Hope for your financial life and beyond

The Benefits of Living in the Moment

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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Ways to Save Time and Do More

Reading Time ClockI’ve read a lot recently about people struggling to find time in their daily schedule to do the things they have to do and do the things they want to do. I felt this way not too long ago about finding time to blog. Seemed like I was always writing at the last minute and that was putting undo pressure on myself.  I implemented several of the helpful tips that were mentioned in the comments of that post and am happy to say they have really proven to be helpful. Thanks readers!

I don’t like the feeling of being under pressure to get things done. I’m big into scheduling because I like my activities and responsibilities to seamlessly move from one thing to the next. I think having a schedule helps maximize time even if it does not always flow exactly like I hope. Sometimes life just gets in the way and you have to adjust.

Still, I’m always looking for opportunities to pack more into a day without overloading myself. I’ve come up with some ways to do that around the house and in my life. I’ll admit, some of these may just be psychologically saving me time. (In other words, they don’t save a great deal of time overall but because of how I implement them in the daily schedule, I think they do.)

So here are my tips to save time with tasks and do more with your life:

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Talking Ourselves Into Trouble: “Ain’t Nobody Got Time For That”

Fast PorscheOur culture moves at breakneck speed. News happens fast, food is served fast, and medicines to deal with our bronchitis act fast. Technology may move the fastest of all. It seems as though new devices are released everyday. And just when you think you have caught up, you are already behind.

The pace of life and the urge to keep up creates tension with our finances. We develop faulty thinking and succumb to spending money we don’t have. Poor logic and impulsive decisions often get us into financial trouble that can take years to work through.

Truth is, there are mechanisms we could use to prevent us from getting into financial trouble but we talk ourselves out of using them. Ever had any of these thoughts run through your mind?

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