In the Beginning, When the Going gets Tough, He Does What He Says He'll Do!

I think I somehow missed a week posting, I will try to make up for it this week!

As you all know, if you keep up with my blog, God has done some pretty amazing things in my life over the last year. I have been blessed many times over and God has taken me through some things I never thought I would have the strength or courage to go through. This week I have really been praying about what God wants me to do next. As you saw from my last post finances have been at the forefront as of late. I feel like he is really asking me to make some big changes, ones that will definitely have me stepping out in faith. They are long term and VERY goal oriented. As I was reading my dailies this week for Sunday School, and again in Sunday School and during the service, I feel like God just gave me a promise, that if I will remember, will help me in the future.

6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

                                                                       Philippians 1:6 (KJV)

God has shown us time and again through out the bible that if we will trust in him and follow his path he will be faithful. This morning we were looking at the story of Miriam, Moses's sister. She was a witness of God's power from a young girl. She saw how he protected her brother and insured his safety, how he brought that same brother forth to help free them from slavery in Egypt, and she sang praises to God when he parted the Red Sea for the Israelites to pass and then sent the waves over the Egyptians that followed. She received the manna from the skies when she was hungry in the desert and the water from the rock when there was no water to be found. She knew the power and goodness of God and yet she did not trust him when it counted the most.

Miriam questioned God and her brother, Moses. Things didn't seem to be happening in the the timing she thought was fair and she basically thought that she could do better. Because of her audacity and discontentment she was sent out of the camp for seven days to have a heart to heart with God. (Exodus 11 & 12) And ultimately, because of their lack of faith the Israelites as a whole had to wait 40 YEARS to enter the Promised Land, because even after everything God had done for them, they still didn't have enough faith to believe he would complete his work and give them the land he had promised them.

How often do we become discontented with where God has us, or how God is instructing us? Do you question his will for your life? Worse yet, do you wander from his path and try to accomplish things on your own? Do these attempts ever seem to end up working out the way you plan them? Most likely they don't. As I have learned the best way to accomplish your goals is to make sure they are of the Lord, follow his lead, and DON'T TRY TO MAKE IT ON YOUR OWN! So how do we remember how faithful the Lord has been in the past when the going gets rough? That was one of the questions we discussed in Sunday School, and the pastor answered it brilliantly in his sermon.

3 He blessed the seventh day and set it apart as a special day, because by that day he had completed his creation and stopped working.

                                                        Genesis 2:3 (GNT)

God took a day, just to enjoy his creation, he wasn't tired, it wasn't like he couldn't do more if he wanted to, he was just finished. He has created all that he wanted to create he had COMPLETED his work. God ALWAYS completes his work. There is no promise that God made in the old testament that he did not complete or fulfill. Not one! Sometimes it was a blessing and sometimes it was a curse, but if he said it he did it! He is a God of completion!

Do we set a time apart every week, or DAY, to reflect on what God has completed in our lives? How he has blessed us, or chastised us, or challenged us? I think this is the secret to keeping on track! Reminding ourselves as often as needed of all the ways God has been so faithful to us in the past and present so that when the going gets hard, the answers aren't coming quickly enough, or the trials are lingering, we know that God is a faithful God and what he begins he does finish! It may not be in our timing, but it will be in the perfect time, because God is perfect and he is just and all good things will come to those who wait upon him!

25 The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him,
to the one who seeks him;

                                                        Lamentations 3:25 (NIV)

And so I ask again, where is your hope? Do you stop to acknowledge everything the Lord has done for you regularly? When times get tough what is your reaction? What has God completed in your lives that is a testament to his faithfulness and love for you?

Bruce Lee, Goals, and Finance

A goal is not always meant to be reached; it often serves simply as something to aim at.

Bruce Lee

 

So I have been really thinking about my financial situation lately.  Where I am, where I want to be.  I have been listening to the playbacks of a great series that Lifechurch just completed called Strapped.  I’m not going to repeat the message for you, but if you want a great foundation for how to manage your money in a Godly way, I would highly recommend you check it out. 

What I would like to focus on are some basic money management practices I utilize as a single mom.  I know managing money is a challenge for anyone, but there is something about being a single mom that adds to the responsibility of money management.  In my case I am the sole provider for my son.  I have not started receiving child support, nor do I plan on including that as income if I do.  It is what I will use to begin an account for my son’s education and I may also use it to help build an emergency income account as well, since if something happens and I am unable to work I want to know I will be able to provide for him. 

So here are the things that I have found that are helping me stay on track. I think that most of these will work for anyone, regardless of the amount of your income.

1. MAKE A BUDGET every month and stick to it.  If you make out a budget and can see where all your money is going, you’re less likely to buy those little things here and there that end up making you short on money at the end of the month.  Be realistic and make sure you do give yourself some “fun money”, if you can afford it, for a burger or to buy a cute top, just know how much you have to spend and don’t spend anymore. 

2. PAY THE SAME AMOUNT ON YOUR UTILITIES EVERY MONTH.  I pay $100 for my electricity, $30 for my gas, and $65 for my water.  This works better than averaging your bill if your trying to budget because it is the same regardless of usage.  Right now I think I probably have a credit showing on my gas bill for this month.  This works because if you are paying more when the bill is less, then your building up credit for when you bill goes higher due to the seasons and hopefully you will never have to pay more than that amount!  If you take your bills over the last 6-12 months and average them, then add $20 to that amount you should be pretty safe, or you can call your electric and gas companies and ask them what the payment would be if you changed to average bill pay and then add $20 to the amount they say your bill will fluctuate around.  My electric usage averaged over the last 12 months was around $85.

3. START SAVING!  This is so important.  You should have an emergency savings account that you do not touch unless you have no other choice, with a minimum balance of $500, but ideally $1000. It will be tough saving it up, I know, but it will be a lifesaver when you have a blowout, or your car breaks down, or you or your child gets sick or you get laid off and can’t work for a week. Make sure when your doing your budget you keep in mind, you might have to sacrifice for awhile in another area in order to get this built up, but once you reach a certain amount you can redistribute SOME of that money if you need to.  The main thing is that you put SOMETHING in that account every month regardless of the balance.

4. USE CASH!  It makes your money more tangible and real to you and you will be more reluctant to blow it on just anything.  I must admit I have not done a great job at this, but in general I try not to swipe my debit card for much.  I do have a cool little deal on my checking account that rounds every purchase I make with my debit card up to the next dollar and puts the difference in my savings.  So I am saving while spending, however, I would not recommend it unless you are able to manage it properly.  As a rule the following should always be paid for in cash that has been designated for that expense, (ie. Groceries, fun money, sundries, etc.)  Dave Ramsey suggests the envelope system and I think that is a great way to manage the different areas of cash expenses. 

5. DO NOT BUY WHAT YOU CANNOT AFFORD!  Do NOT use credit cards. Do not get loans for anything other than a mortgage or a USED vehicle loan with a term 4 years or less.  If at all possible get that car paid off ASAP!  If you find you want something you do not have extra cash for then save up for it after you have contributed to your emergency fund and paid all your other monthly expenses.

6. If you have lots of debt then seek advice, get rid of it, you CAN DO IT! I highly recommend looking into Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University classes.  I just signed up to do mine online.  It will cost you a little bit, but it is an investment in your family’s future and it is worth it.  It is the only thing I would say to use your emergency fund money for that isn’t an emergency if you have no other way to pay for it.

I know at this point your thinking, gee that sounds great, good for you, I could never do that.  YES YOU CAN! All you have to do is find your motivation, focus on that and push forward. Sometimes you will feel like your doing the whole one step forward, two steps back, but KEEP PUSHING! It will work and you will be better for it.  My goal is pay off my car and save up enough money in the next 5 years for a down payment on a bigger home that will fit my son and I and then to have that paid off in another 5-7 years so that within 10 - 12 years I will be completely debt free with nothing more than monthly bills to worry about. 

Remember, goals aren’t always meant to be achieved; sometimes we will fly by them and hit something even bigger, sometimes we will come up short, but still WAY ahead of where we would have been otherwise.  The reward is in the doing, not the achieving.  Your reward in learning to manage your finances is that you will have less stress, more security and more time to enjoy your life.

Here are a few things the bible says about managing finances:

Romans 13:8 

Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.

Proverbs 22:7

The rich rule over the poor and the borrower is the slave of the lender.

1 Timothy 6:10

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.

I hope that some or all of this will help all you independent and strong single mommies become even more self-sufficient and stable.  I am excited about discovering all this great advice and guidance and that I have scripture to teach me how to be Godly with my finances. 

 

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.”

                                                            James 1:17