Money: 11 Transforming Principles
Jun 26, 2019
Money has been a focus of mine for much of my life. I grew up with a legacy of family wealth and the pressure to maintain and increase the family fortune. From an early age (4th Grade), I was making investments in the stock market and experiencing how I could take a buck and turn it into so much more – yes, I was a nerd. As a child, I was also fortunate to learn important lessons from my father about how money would never bring me happiness and how we were to use our resources to help others. All my experiences and education led me to starting my own wealth management firm over 30 years ago. The firm for most of its life span was highly successful, but a couple of years ago I was convinced that I must sell the firm to do what I am doing today. Why was this you may ask?
About 11 years ago, God opened my eyes to the truth of the gospel, and I became a follower of Christ. However, for the next five years after that, I would say that there was not as much growth in my life as I would have liked. I was still very much consumed by my firm, and I also was not a part of church community that was challenging and encouraging me to follow Christ wholeheartedly. That all changed about six years ago. After getting a tip from one of my sons about a church that I should check out in town, my wife and I went and began getting fed from God’s Word in a way that I never before had experienced. I began uncovering more and more treasures of the gospel and seeing how as 1 Peter 2:9 describes, Christ had saved me to share this great news of the gospel to the ends of the earth!
As I began growing in my faith and seeing God use my wife and me to reach the nations with the gospel, my desires for my wealth management firm began to change. I began seeing my clients in a different light and constantly was trying to help them go beyond the money to see their true purpose in life. I found myself getting more and more frustrated and burdened for these clients that had a love for money that was hurting their lives. I found that, as their financial wealth increased, it did not increase their joy – in many cases the reverse happened. I was also burdened that I was only contributing to my clients’ sense of self-reliance and helping them depend more in their wealth and own efforts. As I went to God with this struggle, I received a clear message from God… “it is time to move on!” I began the process of selling my firm and today I am now highly invested in a new firm that helps Christians clarify their purpose and take action to fulfill it.
Now, I share my story not to say that firms like mine are bad or that a Christian cannot minister in a firm like I had. Ministry can definitely happen there, but God had a different ministry in mind for me.
Throughout my journey of following Christ, I have come to see that God gives us so many great principles for how we should view money and the stuff of this life. So, here are 11 helpful principles that I hope will encourage you as you seek to manage your money in a God glorifying way.
Principle #1: Know Your Role
Haggai 2:8 says, “The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, declares the Lord of hosts.” God is the owner of all our money and possessions. If that verse wasn’t clear enough for you, he says in Job 41:11, “Whatever is under the whole heaven is mine.” It is all His. He is the owner, and we are the stewards. This verse could not be more spot on as to what our perspective should be about our money.
Principle #2: Choose Who You Will Serve
In Matthew 6:24, Jesus makes a very clear statement when He says, “You cannot serve God and money.” Who or what is the object of your worship? Is it God or is it money? According to Jesus, we cannot serve both God and money. For years, I watched clients of mine choose money over Him, so that He was not as much a part of their life as He should have been. Frankly, I had done the same thing during parts of my life.
Principle #3: Be Content
Hebrews 13:5 says, “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’” If we believe that God is the owner of all we have and that He has blessed us with all we have, then we can trust Him and be content with what we have. God has reasons for blessing us with much or with little. Ultimately, if we are in Christ, we can be content with how much money we have because we have been given the ultimate treasure in Christ Himself!
Principle #4: Be Willing to Abandon All
In Matthew 19, we encounter the story of a rich young ruler approaching Jesus and wanting to know what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus says to him in verse 21, “If you would be perfect, go, sell what you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me.” Many of us read this story and ask the question… is God calling everyone to be homeless? No, He is not. It is about the heart. If we believe that He is the owner of everything, then we can trust Him if He did call us to abandon all.
Principle #5: Take Care of What You Have
Proverbs 27:23 says, “Know well the condition of your flocks, and give attention to your herds.” We are to maintain and manage our money and possessions that God has given us in a God glorifying way. Remember that we are stewards.
Principle #6: Provide for Your Family
In 1 Timothy 5:8, Paul says, “But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.” Can you see how much weight Paul gives to this truth? God has given us resources to take care of our own.
Principle #7: Pursue Blessing
In Acts 20:35, we are given insight into a principle that Jesus taught… “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” Simple truth. What action best describes you? Are you a giver or a receiver?
Principle #8: Make Eternal Investments
This principle is mentioned many places in Scripture. In 1 Timothy 6:17, Paul says, “charge them not to be haughty, nor to set their hopes on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly provides us with everything to enjoy.” We are to not hope and invest in what is uncertain, but in what is certain! Enjoy what God has given you but invest in what is eternal.
Principle #9: Have A Plan
In 1 Corinthians 16:2, Paul says, “On the first day of every week, each of you is to put something aside and store it up, as he may prosper, so that there will be no collecting when I come.” Our resources are God’s, and we are to steward them wisely through planning. Do you plan to give? Do you plan to provide? Do you plan to save? As a former Fee-Only Financial Planner, I highly recommend you getting some assistance in designing a financial plan that reveals and embraces your faith and values.
Principle #10: Cheerfully Give from Grace
Second Corinthians 9:7 says, “Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.” The Old Testament taught a tithe, but the New Testament teaches a concept that many describe as “grace giving.” As God has given us Himself and new life through grace, we are called to cheerfully give of our resources out of the overflow of this grace and love we have experienced.
Principle #11: Treasure What Is Most Valuable
Matthew 6:21 says, “Where your treasure is your heart will be also.” Just about every financial planning client I had said that they were not extravagant spenders. When I asked some of them to go over the last twelve months of their spending, they always had surprises. What they saw in their spending was their stated value system colliding with their real values reflected in where they spent. How we spend our time, talents and treasure tells our family and friends more about our values than what we say. It may be time for you to review how you spend what the Lord has been giving to you to steward.
Charlie
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