Frequently Asked Questions
If you have a question, we suggest before contacting us, you look for the answer in these sections of the website: Weekly Meditations, Quarterly Letters . After this review, send us a brief QUESTION, preferable in point form. Within 7 days we will reply.
Each person's financial affairs is different so these general answers may not fit your circumstance. Always get independent advice that considers your position exactly before implementing any change.
1. How can I stop living paycheck-to-paycheck on my low income?
2. Since God owns everything and He will provide for me, why should I budget?
3. Is filing for bankruptcy an acceptable alternative for a Christ follower?
4. Does tithing apply today?
5. Since God Owns Everything, does He own my debt?
1. How can I stop living paycheck-to-paycheck on my low income?
We are working with three variables: You, your income, and your expenses; at least one or more must change. For a short-term fix, you can try to change income or expenses. But for a long-term fix, first you must accept the principle to live on no more than current income. So, you must look at ways to lower expenses. This starts with deciding to review your attitude toward money.
Your attitude decides your behavior that flows from your source of choices. You may think your income is low, but usually that's relative. The key issue is to accept who you are, where you are, and what you have (Hebrews 13:5, 2 Kings 4:1-7). Sometimes we are so preoccupied trying to change our circumstances, we miss many opportunities God brings to us (2 Kings 6:17). Then again, what we think is essential to life may not be necessary and we may have to forgo it for a while. This is difficult to accept because often it means a temporary lowering of standard of living.
Reflect on these matters about your attitude toward money:
(i) How do you view a credit card? Do you believe it is an income supplement? It's not! Use it only when you have funds to pay the balance in full; otherwise get rid of it.
(ii) Have you reviewed each expense element to determine which items to lower or eliminate to allow you to spend no more than your current income? Lowering expenses usually means changing your lifestyle. Look at these items for opportunities to lower expenses: Eating out, telephone extras, Internet, cable TV, satellite, transport, housing, entertainment, vacation, consumer items.
(iii) Do you believe God owns everything (Psalm 24:1-2) and you are His manager maximizing what He keeps in His Kingdom, and minimizing what you spend?
Only by spending less than you earn, and keeping your level of spending constant when income rises, will you be able to generate savings to allow you to buy items for cash and not on credit. Buying items using your credit card and paying interest on outstanding balances surely will keep you living paycheck-to-paycheck
After reflecting on your attitude, answer these questions:
(a) Do your expenses include credit card debt payments?
(b) Are you spending more than 70% of your expenses on food, clothing, transport, shelter, and taxes?
(c) Are you spending more than 35% of your expenses on housing expenses?
(d) If you got more money now, do you think you will increase monthly spending?
If you answer yes to any of these questions, normally there is scope to lower expenses.
Some folks will suggest you get more income, but while this may be an attractive short-term alternative, it's essential you go through the above procedure and learn to live within present income, otherwise your mind-set will look to borrowing to mainain a standard of living you cannot afford.
If you have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, I assure you from Scripture (Matthew 6:33), Jesus will provide for your needs. But it's essential you understand needs from Jesus' perspective. Jesus calls us to love Him with all our hearts, souls, and minds. This means we should seek to know His will for us in all areas of our lives, and our spending should reflect this. Often, a lack of faith leads us to doubt He will provide, so we confuse our wants and needs, and borrow funds that plunge us deep into debt. If you don't know Jesus, I encourage you to go to Special Invitation From the Shepherd section of this site now.
Many folks do not use a spending plan and get "lost" just as if they tried to travel to an unknown destination without a road map! Use a GPS Money Guide! Start by tracking how, when, why and for what you spend. Decide on a spending decision procedure. Before spending, check your spending plan and follow your spending decision procedure. For major items such as a car or furniture, use the Capital Fund.
Go on a spending fast for at least one month to help you decide between wants and needs. If needed, extend this to three months! During a spending fast you spend only on items legally, morally, and ethically necessary, and on food to maintain life. You would not spend on discretionary items such as movies or eating out. During this time, you should question why you spend every dollar. Top^
2. Since God owns everything and He will provide for me, why should I budget?
God does own everything and He has promised to supply believers' needs. However, read Matthew chapter 6 to see the context of this statement and definition of needs. That said, budgeting merely is a systematic division of time, skills and money needed in a future period. Every organization should do it to get a signal of likely skills or money gaps or opportunities in a future period. Budgeting doesn't provide for needs. It merely signals today what might exist if conditions remain as we expect. Jesus tells us to budget in Luke 14:28 that deals with the cost of discipleship. The average Canadian household will spend almost $ 1 million over 15 years, yet it does not have a spending plan. See GPS Money Guide comments.
There is a major difference between budgeting under God's direction and budgeting in your own strength. In the second, you will worry because you will be continually guessing about availability of time, talent, and money in the future! Further, when you decide to set goals, plans, and budgets on your own, later you will run to Jesus to get you out of difficulties. So, why not start by listening, obeying, and following Jesus: Listen for His goals and plans and ask Him to help you work out the detailed budget. He will. When you do this, you won't have to deal with the effects of your own poor decisions.
When we start to carry out the budget, we must listen to God and do what He says. He knows the future and may tell us to act differently than what we expected: We must follow Him, not the budget! Top^
3. Is filing for bankruptcy an option for a follower of Christ?
Psalm 37:21 (NIV) states, "the wicked borrow and do not repay, but the righteous give generously." So, if you borrow you must repay. Usually folks get into deep debt because of poor choices motivated by greed, pride, or other self-centered decision, never by responding to Jesus' call.
The best way to learn from past blunders and prevent a recurrence is to take responsibility for them, accept where we are, and then depend on Jesus to lead us through, as He promised. Although we must bear the effects of our poor choices, Jesus will be with His children always, and guide us through our difficulties (Psalm 23). But we need to be patient and be open to adjusting our lives as we learn from Him.
It's important we shun quick fix offers because they won't last. Only through a personal relationship with Jesus will we find lasting solutions (John 3:1-21). Top^
4. Does tithing apply today?
I'm often asked, "Should I tithe out of my gross, or from the net?" My answer, Neither; when you tithe you give God 10% (a tithe is one tenth) then spend 90% on you, as you decide. Yet 100% is His! Let's look briefly at tithing.
The Levites were the only Tribe of Israel God didn't give a specific geographical area in the Promised Land. God assigned towns and pasture lands from other tribes' allotments that they were not to sell. As well, God assigned them alone to work in the Tabernacle. To provide for them, including the priests among them, the poor, widows, and orphans, and to teach Israel to celebrate, commune with and revere Him, God introduced three tithes as follows:
The Levitical Tithe (10% - Numbers 18:21-32); the Festive Tithe (10% - Deuteronomy 14:22-27), and the Poor Tithe (10% every 3 years or 3.3% each year - Deuteronomy 14:28-29). The first two were agricultural produce and livestock, and the last was agricultural produce only.
Eleven tribes of Israel were to pay these three tithes totaling 23.3%, while the Levites tithed from their tithe. Tithing under the Mosaic Law was specific to Israel during a particular period and dealt with Israel's social and religious arrangements at the time; it does not apply under the New Covenant. Jesus' death and resurrection fulfilled the tithing law, removing need for animal sacrifices to remove sin. Jesus replaced the temporary Aaronic office of High Priest (Hebrews 7 & 8)with a permanent priesthood (Hebrews 7:24; Jesus is the High Priest according to the Order of Melchizedek (Hebrews 5:4-6). As well, each believer is a priest (1 Peter 2:5-9).
Our heart condition is the central concern. Do we accept God's sovereignty over all possessions we use? Are we prepared to hold them loosely and make all available to Him?
Under the New Covenant, giving to God flows from each person's relationship with Christ. We see examples of this practice in the early church in Acts 2:41-47 and Acts 4:35 to Acts 5:24, and in 2 Corinthians 8 & 9. I call this grace giving, keeping, because the giver accepts God's ownership of everything, and seeks His permission before spending. Keeping aims to maximize funds Jesus keeps for His work and minimize amounts we use. We achieve it by:
(a) Surrendering every area of our lives to Jesus (Giving us first like the Macedonians - 2 Corinthians 8: 1-7)
(b) Applying His ownership and our stewardship to our possessions
(c) Praying continually to seek Jesus' allocation of funds
(d) Obeying His directions
Jesus' comments to the Rich Young Ruler in Matthew 19:15-30 to give everything away to follow Him, describe keeping perfectly; so too does His comments about the widow's gift in Mark 21:41-44. We can summarize the essence of Jesus' message as follows:
Loosen your grip on possessions, open your palms, and present everything to Jesus, so He decides what He should keep in His Kingdom, and what you should use.
To summarize:
(1) Tithing represents the Old Covenant that Jesus' death and resurrection fulfilled
(2) Tithing implies we control a portion of His funds on our own
(3) The tithing mind-set precludes presenting 100% of extra funds to God
(4) Early believers didn't tithe
(5) The Church introduced tithing around 600 AD
(6) Keeping shows God owns all we have
(7) Keeping presents all God allows us to have to him cheerfully, so He decides how much He should keep
How do you answer these questions:
(1) Is Jesus Lord of all the finances He has allowed you to use, or just a portion?
(2) How would you allocate $1000 you received unexpectedly today?
(3) If you tithe, which of the tithes do you apply? Why? What would you do with the balance of God's funds?
Become like the Bereans (Acts 17:11), check the Bible for God's truth about this and all teachings.
I define tithing in these days as a guilt relieving way to spend God's 90% without His approval . It results largely from ignorance; but fits with me-centered North American Christianity.
For more, read this Biblical Stewardship Weekly Meditation.
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5. Since God Owns Everything, does He own my debt?
God the Creator of the universe owns everything. He never needs to borrow! His children need to depend on Him to supply their needs. This document explains.
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