Hope for your financial life and beyond

Should I Borrow Money to Get What I Want?

May 12, 2020 by 5 Comments

There is no denying it. Credit is available everywhere. Our cultures screams “Have It Now!” to us at every turn. “Borrow money now to get what you want!” people say.

We expect fast food within 5 miborrow moneynutes or less in the drive-thru.  We want to make quick money for as little work as possible. And we are first in line for the newest technology gadget the day it is released. Simply put, most of the time we can’t wait. We gotta have it.

This “Have It Now” culture has skewed our reasoning ability, in that it has masterfully helped us change our “wants” into “needs.” Our brains have reclassified the things that we desire to have into things that are priorities. And in some cases, our wants are taking precedence over issues that are needs.

So why don’t we just go ahead and borrow the money to get the things we want? Seems like a logical step. However, blindly borrowing money to satisfy all your needs can cause great damage to finances, as well as your mental and emotional life.

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Filed Under: Debt, God's Provision Tagged With: , , ,

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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Filed Under: Hidden Nuggets Series Tagged With: , ,

Technology Is Revealing One Big Flaw That Crushes Our Finances

May 6, 2015 by 13 Comments

The world is changing rapidly. It’s moving so fast sometimes it feels like your head is spinning faster than the earth on its axis. You wake up one day and say, “Whoa…what happened? How did we get here?”

technologyThe tough part is when we get the sense we are falling behind the times. It’s as though we are hamsters in a wheel – continually running but never catching up.

This rapid change and our pursuit to keep up is nowhere more evident than with technology. And while it has helped create a great standard of living for us I’m afraid it’s revealing one big flaw we’ve yet to conquer.

A Technological Revolution

I think technology is awesome! It has literally shaped the world, perhaps no more so than in the past 150 years. Just think about the inventions since 1850 that have altered life:

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Filed Under: Spending, Vices Tagged With: , , , ,

I Need Help But Don’t Want to Ask

November 17, 2014 by 29 Comments

i need help“I can do it myself.” It’s a familiar refrain I often recite in my head. Even though it may seem obvious to everyone around me that I need help, I choose not to seek it. For some reason, my human nature resists reaching out and asking for assistance.

Why is that? What keeps me from admitting I need help? Why can’t I see the circumstances for what they are and then choose to rely on others to help me power through them?

Logically I should always ask for help when I need it. It would make my life run with greater efficiency and reduce much of the stress I place on myself. However, I’ve come to know this…I’m often an illogical person. I can rationalize away the greatest problem and convince myself I can handle it.

Sadly that’s a recipe for a stagnant life.

Why I Don’t Seek Help

From my life, I can quickly identify six reasons why I’ve refused to ask for help. What could you add to this list?

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Filed Under: Blogging, Vices Tagged With: , ,

The Benefits of Living in the Moment

July 28, 2013 by 10 Comments

Hidden Nuggets Series #3  – “Give us this day our daily bread.” – Matthew 6:11

In what year are your thoughts?

In what year are your thoughts?

I’m a personal finance blogger. It’s my business to help others plan for and navigate through the future. Yet I find myself often neglecting one of the simplest messages Jesus ever gave his disciples.

Focus on today.

Jesus’ challenge to his disciples came in the heart of what would later be called “The Lord’s Prayer.” He was modeling for them the appropriate way to approach and speak with God. He was alleviating any confusion they had as to what prayer should be. (I assume they were confused because they asked Jesus to teach them how to pray.)

So in the middle of the “Our Fathers” and the “Deliver us from evils,” Jesus asks his disciples to voice this line each time they communicate with their heavenly Father – “Give us this day our daily bread.” It’s a powerful request, and it is just as relevant today as it was 2,000+ years ago.

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