Hope for your financial life and beyond

July Goals Update: This Arduous Affair Is Finally Over!

July 31, 2013 by 29 Comments

Clock midnightCalls after midnight are never good and raise blood pressure levels immediately. Calls between 11 p.m. and midnight still pose some high risk. So when the phone rang at 11:35 Monday night, I sprang from my sleep anticipating the worst.

Oh no…it’s my wife on the other end. She is at church youth camp (with my 12-year old daughter) serving as a chaperone. This can’t be good.

“Hello” I said nervously, dreading what’s coming next. Boating accident? Broken arm from falling out of a bunk bed? Food poisoning? My mind races, preparing for the bad news.

“Everything’s fine,” she says. (Phew. Exhale.) “I wanted to call and say I just received an email from the Georgia Secretary of State saying my CPA license has been approved.”

If it hadn’t been 11:35 I would have screamed for joy!

Someday we will write about this crazy three year journey we have been on. For right now, I’m just thankful to God that goal is behind us. Way to go dear…You Rock!

Here’s my goal update for July:

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Goals Tagged With: , ,

When Life Makes It Easier, Push It!

July 29, 2013 by 31 Comments

Boy Running in natureNews flash…Life is hard!

Not the most groundbreaking news for this Monday post. Honestly, it’s not even news at all. Our lives are filled with so many challenges we don’t even know where to start counting them.

There are instances however, where a window of opportunity opens, allowing the journey to become easier. Sadly, we often are caught up in our own challenges and struggles. So we fail to recognize the moment and it passes us by, useless and wasted. I was reminded of this again on a recent marathon training run.

A runner faces three types of terrain grades while on the course - flat, uphill or downhill. Runners love the flats as it allows us to get into a steady rhythm and pace. We tolerate the uphill portions of our run, slowly grinding them out, laboring step after step. The downhills are dualistic in nature, presenting the runner with two contrasting methods of approach:

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Inspiration, Running 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.

[Read more…]

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

An Unintentional Coke Zero Detox

July 27, 2013 by 14 Comments

Coke ZeroThe other day, after a rugged morning of shopping with three of my kids, I treated them to lunch at Atlanta Bread Company. Peanut butter and jelly kids meals for them; hot pastrami on rye with spicy mustard for me. And of course, drinks and chips all the way around.

At the drink dispensers, there were multiple drinks that I would consider health(ier) options: water, light lemonade, light pomegranate lemonade, regular unsweet tea and unsweet green tea. I went with another option - Coke Zero. At least it doesn’t have sugar in it.

I love Coke Zero! Have been drinking it for years (maybe one or two a week - nothing outlandish). Regular. Vanilla. Cherry flavor. Doesn’t matter. I even got turned on to Sprite Zero in the process.

But something odd happened when I sat down at the table and took the first cool sip.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Travel & Health, Weekly Recaps Tagged With:

Will You Still Love Me If I Blog For Money?

July 26, 2013 by 30 Comments

Dollar Signs out of computerIt’s a tad bit presumptuous of a post title, don’t you think? I’m taking a gigantic leap in assuming my readers love and appreciate the content they get at Luke1428. Furthermore, that they would continue to tune in day after day if there was an inexplicable directional shift in my blog philosophy. Blogging for money? Really? Smells like a sell-out move.

As it stands now, Luke1428 is growing. June and July have seen the best viewership to date in the little over a year the site has been up and running. Why risk ruining a good thing now?

Because I believe this space can be better. Maybe even awesome!

But let me ease any apprehension you might be having right from the start. I could never blog “just for money.” It’s not in my DNA.

Why I’m Here

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Blogging Tagged With: , ,

I’m Saving Thousands in 60 Seconds or Less

July 24, 2013 by 22 Comments

stopwatchPersonal finance bloggers love to help people develop sound money habits that will yield positive results if consistently applied over time. Many of these habits are hard to develop especially when they require great amounts of sacrifice. It took me a long time to realize I had issues with spending and an even greater length of time to bring that habit under control.

But success with finances doesn’t have to be difficult or take years of intense work learning how to budget or invest properly. In fact, there are some simple, everyday activities that take 60 seconds or less that could greatly impact a person’s future financial well-being. These require only minor preparation and even less time to execute.

Here are the four, everyday money-saving activities I’m doing right now that take me only seconds to accomplish:

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Saving, Travel & Health Tagged With: ,

“I’m Rich!” - How to Handle a Lump Sum of Money

July 22, 2013 by 33 Comments

Raining MoneyHow would life change if a large lump sum of money, say a million dollars somehow came your way tomorrow? We’ve all played this game - fantasizing about the toys we could purchase with that much money. Then after about five minutes of daydreaming, we snap back to reality. “That’s not going to happen” we say. “It will take me 40 years of hard work, saving and wise investing to reach that financial milestone.”

Perhaps.

However, every day people’s lives are changed because they receive lump sums of money worth six or seven figures. How could this happen? Well, it’s not one of those get-rich-quick schemes.

Ways to Receive a Lump Sum of Money

A person could receive a financial windfall in these ways:

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Managing Money, Planning Tagged With: , , , ,

Sometimes I Trust in the Wrong Things

July 21, 2013 by 4 Comments

Hidden Nuggets Series #2 - “Some trust in chariots and some in horses; but we will remember the name of the Lord our God.” - Psalm 20:7

HorsesMisplaced trust. I’ve done that before in an effort to help me get by.

Friendships. Money and material possessions. Love. And, of course, my wide array of incredible talents. (OK…it may not be a wide array, but I have a few there.)

I love friendships. I enjoy money and appreciate the material possessions in my care. I love being in love. When my talents are used to accomplish something great, I’m thrilled.

There is a big problem however, with all these and other external things I put my complete trust in.

[Read more…]

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

Should My Daughter Separate Her Toes?

July 20, 2013 by 22 Comments

IMG_1455This past week Miss LukeTeen28 (my eldest daughter) popped the question my wife and I have been anticipating for the past 12 years since the day of her birth. No, she doesn’t want to have a boyfriend. (We’ve told her she can’t date until she’s 30!) Her interest is in a cosmetic surgery to separate two toes that are fused together.

Syndactyly

“Syndactyly” is the medical term for this condition. Hers is a simple fusing of soft tissue between the second and third toes on both feet (the left is more pronounced than the right). The issue appears to be genetic in nature, as I know of one other person in my extended family who has this condition.

She is in no pain or discomfort and the risks are miniscule. The surgery would be completely for cosmetic purposes. (So when she wears her sandals the doofus middle school boys at school aren’t tempted to call her “four toes.”) Maybe the fact that she is almost a teen is figuring into her asking about the procedure now.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Random Fun, Weekly Recaps Tagged With: , ,

Trayvon, Zimmerman and Our Road to Healing

July 19, 2013 by 21 Comments

On Sunday and Monday my Facebook news feed blew up.

Black White HandshakeOf course, everyone had an opinion about the much publicized and politicized court case from Florida that had finally ended late Saturday night in a not guilty verdict for George Zimmerman. Few of the opinions were intelligent enough to warrant reflection on my part. Most just expressed pent up frustration and anger, pointed in blame or cried out for justice. It would not surprise you in the least to know the opinions from my group of friends were basically split along political and racial lines.

I was not alive in 1960s America when the years of racial tension finally exploded and produced the civil rights legislation that changed the face of America and gave an entire subset of American citizens a new reason to dream. I can’t relate to the level of violence that was present in that era. I only know what I see now in 2013 and from my vantage point, it doesn’t appear as though this country is progressing in a more unifying direction. And that’s a shame after 237 years of freedom.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Current Events, Inspiration Tagged With: , , ,

I’m Having a Yak-Attack!

July 17, 2013 by 23 Comments

Heart PulseMy hand is resting gently on the mouse, scrolling and clicking. Without warning, a strange sensation comes over me. My upper body begins to feel a tightening pressure like the whole center of my chest is squeezing inward. The skin on my arm turns clammy, as my hand breaks out in a sweat.

Why can’t I breathe? Where is this anxiety coming from? I’m just working on the computer here.

Ok…settle down…you can do this. Copy code. Paste into widget. Save. Refresh.

Boom! I’m a Yakezie Challenger! Whew…that wasn’t so bad.

My sincere apologies to heart victims everywhere who experienced those symptoms and were faced with a life and death situation. Heart issues have impacted my family on more than one occasion so I certainly don’t employ those symptoms with jest. Only to point out the physiological and emotional tensions I experienced on a minute level as I concluded it was time to push my blogging self once again. Maybe you don’t get nervous about stretching yourself and going out on a limb like this, but I do.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Blogging, Goals Tagged With: , , ,
Next Page»