Introduction
I’d like to begin by making an observation. There are people in this room who live in comfortable homes and drive nice cars and eat in good restaurants who are not doing as well financially as they appear to be doing. We all like to think that we’re good at crunching numbers…but sometimes when we look at everything we’re dealing with, we feel like instead of us crunching the numbers, the numbers are crunching us! One couple said, “Expenses are getting much easier to meet these days. Everywhere we go we meet them!”
We live in the richest country in the history of the world. Yet financial freedom seems to be more elusive than ever. Why is that? Why in the middle of the richest country in the world do so many of us find ourselves not financially free? Well, I want to suggest to you, in part, it’s because we have bought into some money myths. We’ve heard these money myths so many times they’ve become ingrained in us.
For example, here’s the first money myth. Myth #1: All I need is just a little bit more. I mentioned this a few weeks ago. Somehow we think that all of our problems will be solved if we just had a little bit more money. This mentality has led to a sobering reality in many homes across America…we argue about money more often than we care to admit. One Gallup poll indicated that 65% of all married couples argue over money. So the myth that all we need is just a little bit more leads many of us to argue about money.
This myth also causes some of us to spend money we don’t have by leveraging credit cards. It doesn’t matter if you make a hundred dollars, a hundred thousand dollars or a hundred million dollars. If you ask most people how much it would take for them to become financially free, they would probably say, “Just a little bit more.” So we’re never content. We’re always striving to make one more dollar.
That’s what makes Paul’s words in 1 Timothy 6 so challenging. He says, “Godliness with contentment is great gain…But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that.” Now the fact is every one of us in this room has food and clothing, but only a few of us are content. “Godliness with contentment is great gain” but ever so few people find this contentment. This is because of the myth that to be happy we’ve got to have a little bit more. The words of Ecclesiastes 5:10 certainly ring true. “Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income….”
The problem for 95 percent of us is not that we need more—that’s a myth. The reality is this—most of us don’t have an income problem; we have a financial management problem. We need to learn how to give, how to save and how to live wisely with the income we have, and not to keep expecting more money to solve our problems.
I read about one financial planner on TV who was trying to encourage people—especially young people—to pay cash for vehicles they could afford rather than financing large sums of money. He said the average car payment in the US is $378 a month. He said if you’re 24 years old and instead of financing the car for $378 a month, you pay cash for a car that you could afford and you started saving $378 a month…typically by the time you would retire do you know what that $378 a month would be worth? $4.4 million! Then he looked at the audience and said, “I hope you’re enjoying the very expensive new car that you’re driving!”
You see the problem for 24-year-olds making a $378 monthly car payment is not that they don’t make enough to be financially free…they do. The problem is not an income issue…it’s a money management issue. Friends, Jesus says in John 8 that the truth will set us free.
Now, I realize that a few of us may be in extremely precarious financial situations, but I venture to say that 95% of us don’t need more. What we need is to learn how to manage the finances we already have in a way that acknowledges God’s wisdom and leads to financial freedom.
Now here’s a second money myth. Myth #2: It will all work out somehow. But this is not what the Bible teaches. You will never just drift into financial freedom, any more than you will just drift into godliness. It takes discipline! You will never just wake up one morning and say, “My goodness! All my bills are paid, I’ve got a healthy amount of savings socked away, I’m giving generously to kingdom causes and everything is fine on the financial front.” Those things simply won’t happen by accident.
The Bible says this in Proverbs 21:5. “The plans of the diligent lead to profit.” That same verse has been paraphrased like this. “Plan carefully, plan carefully and you will have plenty.” To achieve anything worthwhile in life (including financial freedom) takes a plan.
A financial plan decides in advance how you’re going to give, how you’re going to save, and how you’re going to live…rather than just hoping that it’s all going to work out. Unfortunately far too many people don’t have any plan at all. Awhile back there was an ABC news poll that revealed ¼ of all Americans believe that their best chance to build wealth is by playing the lottery. They think that’s their best chance! Not by putting together a reasonable budget and advance decision making.
Other people have a more morbid kind of financial strategy. Some people are just waiting for somebody to die…am I right? Some of us have done the math and you think when so and so in your family kicks-the-bucket that they’re going to be the answer to all your financial needs. Am I right?
But instead of that kind of shot-in-the-dark approach, I’d like to suggest a simple financial plan that’s been taught by Christian financial planners for years. I’ve taught this plan myself many times and the good news is this plan works for people at any income level. And it has three parts…GIVE—SAVE—LIVE. Would you say those three words out loud with me? GIVE—SAVE—LIVE.
The first step is to give. You make an advance decision that every time you get a source of income you give first to God. I talked about this a few weeks ago. This is called first-fruits giving. Basically it means that before we spend money on anything else we first give back to God.
Now, if you missed that message, I encourage you to pick it up on the podcast. When we give to God first it’s applying Matthew 6:33 to our finances. “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness and all these things will be given to you as well.” This is a promise Jesus makes—in the context of Matthew 6 it’s clear that if we seek God first he will provide the food and clothes and other things that we need to live.
Now, I have taught many times that the first 10% of our income belongs to God—this is called a tithe…one-tenth. But today I don’t want to focus on the specific amount because for some of us who are underwater with our finances…when I suggest giving 10% you tune me out because it seems impossible for you to even consider that.
So, the point I want to make today is this…at least begin giving something to the cause of Christ. Why? Because the first step to manage our resources God’s way is to put giving to God as our first priority. Now, in the past I’ve called this first level of giving “purposeful giving.” Purposeful giving is a specific amount each pay period that we invest in the cause of Christ. For some of us this may mean giving $100 a pay period. It’s not 10% by a long shot, but it at least gets you moving in the right direction by putting giving to God as the first priority in your budget.
Now, do you know why this is important? Because every time we give back to God we acknowledge that…
• Jesus is the one who loves us lavishly…
• And he’s the one who gives us the abilities to make money…
• And he’s the one who died for us on a blood stained cross.
• Giving to God as our first priority says, “God I recognize you’re the owner. I’m the manager and I’m doing things your way. Every good gift I have comes from you.”
Now, once God begins to work in our lives and our financial house gets in order, then the Bible teaches us to move from purposeful giving to percentage giving—this is giving a full 10% of all of our income streams to the cause of Christ. I know some of us in this room are doing this…and I praise God for your faithfulness.
But percentage giving was never intended to be the final destination in our journey. For some of us giving 10% doesn’t affect our lifestyle at all…and when we get to that place, the challenge is then moving to progressive giving. Progressive giving is giving more than 10% to the cause of Christ. We have some people at Summit who give 30% and 40% of their income to the church. But the point is to begin by giving something. And a great place to start is with purposeful giving by setting aside a specific amount every pay period to give back to God.
Now, I know this involves risk. It requires that we step out in faith and I know how hard that can be. But the risk is always worth it. And just think what you might miss out on if you don’t ever step out in faith!
Video—How Generosity Heals Us
Now, there are three parts to biblically wise spending plan: GIVE—SAVE—LIVE. Would you say that out loud with me? (Repeat). So, the first step is to give. But the second step is to save. Proverbs 21:20 says, “The wise store up choice food and olive oil, but fools gulp theirs down.” In other words, a wise person sets aside something for tomorrow. A wise person doesn’t spend every dime today. A wise person saves something to be ready for the unexpected things that come up in life.
Now, I have to confess that for many years I didn’t save very consistently. I gave away or spent every dime I made. I thought I would get around to saving after all my bills were paid. I used to think that it only made sense to save AFTER I didn’t have any more bills. But I was wrong…because the day of never-having-any-bills never came. So, now I save some of my income every time I’m paid. This is biblical and it’s smart!
I just wish I had started this a lot sooner! In this area I don’t what you to do what I did…so, don’t wait to begin saving until a time when you think it will be easier. Because that time will never come! Instead of waiting...I want to encourage you to start saving something every time you get paid…and begin right away! Don’t wait!
Now, this how this works out in my world. (Photo) A few weeks ago, I showed you this green ledger book that I’ve used for forty years to manage our family budget. Some of you use your computer and accounting software like Quick Books…but I’m old school. These are the actual budget categories I use. I mentioned last time, that I have giving on top because it’s my top priority. But notice that the next category is savings.
Pam and I have worked hard for the past ten years to finally get to the place where we save for more than just our emergency fund. Now, we also save for retirement, taxes and vacations. But wise saving begins with an emergency fund. This means every pay period we set aside something for emergency savings. Christian financial expert Dave Ramsey says that one of the most important steps we can take is to have at least $1,000 in an emergency fund. Why is this so important? Because it gives a little bit of margin for the unexpected expenses that always seem to pop up.
Proverbs 30:25 uses the ant as an example. “Ants are tiny creatures of little strength, yet they store up their food in the summer…” You see, even ants know that winter is coming…so they prepare for it by storing up food in the summer. In a similar way, when we have an emergency fund it helps us to be ready for times of scarcity or the unexpected expenses that always seem to come up.
After you have an emergency fund in place, then it’s wise to begin saving long-term for retirement. Listen to Proverbs 13:11. “…he who gathers money little by little makes it grow.” This wisdom from God’s Word teaches that we don’t have to have a lot of money to accumulate a lot of money. We simply have to save a little bit and keep at it.
For example, if you’re 25 years-old and if you save $2.75 a day (now that’s less than Starbucks money for some of you)…but if you save $2.75 a day until you’re 65 and if you invest that amount in a typical mutual fund, by the time you’re 65 it would grow to about $1 million. That’s just your Java money! Think about that!
Now this GIVE—SAVE—LIVE plan means that after you’ve given to God and after you’ve given to yourself by saving something…then you pay everybody else. You eliminate debt. You pay your mortgage. You buy clothes. You buy food. In other words, you live on the remainder of your income.
Now some of you are thinking, “Steve, there’s no way I could live on what’s left after I have given to God and after I’ve saved something.” But I want you to know that most of you can. There are two reasons I know you can do it. First of all, you lived on that lesser amount of money before. There was a time when you made less and you got by just fine. Just because you make more does not mean you need to spend more. Friends, this is an issue of discipline. If you make an advance decision that you’re going to live on what’s left after you give and after you save…then you can do it. .
The second reason I know you can do it is because of God’s promises. You see, the real test of advance decision-making with your finances comes down to whether or not you really trust God. Will you toss out the old myth that says it will all work out and, instead, trust God’s wisdom? Will you at least try the GIVE—SAVE—LIVE plan and see what happens? I sure hope that you do!
Now, maybe you’re wondering if you gave this a shot, what could you expect; what would the payoff be? Let me suggest an example. Now, let’s just say you have a household income of $60,000 and for the next 20 years you make $60,000, not a penny more than that. You never get a raise in the next 20 years. That’s your financial reality and during those 20 years you faithfully practice the GIVE—SAVE—LIVE plan…by giving 10%, saving 10% and living on the remaining 80%. What would happen?
Well, most importantly, over the next 20 years you would give about $120,000 to advance the cause of Christ. I’ll bet you would feel pretty great about that! But do you know that your little nest egg, the second 10%, would have also grown to somewhere around $343,000! That would be pretty exciting wouldn’t it? And if you kept it up for another 20 years, at the end of that time you would have invested $240,000 to advance the work of God and your nest egg would be worth $2.4 million! It’s astounding what can happen when we make wise and godly decisions with our finances!
Now studies show a consistent trend that the more you make, the more difficult it will probably be for you to trust God with your finances. You would think just the opposite…but studies consistently show that people who make more than $100,000 a year give a smaller percentage of their income than people who make less.
I think what happens is when people start making more money, they look at how much 10% of their income is and they say, “No way, that’s a chunk of money. I don’t care who’s on the throne of heaven. I’m not going to write a check that large and give it away. I mean who does he think he is, God or something?”
But really it comes down to this: Are we trusting God and experiencing financial freedom? Or are we making up our own rules about how to manage the resources that God entrusts to us? Now, I’m no financial genius….but I do know the power of advance decision making when it comes to finances.
When Pam and I got married we agreed to honor God first with every source of income we made. We’ve kept that promise and we feel great about it. We also have an emergency fund and we’re saving for retirement. But, friends, these things didn’t happen by accident. They’re the product of discipline and advance decision making. We give first. We save second. And we live on the rest.
Remember what Proverbs 21:5 says, “The plans of the diligent lead to profit.” Don’t keep buying into the myth that it will all work out somehow. Financial freedom is possible for every one of us but it will require advance decision making. And a great place to begin is with the GIVE—SAVE—LIVE plan.
Now here’s one final money myth. Myth #3: I’ve got plenty of time. Have you ever heard that one? So many times we procrastinate and we think, “I’ve got all the time in the world.” But we don’t have all the time in the world. The Bible says that God has numbered our days! Friends, I’ve never known anyone to just drift into financial freedom. Sooner or later you have to make a decision not to buy into the money myths.
What you need is NOT just a little bit more money. You don’t need more, but you need to manage better what you already have. And the first step to better money management is to erase the idea that it will all work out somehow. That myth needs to be replaced with a biblically sound plan which involves discipline and careful advance decision making. And the time to begin is now!
Conclusion
(Underscoring begins) I wonder how many of you will actually take steps to implement the GIVE—SAVE—LIVE plan? Now I’m a realist. I know that some of us will walk out of here and not make any changes at all. You’ll keep spending money the way you’ve always spent. You’ll keep living paycheck to paycheck. You’ll keep wracking up credit card debt, not put anything away for the future and not invest anything significant in God’s kingdom.
The thought of you doing that saddens me more than you could ever know. Today, I’ve laid out some simple principles that lead to greater financial freedom. I want that for you. I really do. When I began this series two weeks ago, I reviewed some of the financial problems many of us face that leave us stressed out and worried. Satan uses these financial headaches to rob us of the abundant life that Jesus offers.
But it doesn’t have to be that way. There is another way. God’s way may be counter-intuitive. Humanly speaking I know it makes no sense for you give money away when you think you don’t have enough to cover the bases as it is. But I’m sharing these things because I love you and I want God’s best for you.
I’m not the first to say this---but I really do mean it: It’s not what I want from you…it’s what I want for you. I want you to experience a Jesus-centered life that’s full and robust—and that includes financial freedom. Josh talked about this last week…he talked about how a pure heart, a heart fully devoted to Jesus, leads to contentment. That’s what we want for all of us!
Now, I’ve taught messages like this for years. Every time I do, a handful of people respond and they’re blessed. It’s not uncommon in the months afterward for me to get emails saying, “Steve thank you for having the courage to explain what God’s plan is. We’ve been doing it and now we’re seeing the fruit in our lives.”
I love hearing life-changing stories like that! Some of you will leave here and make financial decisions that will impact the rest of your lives. Friend, I hope that’s you.
