Last month, we wrapped up the Biblical Approach to Finances series. Since we started this series a year ago, I thought it would be helpful to recap the different sections and provide highlights for each over the next few months. This series was broken into 3 parts: giving, planning, and saving (GPS).
The first part, giving, heavily focuses on our attitude towards money/finances. This is KEY to understand before jumping into the financial concepts.
The foundational verse we brought up many times throughout the series is 1 Corinthians 10:31. If we have decided to follow God with our life, we have a responsibility to glorify God in ALL areas of our life. We must remember that God gives us the power to gain wealth and that EVERYTHING we have is from Him. We must protect our heart and be cautious when it comes to having more "stuff" as it can mess with our contentment and priorities.
Generosity can help us combat attacks against contentment and shuffling our priorities. 1 Timothy 6:9-10 is a good reminder for us if we're struggling to have the right perspective towards our stuff:
"But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs."
You can read more about this here:
Courtney Dent
Giving/Tithing
The second blog tied directly into the first discussing our attitude and aligning our finances with God – giving/tithing. This tends to be an uncomfortable topic for a lot of people, but it shouldn't be.
In the full blog on giving, I talked about the five things to keep in mind for giving (see the graphic above). For each part, I provided at least one Bible verse related to it. At the end, I also provided a worksheet and some reflection questions to work through before moving into the following month's blog:
If you gave to God last year, list some of the ways God has blessed you after your gift.
If you did not give 10% last year, list some of the reasons you did not give more.
The third and final blog on the foundation of our attitude focused on understanding "stuff" and understanding God's attitude.
Understanding "stuff"
We must understand that we have three certain fixed needs: food, clothing, and shelter. Matthew 6:25-34 discusses these needs:
Jesus promises to provide for us. But we also need to be a good steward of the resources that He gives us. The hope through this entire series is to help you learn how to plan your finances well and be a good steward of your resources.
The last part of this blog focused on understanding God's attitude. You can check out the full article for this:
Courtney Dent
Here's the reflection from the end of the blog:
Adjusting our attitude towards "stuff"
The last blog talked about what our attitude towards stuff should be, but it's not easy to just completely change your attitude towards something if you've been living one way. In order to change our attitude, let's look at some things the Bible says:
God takes responsibility for our needs
We do not need to worry
The danger of loving "stuff"
Check out the full blog for more reminders:
Courtney Dent
Another large concept discussed in this blog is contentment. People today really struggle with being content with what they have. We live in a world that is so focused on getting more "stuff," it can be easy to compare what you have to those around you and not be satisfied with what you do have.
Does more money truly make you happier? You might think that it does, but it doesn't make you happier long-term.
We looked at 2 Corinthians 11 at all of the suffering Paul had to endure:
Through all this, this was the attitude Paul had: "I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content." (Philippians 4:11b)
Take some time to read through the rest of the article and reflect on your current attitude towards what you have. Next month, we'll review all the articles on spending/budgeting.
