world in the management of money, but we're not.  Why?  The devil convinces us that all the church talks about is money, so whenever the subject of money comes up, we get offended.  Why?  So you and I won't listen to God's truth.  If the devil can get us fired up and "private" and self-righteous about "our" money, we won't hear the truth that can set us free!  So the devil sets us up so we are closed to what God wants us to know.  And, as long as we don't know what God wants us to know we can't even begin to do what God wants us to do, right?  The result?  The devil is able to keep us in bondage.  Then, we need to change our attitude...right in his face.  We need to stop believing the lies of the enemy so we can hear the truths of our Creator.

   Tomorrow I will talk about these lies and help us all discover the truth.
Thanks for reading.

No. 3 We Need A Little Perspective

All right then, why do we fail to use money right?  See, everyone makes mistakes with money but they'll tell you, "I'm fine."  It's a lie...don't believe it...and for goodness sake, stop telling yourself that.  We are not fine, we need help.
The average person doesn't really believe he has "issues" when it comes to finances.  He really doesn't.  As long as he's making the payments on time, maybe has a little left over and can feed those occasional indulgences every once in a while, he thinks things are great.  Unfortunately, he's like the addict who says, "I don't have a problem."  In case you're thinking that's not me...you're wrong.  It very likely is you.  You and me and millions of others.
The truth is, the average American has a major problem when it comes to money.
They are horribly in debt...
"The average family carries over $10,000 in credit card debt, a 29% increase in household debt since 2000."
miserable managers of their money...
"The average baby-boomer has less than $25,000 saved for retirement."
and gullible beyond belief when it comes to buying on credit...
"...can anyone say Interest Only Mortgage, or Buy Now and Pay Nothing Until 2016?"
Christian financial expert, Larry Burkett, says that Christians are now paying nearly 10% of income each year in interest alone.  Yet we give only 2% on average back to God.  That means, simply put, the everyday believer out there is over his head in debt and walking in rebellion towards God.  The problem is clear, it's real and it's definite.  But you'd be pretty bold...courageous perhaps?..if you suggest to someone he has a problem with money.
We're very touchy when it comes to private matters.  We feel it's none of your business.  If someone suggests we have a problem in a "private matter" we immediately get defensive and go into denial because no one wants to admit they have a problem.  Well, on May 18, 1980, at 8:31am, the mountain blew!  Right?  You remember Harry Truman, don't you?  Volcanic experts were saying, "This mountain's gonna blow."  But Harry held fast, got defensive and went into denial saying, "I've lived here all my life.  I know this mountain better than anyone.  I'm not going anywhere."  A force 500 times greater than the power of the bomb dropped on Hiroshima buried poor Harry, his denial, and his 23 cats.
So I'm going to assume you can somehow beat your own worst enemy (you) and listen to reason.  "I have met the enemy, and he is us."  You don't...you won't...have to believe me.  But I'm going to surmise that you do want God's wisdom, God's guidance and provision for your life.  I'm going to further guess that you want to be out of debt, once and for all to be free of the yoke of financial burden, bills and bondage.
So change your perspective!  Stop the denial and admit you need to change some things in your financial life.  You must change.  Because trust me, someday the mountain's gonna blow. 

Tommorrow I will discuss the source of all your troubles.  The cause...and what to do.
Thanks for reading.

No. 2 Can Money Buy Happiness?

"Money is the root of all evil."  You've all heard it.  You've been told since you were a tricycle motor.  You listened at campfire chats with dad and while fishing with grandpa, at bedside talks with mom and while baking apple pie with grandma.  Your friends told you, your pastor told you, even the bible seems to say, "Stay away!"

"Whoever trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf.  He who brings trouble on his family will inherit only wind, and the fool will be servant to the wise."  -Proverbs 11:28-29

But wait, look closer.  God doesn't say that "money" is evil.  Rather, if you look at the more than 2,000 verses in the bible about money, He is saying that the love of money is evil.  I would heartily agree with that conclusion.  One doesn't have to look far to see the devastation that the love of money can visit on our lives.  We see celebrities gone mad, athletes' careers ruined, government leaders corrupted, pastors fall, money crimes...the news is full of the result of the love of money.

But you see, I believe money has no power, in and of itself.  We give it power.  It's what we do with money that counts.  If we choose to do good things with it, then we gain power over it.  Or, if we choose to do stupid things with it, then it gains power over us and can defeat even our strongest of sensibilities.  Money is just an inanimate object, but it's also a potent multiplier of character.  In other words, money makes good people better and bad people worse.

I heard a quote recently that really illustrates how I feel about money.

"If you think money can't buy you happiness, you're not using it right."  -source unknown

I've known people who should never have money.  I've also known people who should definitely have more.  I know folks who drill wells, build houses and churches in developing nations.  People who start charter schools and give to feed the poor.  I know people who can give 90% of their income to help others.  The world is bursting with opportunity to make a difference for good.   I know I would like to help much, much more than I do.  Money can do that...if you give it the power to.

Click here for a short video illustrating the point...


Thanks for reading.

In my next installment I'll start a series on why most people don't use money right.

No. 1 Money Is Simple, Right?

The most common question I get from potential financial clients is, in so many words, "What makes you an expert?"  It's a great question, and one you should ask of anyone speaking into your financial life.  You simply want to know if this "expert" is going to be a good resource for you and will improve your life.  So, ask away.

Perhaps surprising to some, my response to this usually does not include references to the schools I went to, the degrees or licenses I hold, or the initials after my name.  Instead, I attempt to quickly and articulately tell them something very simple...there are no experts but I can tell you what I believe.

What I Believe -  Four Financial Facts

1.  You MUST know how much you spend and on what.

-Listen, whether you earn $20,000 a year or $200,000, knowing where your money is going gives you control.

2.  You MUST develop a plan.

-Most people spend more time planning for a vacation than planning for their entire financial life.  My favorite quote about the importance of planning:

"If you don't know where you're going, you might end up somewhere else."  -Yogi Berra

3.  You MUST pay yourself first. (After tithing, of course.)

-Save 10-20% of your earnings consistently before other expenses.  Unable to?  You are living beyond your means.

4.  Nobody knows.

-Since nobody really knows what the future holds, focus on what you CAN control: spending and saving.

Finally, I tell them something else that shocks them.  I express to them that I don't manage their money.  I'm not smart enough for that.  Don't misunderstand...I'm brilliant.  But no one person is smart enough to manage your money.  You need (and deserve) lots of smart people managing your money.  That's what mutual funds are for.  So, I tell people that I don't manage their money.  Instead, I help them manage their habits, providing discipline and guidance when needed most.

Thanks for reading.