I remember you saying, “We have become a drive-through church where people come and order two miracles to-go.  And then leave when they don’t receive the ’service’ they want.”  It is no wonder our society has become used to a “fast-food” diet with a bunch of empty spiritual calories.

The “fast-food” epidemic has swept through our country fulfilling a selfish desire to help people get more done in less time for less money.  Unfortunately, that concept has carried over into our devotional time as well.  At best, it is an unhealthy choice.

I have heard advertisements on the radio and seen billboards of churches claiming to have the shortest service and limited praise and worship time.  At the bookstores, I have found the quick five-minute Bible study.  I can search on-line and find cookie-cutter and ready-made sermons. 

With a financial crisis in our midst, people are now looking for healthy ways to receive God’s financial provision in their lives.   Just as losing weight requires diet and exercise, for one to experience financial relief and receive God’s blessing, one must plant and water daily.  Becoming financially fit requires not only a change in diet and exercise, it requires a change in lifestyle.

My desire is simple.  I want to see people in our church experience a “financial revival” in their lives through the lens of Biblical economics.  I believe that everything we need to know and understand regarding stewardship has already been written.  The news and history only confirms these truths.

God has appointed you to spiritually feed your flock.  I am happy to help you challenge the congregation in the areas of financial stewardship so they can all become righteous givers and receive all that God has in His storehouse.

1. Forget What You Know. REALIZE. What you know is who you have become and where you are now. It is obvious that where you are in life is a reflection on what you know and believe about yourself and others. Your level of faith and work ethic is getting you the results you are not content with. You must come to the realization that change will in fact bring different results. If you continue to do the same things, you will continue to get the same results. Doing the same things over and over with the expectation you will achieve a different outcome will cause you to lose your mind.

2. Forget Where You Have Been. ACCEPT. You must accept the fact you have not arrived to the destination you have been hoping for. Where you are now doesn’t have to be the place you live forever. This is only the start of your new beginning, not the beginning of your last end. Looking back at past achievements and failures will only keep you from excellence today as you will be unable to give your undivided attention to the tasks at hand.

3. Forget Your Religion. REFINE. Challenge yourself to know what it is you believe and why. Doing things out of habit or false conscience will only cause you to make decisions based on bad religion, emotion, and superstition. If it is God you seek, then seek Him. Establish and refine your core beliefs and values and be true to truths you have come to understand and know. Do not allow luck and uncertainty to determine the outcome of your life. Instead, use wisdom and knowledge to plan for the best possible outcome. Let the rest be driven by your faith.

4. Forget Those You Have Let Down. FORGIVE. We have all let someone down. And for their own reasons, they may never forgive you. However, we can not allow broken promises and past mistakes to haunt us the rest of our life. You must accept your error in the relationship and sincerely forgive yourself. If you can’t forgive yourself, you will never be able to forgive someone else or receive forgiveness from another. In many cases, time will mend broken hearts. When the time is right, an apology could allow for a full restoration.

5. Forget Who You Love. TRANSFORM. The hard truth is you are probably not showing meaningful love to those who you say you love. Take the time to learn how to love and quit being selective and discriminative as to who you love and don’t love. Instead, transform your prejudice into an opportunity to give and help others. Love everyone you come in contact with. Treat them as a friend. In addition, love even those who are out to do you harm. It takes the stress out of remembering what your intentions are for each person you come across in your life. As a result, you will become more interested in their success rather than focusing on their failures and eventually acquire more friends than enemies. People will begin to see you as one who has their best interest at heart and will want to help you achieve your goals in life.

6. Forget What You Have Said. RENEW. Don’t let the empty promises of your past keep you from accomplishing the dreams of your future. Instead, take an opportunity to renew the commitments you wish to keep. A true friend will not only understand if you are unable to keep your end of the deal but will also support your efforts. Many times, a friend will offer reasonable terms that will fairly allow you to be released from the existing arrangement. Only make promises that will hold you accountable to your goals and objectives in life.

7. Forget How Much You Owe. SHIFT. Don’t let your debt ruin your finances, your family life, or your business. Shift the responsibility of debt as result of your past failures and ideas onto those who invested in you. Even though it may be your fault why the project did not become profitable, every investor knows that an expected rate of return always comes with a certain level of risk. Design a debt repayment plan that works in alignment with your new action plan to succeed. In due time, you will eliminate your debts one at a time by simply making a payment that is reflective of your newfound success.

8. Forget Your Schedule. DECIDE. Decide what your priorities are. Chances are your existing schedule doesn’t include them. Reinvent your calendar to include them in your weekly, monthly, and yearly plans. Schedule your quality time and vacations now. Determine when your meeting times will be. Know when you are working late. Plan your date nights. Make sure that your clients know that you do not work weekends and are not available for evening appointments. Knowing where you are in your week and what you will be doing next week will cause less confusion and allow for more communication between you and those you interact with.

9. Forget Your Bills. PUSH. You can spend your entire afternoon worrying about how you are going to make ends meet or you can figure out what money making activities you could be doing that will generate a larger paycheck. Focus on income, not expenses. You will find that your expenses can remain relatively the same but your income will always follow your passion for your work. Do what you love and push for the best outcome.

10. Forget Your Fears. FLY. What you fear most is the life you are already living. If you want to fly with the eagles, you must become fearless and let your passion for life and your work carry you to heights you have never been. Make calculated decisions and never look down. Explore new opportunities and take risks. Turn regrets into teachable strengths.

With so many families getting more and more in debt every day, you can’t help but wonder if God is trying to tell us something. We are managers of HIS money. If we trust in God, he can help us through anything. Why not trust Him with our money? During my internet travels, I have come across several great websites that I think can help Christians interested in learning how to become better stewards of God’s money.

Crown Financial Ministries should be on everyone’s favorites. In particular is their Financial & Career Tools page . Pay special attention to their currently featured free tool, Accelerated Debt Payoff Calculator. For those who are struggling with debt, I’d personally recommend Kevin Trudeau’s Debt Cures They Don’t Want You To Know About.

You may also want to check out The Simple Dollar. The blog boasts itself as ‘financial talk for the rest of us’. I find myself visiting this blog often!

In fact, just before I wrote the above statement, I took a quick gander at today’s posts. I found an interesting article posted today, which I promise, I didn’t catch until after I had already written down the reference to the author’s blog! It was Faith as a Guiding Financial Principle. Please skim through his blog, as I myself find it a great resource with regards to finance. Thanks to that post, I found a new resource to mention, ChristianPF!

ChristianPF is a great financial resource as well. The blog has a multitude of different financial areas that it touches upon. Budgeting, investing, saving, money and the bible, getting out of debt, and much more. The author, Bob Lotich, even outlines what a financial planner is, how to choose, and even offers an online directory to help you find a financial planner locally. If nothing else, be sure to check his Investing 101 section.

Lastly, if the above resources still leave you wanting, please visit Bob Loctich’s Top 10 Christian Finance Blogs.

I hope these blogs change your life. May God bless you!

This post is by Craig Ford on Christians and Personal Finance. Craig is a friend of mine and has a lot to offer in this area. Craig is a missionary in Alotau, Papua New Guinea. His years of ministry experience has provided valuable insight for helping Christians deal with their personal finances from a Biblical perspective. His blog www.moneyhelpforchristians.com provides daily personal finance advice from a Christian perspective.You can sign up for free daily articles via email.

Why Christians Need to Talk About Money More
I grew up believing that discussions about money carried a certain amount of ‘unholiness’. Those who are truly spiritual neglect such petty issues and instead focus on discussion of salvation, baptism, heaven, and hell. I assumed that the truly holy are those with minimal bank account balances. The man who squanders all his money on fast food, cars, and entertainment but has little in the bank is a man of God, while the man who saved, lived frugally, helped others, and has money in the bank is a heretic. I would be fine to accept my impressions if it were not the case that I know many others who carry the same thoughts about Christianity and money.

I recently taught a Bible class where I gave the class a set of words (each word on a piece of paper). I asked them to put the words into order of the frequency that those words appear in the Gospels. The words were Kingdom of God/Heaven, Love, Salvation, Baptism, Hell, Money, and Saved. You know the word that produced the most discussion (before I even introduced the class topic)? Money. “No, it goes near the top” one person said. “ No way, there isn’t much about money in the gospels,” another challenged. And then the discussion took off. Is it at the top or bottom? In reality, money was number three on the list behind Kingdom of God/Heaven and love.

My conclusion is: Christians need to talk about money more.
We need to know what the Bible does and does not say about money. We need a better understanding of the darker and lighter sides of money. We need to be challenged towards generosity. We need to be educated about earning, spending, giving, and managing money.
Here are eight reasons why Christians need to talk about money more often:

1. Jesus talked a lot about money. I believe Jesus talked about money because he knew money held inherent dangers for Christ followers. A way to combat those dangers was by teaching and reemphasizing a kingdom value regarding money.
2. When money is not addressed it will quietly and subtly consume us. Our natural selves are not good money managers. Biblical money management must be an intentional decision. We must ask ourselves: Am I handling my money in a way that honors God? Are my purchases reflective of my Christian values? Am I free from the love of money?
3. We are always learning about money management. Society is telling us how we should use our money, but is the church? Through osmosis we absorb teaching about money. If the church is silent, how will people learn to adopt a biblical view of money management? Paul exhorts us to be transformed instead of conforming (Rom. 12:2). Unfortunately, Ron Sider has shown that statistically Christians tend to conform in terms of how they handle money. See Scandal of the Evangelical Conscience,
4. Almost all of us have daily interactions with money. Christians have not withdrawn themselves from the interaction with money or use of money. Therefore, church ought to present biblical teachings and resources on how to appropriately earn, give, save, and spend money.
5. Money is a limited resource (at least on a personal level). Every dollar used to purchase one item is also a dollar that is not being used for another purpose. Money management requires spiritual discernment as we seek to determine how our funds ought and ought not to be spent.
6. It is not uncommon to hear that the single greatest sin in America is materialism. If that is the case, the church needs to be presenting a Godly view of money management and money ownership so that we can redirect Christians against the trend of materialism.
7. Compared to the world, God has different expectations of how Christians handle money. I outlined seven factors in a post entitled What is the difference between biblical finances and personal finances.
8. I believe money is a clear and present danger to Christianity. The more we openly discuss it, the more likely we are to avoid its dangers. Christians have the opportunity to use money in a way that is either spiritually destructive or a spiritual blessing for others to the glory of God.

In Ephesians 2:1-3 Paul characterizes an unregenerate life by the following characteristics: (1) Following the ways of this world. (2) Following the ruler of the kingdom of the air. (3) Gratifying the cravings of our own sinful self. How does the church combat these negative influences today? We preach about it, study about it, write about it, pray about it, and talk about it. But when it comes to finances, the church is often silent. When the church is silent I believe people naturally revert back to the influences outlined in Eph. 2:1-3. They follow the culture at large, the Devil, and satisfy themselves.

If you are interested in learning more about the relationship between the Bible and money, I suggest you check out the “Bible and Money Page” on Money Help For Christians.

Another long night ahead for you I see.

After putting in a full day’s work at your full-time job, you have managed to become one of the select few to take part in a leading-edge idea that is sweeping the nation. It’s like buying Google stock when it was affordable. Or flipping houses. Except this time, you are in the right place at the right time.

This is “The One.”

Once this deal goes through, you are going to be on your way to financial freedom.

And it gets better. You don’t even need a bunch of money to start. All you need is time–a few hours a day to follow the program, make a few calls with people you already know, set up some appointments, and watch your money grow.

It’s like baking a cake! It’s that easy!

With an opportunity of a lifetime at your fingertips, how can you not afford to give it a whirl?

Just imagine. In just a few, short and painless months, you too will be able to retire among the elite of our world, while toasting to residual income for the rest of your life! Good-bye one-bedroom efficiency–hello beach-front property!

Proverbs 23:4-5 warns–
“Labour not to be rich: cease from thine own wisdom. Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? For riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven.”

In other words, don’t overwork yourself trying to get rich. If the deal sounds too good to be true, it probably is. When material riches are used as the main form of enticement, long-term success will not be realized.

Something tells me you better go back and read the fine print of your new venture before signing the lease on that brand new Mercedes. And use your common sense and God-given wisdom before you decide to pack up your personal belongings and turn in your keys to the office.

Right now, America is facing one of its most challenging times in our country’s history. Only once before has the U.S. economy experienced such a financial meltdown. History calls it the Great Depression. And although we have a name for it, most of us have no emotional understanding of what it did to our families–our American people.

At it’s greatest length, the Great Depression lasted until the early 1940’s, which means that a person at the age of 25 would be about 95 today. So why is it that we, the children and grandchildren of these victims, have no true understanding of this so-called “Great Depression?”

Joel 1:2 says–
“Hear this, you elders; listen, all who live in the land. Has anything like this ever happened in your days or in the days of your forefathers? Tell it to your children, and let your children tell it to their children, and their children to the next generation.”

The Great Depression was much like what was described later in verses 10 and 12–
“The fields are ruined, the ground is dried up; the grain is destroyed, the new wine is dried up, the oil fails. The vine is dried up and the fig tree is withered; the pomegranate, the palm and the apple tree–all the trees of the field–are dried up. Surely the joy of mankind is withered away.”

With a heartache like this still fresh in the hearts and souls of our elders, why did our grandparents not share the trials and tribulations that led them to prayer and repentance? Our country needs stories right now that illustrate the brokeness of man and his need for a response from God.

God’s instructions for financial relief are clear just as they were then.

“Even now,” declares the Lord, “return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning. Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.” (Joel 2:12-13)

The testimonies and stories of our forefathers are real, just untold. A decade of inspiration and encouragement is being lost with a generation that is dying everyday. The fruits and blessings we have enjoyed over the last thirty years are a testiment to their repenting heart, obedience to God, and spiritiual strength.

If we expect God to respond in our time of need, we will have to follow a similar, if not the exact, path of our grandfathers.

Take this time to remember the decisions you are making, the sleepless nights, your crying out to God, your search for peace, your quest for wisdom and understanding, your financial struggles, and most importantly, the day you chose to repent.

Remember this story well. And share it freely with your children. We must do our part and must warn them against disobedience.

Just as grandparents enjoy spoiling their grandchildren over disciplining them, God would rather spend His time blessing you than correcting you.

And avoiding another financial crisis wouldn’t be so bad either.

So you got yourself in a bind.  Again.

Except this time, you really don’t know what to do.  Looking over receipts, double-checking your math, reviewing old paystubs will only remind you that you have driven on a beautiful, well-paved road only to find yourself at a dead-end. The first couple of times, it was okay—you had it all taken care of.  You even had a back-up plan in case things didn’t go so well.  You amazed your family and even yourself with how you were able to flirt with financial fire without getting burned.  Perhaps you were good with money or just plain lucky.

So what happened this time?  Where did you go wrong?  Suddenly you have realized you are not only running out of money and options but you are running out of time.  What’s different this time is that you are not in your thirties any more.  Or your forties.  Perhaps you just entered your fifties.  Congratulations! You, like many Americans are finding yourself lost in a decade where opportunities are fewer, investment losses are greater, and your life expectancy is longer.

So what do you do?  Well, I can’t say there is any investment that is going to reward you for procrastination and your poor planning.  What I can say is now is the time to get your head on straight and take control of these important and dramatic last plays in the game.

For some of you, the more timeouts we have left could actually help squeeze out a victory.  For many of you, you will have to become confident enough to either risk it all for the big win or simply learn how to lose this game while keeping your dignity and family intact.

Asking yourself what happened and how I got here is only going to help you when you have matured enough to realize you have probably been wrong when it comes to money for a very long time.  Not only did you get caught red-handed this time, you now understand that have been cooking this recipe for disaster for years.

Remember your first brand new car?  How about when you purchased your second brand new car using your first car as down payment? Do you remember your first home purchase?  How about your wedding, your baby’s first Christmas, and the timeshare you purchased on your first family vacation?

As you can see, the common thread to every purchase that has gotten you to this place of financial ruin is emotion.  Every one of these decisions was influenced by some powerful emotion you felt at the time of purchase.

The good Lord knows that I am not trying rain on your parade.  I want to help you create new memories.  Those who give up on God and choose financial heartache will only be left with memories of purchases of the past.  And you will remember them well.

What’s important is that you realize emotion will not get you out of this mess.  You can scream and shout all you want but you will still have to face the music sooner or later.  Going out to eat every night to mourn your defeat isn’t going to help either.  It’s just going to make you fat and turn your money into something you can certainly flush down the toilet.

The fact is, to some degree, it is not all your fault—but it is one-hundred percent your problem.  You see, American society has raised us to believe everyone has a shot at the “American dream”.  What most people don’t readily accept is that our society’s interpretation of this dream is out of reach for many.  Contrary to popular belief, everyone can not afford to own their own home, drive luxury cars, wear designer clothing, and go out to eat every evening.

With every seller competing for the same dollar, it forces our society to rely on credit to finance the things we want now when there aren’t enough dollars to go around.  Over our lifetime, we will eventually begin consuming less goods and utilizing less services while maintaining a level or increasing payment towards debt throughout our lifetime to pay for the totalilty of things consumed.

So although you have inherently accepted the agreement to continually have less and less while paying more and more, you are beginning to realize the deals you made in your youth were not in your favor.  And now that you are closer to retirement than ever and the kids are preparing for college, all you can do is say how you messed up.  Except the only problem this time is, the words “I’m sorry” doesn’t seem to resonate well with the family when the words “we have to sell the house” follow.

It’s not all your fault.  You made some big decisions you don’t regret.  After all, the kids had a decent upbringing, the cars in the garage are reliable, the roof has been replaced, your wife has beautiful jewelry, you have a versatile wardrobe… and the list goes on and on.  The only problem is, you have no cash and you are two paychecks away from losing the farm.  Besides, isn’t everybody in the same boat?  I guess the answer to that question only matters if you thought the movie “Titanic” actually had a happy ending.

You must understand: What happened doesn’t matter anymore.  What you will have to show for a lifetime of work is yet to be determined and you are behind the ball.  The odds are stacked against you, but the good news is, the game is not over.  The Lord is on your side and is your sole provider.

Read Phillippians 4:19–
“But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

Believe it. There is still a chance and you must play every move perfectly.  The decisions you make in the next six to twelve months will determine whether you will weather the storm or become a statistic.  You decide.

For too long my body has charged for that which I have freely given to them.

My brothers, do not practice your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ by showing partiality. Suppose a man wearing gold rings and fine clothes comes into your assembly, and a poor man in dirty clothes also comes in. If you give special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Please take this seat,” but you say to the poor man, “Stand over there” or “Sit on the floor at my feet,” you have made false distinctions among yourselves and have become judges with evil motives, haven’t you?
Listen, my dear brothers! God has chosen the poor in the world to become rich in faith and to be heirs of the kingdom that he promised to those who love him, has he not? But you have humiliated the man who is poor. James 2:1-6

There are many in the body who the Father has given the vision of being a financial river. Receive the vision and let there be a breakout of His financial anointing. Because God has said that His word and His anointing WILL NOT BE SOLD. He has allowed it in the past in your conferences, your teaching times because of your lack of faith. But now His body will no longer charge for His anointing, His word, His presence. It is His Kingdom and it is His good pleasure to provide all, all, more than all for the expansion of His reign throughout the world. Let the call go forth
Listen! Whoever is thirsty, come to the water! Whoever has no money can come, buy, and eat! Come, buy wine and milk. You don’t have to pay; its free!

This week our country decided to bailout the economy with a $700 million in aid to lenders so there wouldn’t be a total collapse.  I have been thinking about this a lot over the last two weeks, and I’ve come to some conclusions about how we got here, and what needs to be done in response.

No doubt your church deals with monetary issues from the pulpit and in your small groups.  The pastor preaches on biblical stewardship and tithing.  You occasionally have lessons on why money management is important, but do you ever really teach people to be good stewards.  The Scriptures say that it is more about stewardship than it is about financial loss or profit.

In America we have cultivated an attitude of consumer spending that has led to consumer debt.  Not only do we have national debt increasing, but household debt continues to rise.  Psalms and Proverbs often remind us that we become wise from reading the Scriptures because we gain insight into daily living.  If you are worried about the economy you can make a direct impact by only buying what you can afford, and not spending money with credit cards that you can’t pay back.  All you need to do is search the Scripture on these issues.

The area church’s can help is to give members a way to learn how to do this through the lens of the Bible.  I know of no better tool than Crown Ministries.  Crown offers seminars and classes that teach people basic budgeting and stewardship principles.  If your church wants to bring members into maturity in their walk with Christ, they must provide and answer to individual financial crises.

I know this response is simple, but Scripture says God makes wise the simple.  While it won’t fix the current problem, we can ensure we don’t have to go through this again any time soon.

I am beyond thrilled to say that, after a lot of really hard work, I am now $337.00 away from being debt-free except for my mortgage.  I wanted to wait until I was completely there before talking about it (which will be in a few weeks).  But I’m excited now.  I have a fair emergency fund and a decently-funded 401(k), but I have basically been plugging away at the debt very hard the last couple years.  (Having a roommate also helps.)  Now I can start to save in earnest all that money I’m going to need for school.  Yippee!

I’m tempted to actually let myself get financially ahead and be comfortable though: to be one of those people with no mortgage in ten years or less by socking all that money at the loan.  I dream of doing a little redecorating, and overseas travel again (one of my great loves, environmental havoc-wreakers, and debt-creators)… but that’s all stuff that will get in the way of my plans for the next five years or so.  It’s not going to prepare me for a student life, and then a missions life.  I’m not really into acquiring “stuff” but there are still things I dream about… and am tempted by.

I’m sure some of this line thought has come about since I had to put off school for a year in order to re-take the LSAT in June.  Which I am dreading… I worked so hard preparing for it the first time that I never want to see the damn thing again.  I’ve given myself until Ash Wednesday to continue relaxing from it and then I must start studying again, and find some tutoring.  But a couple more weeks of mental rest will not go amiss – it’s been a stressful four months between that and work and everything else.  Then I’ll still have four months to study, and also organize my mom’s move which is scheduled for two weeks before the test.  Always an adventure!