Hope for your financial life and beyond

My Go To Bible Verse When I Worry About Money

March 3, 2022 by 12 Comments

If there is one thing I’ve discovered while monitoring my own finances through the years it’s this – the future is friends with worry. It’s inevitable. At some point I will worry about money.worry about money

I think many people are right there with me. A recent survey showed that 73% of Americans ranked their finances as the #1 stress in their life. That’s over things you’d think would cause more stress like relationships, career, family, kids and traffic on the freeway.

So what’s to worry about when it comes to money? Well, everything really.

First and foremost, we worry about how to make ends meet. Again, recent studies show that just over 60% of Americans are living paycheck to paycheck. That means they can only make ends meet from one paycheck to the next. That’s no way to live, wondering if you can make it to the next pay stub.

But there are other areas where people worry about money.

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Filed Under: God's Provision, Hidden Nuggets Series, Vices Tagged With: , ,

With God All Things Are Possible – Even Saving Rich People

February 24, 2022 by 4 Comments

“But Jesus looked at them and said to them, ‘With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” – Matthew 19:26

On one occasion in the Bible a rich young ruler approached Jesus with a very serious question. The man asked Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. After a brief back and forth exchange Jesus had this final answer for him:

“If you want to be perfect, go, sell what you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come follow me.” (Matthew 19:21)

with god all things are possibleIt’s easy to misinterpret what Jesus was saying to the young man. He was not saying that owning possessions is bad. Nor was he saying that a person can buy their way into heaven. That can only happen through faith in Jesus Christ alone.

He also wasn’t saying that we all have to give up our wealth to enter heaven. And he certainly was not saying that God favors the poor over the rich. God looks upon all people with equal value regardless of their financial status.

So what was going on here? In essence, Jesus knew something about this particular man. It was something that was keeping him from following Jesus and inheriting eternal life. The man’s reaction to Jesus’ final instruction reveals exactly what it was.

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Key Differences in the Parable of the Wise and Foolish Builders

February 10, 2022 by 3 Comments

Every builder knows you need a strong foundation to support a house. Well, accept one builder described in the Biblical parable of the wise and foolish builders. He could have made a better choice and taken a Construction 101 class. More about that in a moment.

parable of the wise and foolish buildersWhat makes a solid foundation?  A concrete slab works. So does a poured basement wall or concrete blocks placed on a footer.

On the other hand, building a house that rests on gravel won’t work in the long run. Dirt would be even less sturdy. A house built on sand would have no chance.

No one would ever conceive of building a house on something as unstable and shifty as sand. Without a solid foundation, the ground would buckle under the weight of the house. The slightest storm would wash away the sand and cause the house to crumble.

Ironically, we do this all the time. Not with a real house structure though. We do it with something way more valuable – our lives. We construct a life on all kinds of foundations that have no chance of supporting us in the long run.

Jesus told an epic parable about a wise builder and a foolish builder that highlights this issue. They both built their house differently. And wow…did they ever have different outcomes!

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7 Positive Lessons from Job’s Friends on Helping Hurting People

September 22, 2020 by 15 Comments

Ever felt like you had no clue how to help someone who was hurting? It doesn’t matter if the pain is physical, emotional or spiritual. Too often we simply freeze, not really knowing how to best help our friends in need.

Should I give them advice? Try to cheer them up? Give them a hug? Offer to help them in some way? Who really knows, right? It’s simply hard to know the appropriate way to respond so as not to hurt or offend them further.

jobs friendsThe Bible records a story for us about a man named Job (pronounced “jobe”). In his story, we see him experiencing some of the deepest emotional and physical pain one could be dealt. In his distress, three of his friends came to be with him. The initial steps they took serve as an example to us all on how to respond when one of our friends is hurting.

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Filed Under: Friendships, Hidden Nuggets Series Tagged With: , ,

Here Are the Top 9 Bible Verses for Teens to Know

July 8, 2020 by 5 Comments

It’s challenging being a teen in today’s world. Teens today face so many personal struggles and difficult life situations that they often feel a sense of hopelessness and confusion. Not to mention the daily bombardment of temptations that lure them in the wrong direction. It’s no wonder teens today are dealing with anxiety and depression like never before and are throwing up their hands in despair and saying, “Why even try?” But are there Bible verses for teens to know that could help them with this?

bible verses for teensThe good news I share on a regular basis with my own kids and with the students that I teach is that God doesn’t want teens to feel this way. God wants them to feel strong. They can be filled with hope and be optimistic about the future. All the anxiety and fear can be swept away. And the only way that can happen is to embrace the Word of God and find what they need for life within the pages of the Bible.

The challenge though is knowing where to start. The Bible is a big book. Does God have specific Bible verses for teens to help with something they are facing?

I believe He does.

There are many verses that could be applicable for teens. I’ve boiled it down to 9 to keep it short and simple and to touch on issues I know teens are going through. The great thing is these Bible verses for teens are short and easy to memorize. That will help them have an arsenal of verses to focus on as they go through the challenges of life.

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15 Bible Verses About Helping the Poor You Need to Know

March 4, 2020 by 34 Comments

“…For the poor will never cease from the land…” – Deuteronomy 15:11. This is one of many Bible verses about helping the poor, a major theme within the Bible. Jesus famously said in Matthew 22:39, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” This statement can best applied in how we treat the poor.

bible verses about helping the poorDeuteronomy 15:11 says that the poor will always be with us. The world cannot escape it. We can try through economic and political systems to pull people out of poverty and create an environment where they can better themselves. But even the best system that leads to prosperity for many can’t reach everyone.  There will never be an instance in this present life when someone somewhere isn’t experiencing poverty.

Because of that, we should consider all manner of ways in which we might go about helping the poor.

God clearly has a special place in his heart for the poor. His words about the poor are littered throughout the pages of the Bible. So today, we are going to look at 15 powerful Bible verses about helping the poor that show us how we might best meet their needs.

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3 Reasons A Good Name Is Better Than Riches (Proverbs 22:1)

September 9, 2019 by 25 Comments

“A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, Loving favor rather than silver and gold.” – Proverbs 22:1

Have you ever thought about the status of your name? Would you say it is good? Do you even care how those around you view your name?

a good name is better than richesJust to clear up any confusion, I’m not talking about your actual name. Mine is Brian. There is nothing fancy or unique about that as over 1.2 million people in the U.S. share it. It’s statistically the 29th most popular first name as of the time of this writing. 

I’m talking about what your name implies. When people hear your name mentioned, what do they immediately think about you?

In this context, a “good name” really speaks to your integrity. It’s about your reputation and the character you possess inside. It identifies who you are from a moral and ethical standpoint. Essentially it is what you are all about.

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How Your Gifts Are Also Fit for a King (Matthew 2:11)

December 22, 2017 by 7 Comments

If you could give a gift fit for a king what would it be? You may think you would have nothing to offer such an important person. I’d suggest though, that no matter what your personal or financial status, you always have something to offer. I base that challenge on one of the more intriguing stories that surrounds the birth of Jesus.

fit for a kingThe book of Matthew tells us that Jesus received some special visitors shortly after he was born. We know them as the Magi, or the wise men from the East. We don’t know exactly where they came from although many speculate ancient Persia. The Bible doesn’t state how many there were. We do know they arrived sometime after the birth of Jesus because they came to visit Mary, Joseph and the boy at a house (Matthew 2:11) not in the stable, which many traditional Christmas scenes depict.

The Bible tells us that as the wise men entered the house that day, they came bearing gifts – gifts certainly fit for a king. We are told they bowed before Jesus,  “…and when they had opened their treasures, they presented gifts to Him: gold, frankincense, and myrrh” (Matthew 2:11).

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Filed Under: Giving, Hidden Nuggets Series Tagged With: ,

Money in the Bible: 99 Topics That Will Move You to Action

December 3, 2015 by 7 Comments

When I began Luke1428, the main purpose was to share all that I’d learned about money in the Bible. After reading through the Bible in a year, I had recorded all the verses about money I could find. It was my goal to use those for a series of articles that would teach people what God thought about money and inspire them to take action.

I called this money in the Bible series “Hidden Nuggets.”

digging up hidden nuggets about money in the bibleIt’s called Hidden Nuggets because sometimes things aren’t obvious when you read the Bible. Usually you must dig to understand what God is trying to say. Like a piece of gold that is waiting in the earth to be discovered by a metal detector or a miner, so are many Bible verses. The truth is there waiting to be exposed to those who want to search out the meaning.

God has revealed to me more than I could have imagined through my study of money in the Bible. Many things I thought I knew I realize now I didn’t really know. So it is when you begin to dig for the truth – it stretches you to examine your faulting ways of thinking.

I’ve come to a very exciting milestone in my Hidden Nuggets series about money in the Bible. This is my 100th article for the series that dates back to July 14, 2013 with the publication of This Little Light of Mine. To commemorate this, I’d like share with you what I believe are the best 25 posts in the series.

My Top 25 Posts About Money in the Bible

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How to Eat, Drink and Be Merry the Right Way (Luke 12:13-21)

October 1, 2015 by 7 Comments

Hidden Nuggets Series #98 – “And I will say to my soul, ‘Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink and be merry.” – Luke 12:19

eat drink and be merry“Eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow we die” is a popular refrain you may have felt or expressed at some point in your life. If you are like me maybe you said it as a joke when you were downing a pint of ice cream swirled with chocolate sauce. As some in recent years have expressed, “You only live once, right?”

Truth is there is great seriousness in the statement and the consequences of adopting this attitude are serious.

There are two basic elements to the “eat, drink and be merry” philosophy towards life:

1) we are all going to die, sooner rather than later and…

2) since #1 is true, then we should live for the moment, enjoying whatever pleasures we can.

But the issue goes even deeper than those two concepts. When we opt for the eat, drink and be merry philosophy we are choosing laziness, neglect of our responsibilities and a forfeiture of the future. We are resting on what we have accomplished and counting on that to sustain us indefinitely.

You may not know the phrase has its origins in the Bible, taken from a story Jesus told of a rich fool.

The Parable of the Rich Fool

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What Happens When You Seek First the Kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33)

September 17, 2015 by 5 Comments

Hidden Nuggets Series #97 – “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.” – Matthew 6:33

When your eyes crack open in the morning what is it you seek? What is the first thing on your mind?

seek first the kingdom of GodIf you are like me it’s probably the last thing you thought about the night before. Sleep never seems to wash away what we are passionate about. It’s always there the next day, front and center in our mind.

However, the answer to the question will reveal your priorities.

So many things vie for priority #1 in our lives that sometimes it’s a struggle to keep them in perspective. What seems important one day fades into the rearview mirror the next. New challenges, opportunities and attractions replace the old, and so on and on goes the cycle.

In the Bible, Jesus addressed our focus on priorities one day in a discussion about worry. Evidently some around him were fretting over what they might eat and drink and over what clothes they might wear. Not fretting like how you or I might have trouble deciding between steak and chicken for dinner or what to wear on any given Sunday to church. Theirs was a literal concern over not having any food or clothing as basic necessities of life, a dire circumstance to be in for sure.

As only Jesus could, he brought clarity to what they should seek first each day. As we’ll see the benefits received from putting his suggestion priority #1 actually spoke to their most pressing daily needs.

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