LO$T- Quit Pretending

Are your finances a mess? Are you overwhelmed with debt? Do you keep getting yourself into financial trouble?

Lots of people in America are pretending to be rich. Many of us have chosen to have the nice homes, cars, and stuff and yet are in over our heads in debt and we have become what Solomon talks about “a slave to the lender.” It is often said there are two kinds of people “the have’s” and “the have not,” but the reality is there is a third group “the have not paid yet” people. Pretending to live a lifestyle they cannot afford. Proverbs 13:7 says “One man pretends to be rich, but in truth has nothing…”

Somehow we have bought the lie that debt is ok, when Proverbs tell us it is slavery (we are a slave to the lender). It is interesting to note that in 1929 only 2% of homes had a mortgage against them. Forty years later only 2% didn’t have a mortgage against them. What changed in our thinking?

We are asking wrong questions like:

“How much $ down is this going to take?”

“How much is it going to cost a month?”

“What is the most I can get for the least down?”

Instead we need to start asking ourselves the right questions. Is your marriage going to be stressed because you are fighting and worried about money? Are my kids going to miss out because we bought things we didn’t need, with money we didn’t have, to impress people we didn’t know. There is a hidden cost of unbiblical stewardship.

“Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control.” (Proverbs 25:28)

Try doing this instead to reverse the consumption mentality and debt cycle. Next time you see that brand new coffee maker at Walmart and you think “my life has not been full without this coffee maker, and if I buy it today by opening up a new credit card I can save 10%.” Consider putting it back on the shelf (I know, I know…it’s hard but you will live). Then pray for three days and if you feel you still need it, buy it. As the amounts go up, give yourself some more time.

We have all heard the definition of insanity… “Doing the same thing over and over and expecting to get the same results.” We are trying new things over the month in our “LO$T- In Our Finances.” Hope you can come Sundays and also to our brand new small group series called “Finances God’s Way” through Crown Ministries…check the link out...

http://www.crown.org/Cart/Church/ManagingGodsWay.aspx

Are you lost financially?

Have you ever asked yourself if you are lost financially…these statements should give you a good idea if you are (taken from Andy Stanley’s series “Lost).

1. If you spend more then you make you are lost
2. If you don’t know if you are spending more then you make- you are lost
3. If you don’t care whether you are spending more then you make- you are lost
4. If you are spending more on your car, then your car is worth you are lost.
5. If you don’t know how much you owe on the car you are lost.
6. If paying the minimum on your credit card is a way of life you are lost.
7. If you think that is good financial planning you are lost.
8. If you are not saving, or not sure if you are saving enough you may be lost.
9. If you don’t know how much you owe, you are lost
10. If you have no way of tracking where your money goes, you are lost.
11. If you got a financial dream but no plan you are lost. If we don’t plan, we plan to fail.
12. If you make over 75000 a year and you feel financial pressure you are lost. You are one of the wealthiest people in the world (top 1%). Everyone in the world would look at you and say “what???”. You have created an unrealistic lifestyle.
13. If you make decision that you hope your spouse never discovers, you are lost

No one plans to get lost but somewhere along the way you did.

Let me make a bold statement: “you can not wholeheartedly follow Christ and stay lost financially.” Why? Because Jesus simply said too much about money. He talked about it more then heaven, hell, salvation, faith, and prayer. What did he conclude?

1. Our heart follows our treasure (money) Matthew 6:21. If you are lost financially your heart will get wrapped up somewhere in it.

2. We can’t serve both God and money (Luke 16:13). If you asked God what is the #1 competition he faces for our heart, it is our money and our stuff that steals it.

3. Debt is bondage just as great as any addiction (ok Jesus doesn’t say this outright but Solomon did). Prov 22:7 “The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is a slave to the lender.” How can you wholeheartedly serve Christ and be a slave to the lender (think about it). Let’s be honest most of us are in serious debt…random stats: Average 28 year old has $66,000 of debt, for every $1 we get we spend $1.22, our national budget this year had 3.8 trillion dollars of new debt.

Wouldn’t it be great to be free! It's possible. Instead of being in bondage to debt, not giving … don’t have money, not serving… don’t have time, not doing things you have dreamed of …can’t afford it. How about beginning to get “unlost.” To get there it has to start with you finding out where you are. You have to track where the money is going and determine where you want to be. Hopefully it will begin with you determining that debt is not ok, it is not God's best, and God has a better way. Come and join us for our new series "LO$T" and hopefully it will revolutionize your finances!