This Christianity thing can be pretty cool until the topic of giving your tithe pops up. All types of messages will be passed around on the topic of tithing. The favorite verse quoted in the Bible on tithing is found in Malachi 3:8 (KJV):

Are you robbing God?

Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings.

You’ll hear those who claim that tithing is for the Old Testament era only and does not apply today. You’ll here those who say tithe off of your gross pay and others will say tithe off of your net pay. Then you’ll look in the New Testament and find nothing really about tithing. It is so confusing really. You are struggling as it is and now you are told by your pastor to give 10 percent? What are you to do? What you should do is give something—even if it is only 1 percent. Just get in the habit of giving a portion back to God what he has given you.

Give 1% in Tithes

Okay, some will probably like me for what I am saying (give 1 percent) and others won’t be too happy at the advice I am giving Christians because some of them could be their church members. Let me explain myself.

Some of us when we become Christians have some baggage we bring with us before becoming believers. By baggage I mean all the consequences of poor decisions. Oftentimes those consequences were the result of bad financial decisions. To put it bluntly, we ran up debt. We ran up debt so high that giving 10 percent of even our take home pay is impossible however giving 1 percent will at least get you in the habit of giving.

Think about the Pastor

Also consider this. For those Christians who are part of a church. Think about your pastor. This person has a family to take care of and a church to operate. The only way this happens is through regular donations from the membership. Your pastor does not have the time hold down a full-time secular career and why should he or she? Their career is being a pastor. When you give what you can give—even if only 1 percent—you make it easier for the financial people of your church to at least plan a budget. A budget is critical to the financial health of the church.

Consider this verse found in 2 Corinthians 8:12 (KJV):

For if there be first a willing mind, it is accepted according to that a man hath, and not according to that he hath not.

I take that verse to mean that you give from according to what you have to give. And when you give, give with the right heart. God is pleased with all that you give with the right heart.

If you are a believer and do not have a daily personal time when you study God’s word, pray, and meditate on what you read then you are robbing yourself of a close relationship with God.

Consider this verse in 2 Timothy 2:15 (KJV)

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

You need to get to know your Bible because this is how God shares truths with you. But too often, there are excuses from Christians as to why they cannot have Bible devotions. And you should not have devotions just to “punch a ticket” either. But let’s look at some of the barriers to having regular personal devotions and a solution to each.

Barrier 1: I don’t have enough time.

This is a very valid reason for not having devotions and one we have to fight all the time. We don’t have enough time in our society today. I always recommend to the person without a lot of time to just pick one verse, read it, and meditate on it as you commute to work.

Barrier 2: The Bible can be boring sometimes.

If you are reading the genealogies or something equivalent to that you be certain it is boring. Reading the Bible completely is not always the best way to get the Christian involved in devotions. Use a daily devotional guide (there are free ones on the internet) with a commentary that has personal application. That way you can stay interested and engaged.

Barrier 3: I don’t understand the Bible.

You’ll hear people tell you to only use this version of the Bible or that version of the Bible. Use the version you understand. I like to use the King James Version only because of preference and nothing more. But if I need clarification on something I don’t hesitate to go to the NIV or some other translation where the wording is more contemporary.

Barrier 4: I don’t like to carry my Bible around or I haven’t bought a Bible yet.

The internet has great free online Bible sites where you can read the Bible anywhere you have a computer. Plus, many of these sites have multiple translations (like KJV and NIV) where you can have one centralized Bible study location.

The most important thing you can do is read a verse every day. And if you miss a day, don’t worry about it. Pick it up the next day.

Many business owners and entrepreneurs, like you, find that their business revolves around them and that it just would not be the same without them at the helm. True. As a start up business it is normally the owner of the business that does all the sales, marketing, project work, administration, finance and so on. The light soon comes on upstairs when they realize that they can’t do everything on their own and they need to employ staff or outsource to do the many jobs needed. After all if you were good at making widgets before you started your business and now focus on marketing or human resources more than making widgets – is this right? You went in to business because you were good at making widgets, and widgets you should make!

The only real way to succeed in business is to treat the business as if it is an entity in its own right – let it become a business that you are serving in rather than a business all about you! As a Christian I firmly believe in the Bible as the true Word of God and feel that acting in this way, giving the business over to God has led to our success in Creative Rush “Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.” Prov 16:3 (NIV).

In doing this, handing the business over to the Lord, then not telling anyone – are we are hiding the answer from the world? If Christ can beat sin and death – a recession, credit crunch or downturn is relative small fry!

Keeping our life as Christians hidden from our business life it just not cricket! We should be seeking to build our business on biblical foundations just as we do for the rest our lives. Then in turn should we not live this out in the public domain, showing others how and why we do what we do?

Should we not display the fact that we have built our business, and continue to run our business, on the Word of God and act in many circumstances with faith more than human action or decision first?

In the fast-paced modern-world of business, it is especially important to realize that God’s Word should be, and remain, the cornerstone of your personal life and that of business. God’s Word gives all the insight into how we should run our businesses and with that comes wisdom. (Prov. 2:6).

Christians in business – ensure your life values and business values are entwined with each other and the practices of both mirror these values. Hand your business over today in your prayers and see that the ultimate provider and creator is near at hand.

We found this great technology that automatically lookups a scrpture for you once you scroll over it.

For example, Psalms 37:23.

The technology is called RefTagger, http://www.logos.com/reftagger

I like it, how about you?

Today is the day you decide to pay off your credit card debt. Or maybe you make your mind up that your passion or hobby could prove to be profitable if you formed a business around it. Perhaps you have an interest in leading a healthier lifestyle. Whatever your aspiration, it is important to set a goal and have a plan of action that accompanies it. The bible says in Proverbs 21:5 (NIV) the plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty.

How many times have you heard that “you have to do something differently in order to get something differently”? I’ve heard it too many times to count, but the relevant point here is that goal setting helps us identify what things we need to do differently in order to make our goals a reality.

So if you have to do something differently (i.e. something unfamiliar), how is it that the title of this article is “You’ve done this before! Kind of…”? Consider the following scenarios:

• Have you moved to a city or town where you knew absolutely no one?
• Did you ever take a job without knowing or being proficient in all of the tasks required of you?

If you can recollect any such memory then you, my friend, have done what is necessary to set and achieve a goal. If you moved to a new city, you started chatting with your colleagues, or researching what your new locale had to offer and you stepped out and explored. If you took on a new job with responsibilities you were not completely familiar with, you increased your exposure to resources (ex. Colleagues, articles, Google) that made you comfortable with executing these tasks. My point is that you would not have otherwise done these things, but since becoming acclimated to your new environment or keeping that new job was important, you did a few things differently. You went out of your way and in the end, you made it happen.

So what if you don’t know where to start? Don’t fret. Open your mouth and start asking some questions. You’d be surprised at how many people would be willing to help you achieve your goal (and hold you accountable to it). Importantly, these folks can share their experiences of achieving similar goals. Also, do some research; there is no shortage of publications touting ways to eliminate debt, start a business, be healthy, or do whatever it is that you want to do. Sort through these ideas, and be careful not to “analyze until you’re paralyzed.” Achieving your goal ultimately requires action.

As a die-hard fan of Golden Girls, I can’t help but recall a moment when Dorothy says to Rose “If you take a chance in life, sometimes good things happen, and sometimes bad things happen. But if you don’t take a chance, nothing happens.” Take a chance at succeeding. Set a goal, be realistic about how you will achieve it, and act!

As Christians we walk be faith and not be sight, so at times we’ll have to take that chance in trust in the lord. Peter in the disciples were on the boat crossing the Sea of Galilee and saw Jesus approaching them walking on water. Though they were afraid, Jesus told them to be of good cheer, but Peter wasn’t happy of just that. He took a chance and told Jesus if it is you let me come to you via the ocean. Jesus, but as always our faith falters just as Peter’s did because he took his eyes off of Jesus but as soon as he cried out to Him, He saves us from our troubles. Just keep that in mind when you take that chance in life, keep your eyes on Him and he’ll lead you to victory.

Suggested Reading:

Goals! How to Get Everything You Want–Faster Than You Ever Thought Possible

Brian Tracy. Berrett-Koehler Publishers 2004, Paperback, 291 pages, $7.30

• BREATHE. Rest assured that you can beat your budget! So many people let their money woes get the best of them, and it negatively affects their decision making. Yet, there are people who remain optimistic (and realistic) and stick to their goals of paying off debt/cutting expenses/increasing income and succeed! You can be that person, too. Just be very clear about what your goals are, remind yourself of these goals every single day, and work towards achieving those goals every single day. It’s no walk in the park, but we have to do something differently to get something differently, and if you’re committed to improving your financial situation, then you will make the difficult decisions necessary to achieving such.

What are your main money concerns?

1. Is it debt?

i. Who do you owe and how much to each?
ii. What types of debts do you have? (Ex. installment, revolving, medical, utility, other)?
iii. Which debts are most important (ex: most expensive/highest finance charges, closest to your limit (if a revolving debt), due date)
iv. What are the minimum payments for each debt?

1. Is it unexpected expenses?

i. What types of expenses are these? (ex: car repairs, medical, job related)
ii. How often have these “unexpected” expenses occurred in the past three, six, and nine months? Perhaps it’s time to look at factoring this expense into your budget or making an investment to eliminate maintenance costs (ex: newer car, surgery to keep away from patchwork fixes, etc.)

• Two ways to “find” this additional money is to increase your income (ex: overtime, part-time job, bartering, yard sale/consignment shop etc.) and cutting back on your expenses (ex: eliminate cable or cut back to basic, don’t pay for what you don’t use, use coupons, shop on sale only, etc.)

• Track your expenses for at least a month (i.e. write down where every single penny goes). This will give you a bird’s eye view of where your money is going and you’ll be better equipped to make decisions on cutting expenses. For example, if you notice you spend $400 a month on eating out & groceries, you can make decisions to cut back by shopping at food closets, Farmer’s Market, coupons, sale only items, etc. The savings that you reap should go towards your financial goals. Categorizing your expenses is also very helpful (ex: transportation = gas, oil changes, auto insurance, car washes; food= groceries, eating out; bills= rent/mortgage, utilities, phone, cable/Internet; savings= emergency fund, vacation money; etc.)

• SAVE. SAVE. SAVE. Your money is cheaper than anyone else’s. In case of emergency, or you spot something that you want but isn’t accounted for in your monthly budget, having a little money on the side will allow you to weather the unexpected and/or purchase what you want. Financial planners recommend that we have at least three to six months of our living expenses set aside. A more realistic and immediate goal, however, may be several hundred dollars. To ensure your success with saving, automate it (payroll deposit or automatic transfers after you get paid; you can’t spend what you don’t see).

• If you consider increasing your income, think about the additional costs of doing so. For example, if you work overtime or get a part-time job, and it requires you to drive a lot (gas/tolls) or increase your child care expenses, would the income you generate exceed the expenses of earning that income? If not, think about other alternatives; if so, go get that money!

• Stop using credit. If that means cutting up or placing your credit cards in the freezer, do it. The progress you would make paying down your debt would be defeated by the additional purchases you make. So please, stop using credit.
• Start today: procrastination is a dream killer. Even if you start saving five bucks a week, it’s something! 1 Corinthians 16:2 (NIV) says on the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made.

A little something extra…

I absolutely LOVE www.bankrate.com. They offer great insight on debt management, budgeting, saving, and so on. Check it out!

You might also want to pull your credit report and see if all of the information being reported about you is accurate. Misinformation on reports affects tons of people’s ability to get credit and maintain good credit scores. Visit www.annualcreditreport.com to get a free copy from all three of the credit reporting bureaus.

Lastly, Proverbs 27:12 (NIV) The prudent see dangers and take refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it. Simply stating that those who are committed to a budget refusing to take on unnecessary debt are wise, but those who go out and buy, buy, buy knowing that can’t afford are setting themselves up for major financial and emotional suffering.