Tag: Mammon And God: Money And Spirituality

‘Give freely and become more wealthy; be stingy and lose everything. The generous will prosper; those who refresh others will themselves be refreshed.’ Proverbs 11:24-25(NLT)

‘“The master was full of praise. ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant. You have been faithful in handling this small amount, so now I will give you many more responsibilities. Let’s celebrate together!’’ Matthew 25:21(NLT)

‘Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.”’ Luke 6:38(NLT)

Devotional Content:

In today’s video, Dr. Kim asks Mike and Lisa this question: “What do you celebrate when it comes to stewardship?”

This has been a pretty tough reading plan. I hope you have been challenged. I pray it will help put you in a positive direction with your finances and keep you from being another “our finances ruined our marriage” couple. Dealing with money God’s way is countercultural. It’s just like a lot of things God says are best for us. We have a choice:  God’s way or the world’s way. One is a temporary view of money and the other is eternal. Which will you choose?

The joy of choosing God’s way comes in many forms. Mike and Lisa talk of the fun of paying off a car. There is excitement in finally becoming debt free. Yet, to me, the best of all these comes when through our faithfulness as managers of God’s money, we have extra and can use it to help someone in need. That is truly cause for celebration. It’s like it all finally makes sense. This is God’s plan. This is merging money and God. It is becoming one together with money. It is a “key to lasting love.”

Today’s Challenge: 

As you look back on this reading plan, what has changed about you, your marriage, and money? Are you taking steps toward oneness? Have you mapped out a plan together?

Going Deeper:

Begin thinking about ways to help others when you have extra. Then pray for God to lead you into these opportunities!

from Mammon And God: Money And Spirituality by Dr. Kim Kimberling

‘Wealth from get-rich-quick schemes quickly disappears; wealth from hard work grows over time.’ Proverbs 13:11(NLT)

‘Devote yourselves to prayer with an alert mind and a thankful heart. ‘ Colossians 4:2(NLT)

‘For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.
Paul’s Final Instructions
But you, Timothy, are a man of God; so run from all these evil things. Pursue righteousness and a godly life, along with faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. Fight the good fight for the true faith. Hold tightly to the eternal life to which God has called you, which you have declared so well before many witnesses. ‘ 1 Timothy 6:10-12(NLT)

Devotional Content: 

In today’s video, Dr. Kim asks Mike and Lisa this question, “What is step one in overcoming division with money?”

Separation in any area of marriage is not good. You cannot work on your sex life if you consistently sleep in separate bedrooms. You cannot grow together spiritually without taking time to connect spiritually. The same is true with money. I think separation with money sets you up for problems. It goes against the principle we talked about earlier in this plan of managing the money together.  

Do you have to both operate out of the same bank account? I guess not, but why would you not? Nancy and I have always had one bank account for the two of us. We both have access to the money. We both know what is in the account and what is coming out. I know some of you who know our story are thinking, “You guys married young and never really established your own accounts with your own money.” You are right.  Maybe it was easier for us to do that. That does not change the fact that it has worked well for us, and in all of these years of marriage, we never considered doing it differently.

I believe that God wants married couples to become one in every area of life, and that includes our money. I have counseled a lot of couples where money is a problem. If they are separated in their money, that is usually a big part of the problem. That does not mean that a couple with one bank account will not have money problems, but it does mean that they are in it together.  

For some of you this is a foreign subject. You may have been hurt financially in a previous relationship. There may be trust issues centered on money in your current marriage. I get that. I would just ask that you begin praying about being one in your money and see where God leads you. It may take time – a lot of baby steps, Christian counseling, and consultation with a financial planner – but I promise you, it will all be worth it!

Today’s Challenge: 

If you are divided in any way with your finances, begin seeking God’s wisdom together and follow His lead. Take time to understand each other’s past with handling money.

Going Deeper:

Set aside time to begin talking about long term financial goals for your marriage. Once you have them in place, make a plan for reaching them.

from Mammon And God: Money And Spirituality by Dr. Kim Kimberling

‘Commit your actions to the Lord , and your plans will succeed.’ Proverbs 16:3(NLT)

‘“But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first calculating the cost to see if there is enough money to finish it? ‘ Luke 14:28(NLT)

‘So look at Apollos and me as mere servants of Christ who have been put in charge of explaining God’s mysteries. Now, a person who is put in charge as a manager must be faithful. ‘ 1 Corinthians 4:1-2(NLT)

Devotional Content: 

In today’s video, Dr. Kim asks Mike and Lisa this question, “What does it look like for the two of you to work together when it comes to money?”

Think about how great your marriage would be if you were together on the same page with every area of your marriage. For most of us that may never happen. We all have our differences. Embracing and working through our differences is a big part of growing a marriage, but what if we were on the same page with money? 

To me this is the natural progression as you have the same money mindset and you see money as a gift from God. Now you can decide how you two can work together when it comes to money. I am a long, long way from being a financial genius. I have made a ton of mistakes. I still make them. What I have learned is that Nancy and I do money a lot better when we have a map. That map is our budget. It helps us know what we have and where we are spending it. It makes financial adjustments easier. We know if at the end of the month we need more or we have more. Whichever way it goes, we have the information we need to make decisions and to go to God in prayer. We can decide where to cut expenses or how to save or spend the extra we have.

Praying about our finances as a couple is like everything else we pray about. It unites us and God shows up. We don’t fight about money because we have a plan and that plan unites us. What can the two of you do to begin to work together with your money?

Today’s Challenge: 

Agree to start a budget together. We will help. Just click here to receive our Awesome Marriage budget form that you can print and fill out together.  

Going Deeper:

Since money is often a delicate subject, pray together for God to grow you in this area every day and as you begin to do money His way.

from Mammon And God: Money And Spirituality by Dr. Kim Kimberling

‘“But if there are any poor Israelites in your towns when you arrive in the land the Lord your God is giving you, do not be hard-hearted or tightfisted toward them. Instead, be generous and lend them whatever they need. ‘ Deuteronomy 15:7-8(NLT)

‘“O my people, listen as I speak. Here are my charges against you, O Israel: I am God, your God! I have no complaint about your sacrifices or the burnt offerings you constantly offer. But I do not need the bulls from your barns or the goats from your pens. For all the animals of the forest are mine, and I own the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird on the mountains, and all the animals of the field are mine.’ Psalms 50:7-11(NLT)

‘Blessed are those who are generous, because they feed the poor.’ Proverbs 22:9(NLT)

‘God has given each of you a gift from his great variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. ‘ 1 Peter 4:10(NLT)

Devotional Content: 

In today’s video, Dr. Kim asks Mike and Lisa this question: “How is our money connected to our spirituality?” 

Maybe you never put the words “money” and “spirituality” together. We tend to think of money as “of the world” but we relate spirituality to God and our relationship with Him. What happens when we put them together? I think we are taking the first step towards viewing money as God wants us to view it.  

If everything is God’s, so is money. So is our money. That’s where things get tough. We want to keep our money out of our relationship with God. After all, we earned it and we should be able to do what we want with it. Right? That seems to be the prevailing thought pattern concerning money. The problem with that is two-fold. First, it does not go along with what the Bible says about money. Second, most of us do a pretty poor job with money.  

What if we looked at money through God’s eyes? What if we said it is all His? He is the owner and we are the managers. That means that we let God influence how we manage the money. Mike and Lisa spoke of using money as a tool to grow God’s Kingdom, and making money decisions with that focus. Does that mean we cannot live in a nice house or have a nice car? No. What it does mean is that the house or the car can never be more important in our lives than God. When they are, the whole “God is the owner thing” gets turned upside down. This is what I do know from experience. We have done money both ways. Doing it our way has never worked for us. Doing it God’s way works all the time.

Today’s Challenge: 

Discuss together what it would mean for each of you and your marriage to take up the “God is the owner and you are the managers” plan for your money

Going Deeper: Pray for God’s wisdom with money. Ask Him how you can best serve Him and others as the managers of His money.

from Mammon And God: Money And Spirituality by Dr. Kim Kimberling

‘Remember the Lord your God. He is the one who gives you power to be successful, in order to fulfill the covenant he confirmed to your ancestors with an oath.’ Deuteronomy 8:18(NLT)

‘Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need.’ Matthew 6:33(NLT)

‘John replied, “No one can receive anything unless God gives it from heaven. ‘ John 3:2(NLT)

Devotional Content: 

In today’s video, Dr. Kim asks Mike and Lisa this question: “How do you view money as a couple?” 

When I do premarital counseling with a couple, money is always a topic of conversation because I bring it up. In general most of us fall into one of two categories: spender or saver. How a couple matches up determines the course of the conversation. Just because they are both savers does not give them a pass. They may agree about money in principle, but how does that play out day to day? Two spenders could be in a mountain of debt in just a few months. A couple consisting of a spender and a saver can certainly learn the value of balancing each other but it may be a battle to get there.  

Mike and Lisa refer to money as a “gift from God,” and it is! But God knew we were going to have trouble with money. It is the most mentioned topic in the Bible – over 2,000 verses. There are more verses on money than prayer, faith, marriage, sex or salvation. God gives us the answers. We just have to follow them.

What is your money mindset? What is your spouse’s? In every poll I have ever seen, money is always listed as one of the top three problems in marriage. It can literally make or break a marriage. So whether you are savers, spenders, or one of each, being on the same page with money is essential.

Today’s Challenge:

It is time to have a money conversation. Use these three questions to get the conversation going:

1. What is your money mindset as a couple?
2. As a couple, how do you rate yourselves in the way you handle money?
3. What is your next step after this discussion? (Creating a budget or talking  to a financial planner are a couple of suggestions.)  

Going Deeper: 

Together do a Bible search on the word “money.” What is God saying to you on this topic?

from Mammon And God: Money And Spirituality by Dr. Kim Kimberling