The Bible is a well-known spiritual guide, but how many of us have looked through its teachings with regard to personal finance? What does it say? Here’s a list of scriptures from the Bible that, if followed, will help you grow your personal wealth.
Keep a Budget
Proverbs 27:23: "Be diligent to know the state of your flocks, and attend to your herds."
When you fail to keep a budget, your income has a way of disappearing. You must be diligent in keeping track of your incomes and expenditures. Plan your expenses with your spouse. Do it as soon as you receive your paycheck. Make sure every dollar is accounted for and that no dollar is spent on an unplanned expenditure. Yes, it takes a lot of effort. Yes, you might fail one time or many times, but you need to keep at it until you master this principle. Anyone who can effectively keep a budget will slowly and surely get wealthy, even if he/she doesn’t have a glamorous, high-income-earning job.
Save Money, Be Prepared
Proverbs 21:20: "In the house of the wise are stores of choice food and oil, but a foolish man devours all he has."
The vast majority of Americans live maxed out, paycheck to paycheck, not able to afford to stop working for a moment. We can’t stop working even for a moment because we have bills and interest accumulating. The above scripture tells us what he already know: such behavior is foolish. Don’t spend every dime you make. If you’re not putting money away, you’re not getting ahead; you’re creating for yourself a very tough situation which will almost inevitably lead to a long life of labor followed by financial ruin when you can no longer work.
Be Conservative with Large Purchases
Proverbs 24:27: “Prepare thy work without, and make it fit for thyself in the field; and afterwards build thine house.”
Many people all over the world have lost their homes and ruined themselves financially because they did not follow this advice. Ask yourself: how safe is my income? Will it decrease during a time of recession? If so, how much? After you’ve asked yourself these questions, only then should you decide to buy a home, and you should make sure that you can sustain your mortgage payment when your income is at its lowest. Don’t be the person who buys a larger house than he/she can afford because you’ll work overtime to increase your income. You’ll slave away for your house until something happens to lower your income, in which case, you’ll lose the house.
Get Out of Debt:
Proverbs 22:7: "The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender."
Romans 13:8 "Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law."
When it comes to staying out of debt, perhaps the best example is ironically a church. The LDS church operates with zero debt, and while so many entities have been devastated in this current recession, the LDS church remains nearly unaffected. Having no debt, it matters not to the church when credit tightens, and the example of LDS church shows why this so important. To be financially free and independent, we must free ourselves from debtor’s obligation. I personally think that becoming debt free should be the central focus of every family seeking to become wealthy. That being said, I would also like to state that I understand that debt is necessary at times in our lives. To buy a home or to get an education are two worthy endeavors that for most will require debt, but those who do get in debt to get a house or to grow their education and training should focus intensively on paying down that debt in the shortest amount of time possible. Debt is bondage. Use it wisely for worthy purposes; otherwise, avoid it. Be debt free and you will be independent of anyone or any market condition; you will truly be free.
1 comment:
Great post! thanks for sharing.
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