10 Keys to Witnessing with our Finances

There has been no other time like this economically; not just in the United States, but around the world people are seeing their financial picture suffer from cut backs, increased costs, and decreased value of their assets. Christians have always had opportunity to witness to the unsaved but today we have a time unlike what we have known in the past.


You may have incurred debt or have bills that are greater than you are comfortable with, but today you can make a change. People all around you are looking to see how you will handle your own struggles. Your choices today may even lead someone to a life of faith. How Christians handle their hardships is the greatest witness we have to an unbelieving world.


Here are some ideas based on scripture for how we can shine as bright witnesses to the world:

1. Seek God First: our priorities get out of alignment with God's when we don't take the time to read the Bible regularly. We read not as a literary exercise, but to glean God's wisdom and encouragement to persevere through hard times. Bible study and prayer allow us to experience fellowship with the Lord and helps to correct the influences of the world we receive each day.

2. Be a generous giver. Christians should be known for their generosity. We have received eternal life how can we not share with others. By giving to the Lord we demonstrate He has first priority in our lives. I encourage people to give to the Lord a portion even if you are in financial hard times. The Lord knows your situation and giving is an outward indicator of your trust in him to provide through your difficulties. Consider ways you can share with others your time and talents. Everyone can reach out to someone else. While you give to someone else, be sure to tell them of your faith so that others can come to know Jesus Christ as their Savior; that is a gift that will bring glory to God!


3. Live within your means. God owns everything and he has chosen to fund your level of provision for a purpose. He has promised to supply your needs, but not necessarily your wants. Critically look at your standard of living to see if there are changes that you can make that will reduce the cost of living for you and your family. Have a family meeting and talk together about what your hope to accomplish with your lifestyle and what choices will allow your life to speak more boldly of your faith in Jesus Christ and your trust for God's provision in your life.


4. Look for other income opportunities: Many families have cut back as much as they can and still struggle to make ends meet. Get creative about ways that you can increase your monthly income. This is a great opportunity to do a family entrepreneurial venture to earn money and teach your children the value of work.

5. Consider selling items to generate cash. Think about it; all that stuff will end up in a dump one day anyway. Capitalize on its value now and transform the cash into something that will have a greater impact on your financial future (like paying off debt and establishing savings). Besides our treasures aren't here anyway.

6. Pay more than the minimum on debt. Every little bit helps. Compound interest is a phenomenon that works against families who owe, so the way you defeat the enemy of compound interest is to take away the force used against you by paying more than the minimum. As Christians, our responsibility is to be people of our word, so we should never not pay our debts; our testimony depends on it.

7. Establish a habit of saving. The Bible encourages us to consider the costs and prepare before beginning a project. We witness to the world through savings because we show that we are willing to wait for God's timing to move on purchases and that we don't presume upon God's future blessing by getting ahead of him through the use of debt.

I believe you need three kinds of savings.

A. Irregular expenses: those things that don't come due each month like: insurance, taxes, school clothes, Christmas, gifts etc.

B. Emergency fund: everyone has emergencies from time to time. The more you can save in advance the less painful they will be when they happen. Especially in times like these you need savings of at least six month's salary to sustain you if you should lose your job. Begin with a goal of $1,000 in savings and build on it over time. You can get that by selling items or living on austerity for a couple of months to get some extra cash.

C. You need long term savings for things like school expenses and retirement. You can't depend on other pools to carry you through. Long term savings is a great way to begin investing for your future. I recommend participating in your employer retirement if it is available. If it isn't begin an IRA of your own and just start putting some money aside. Many people live nearly as long in retirement as they did in the workforce, so the reserve will need to sustain you through those years. The earlier you begin the better - like today. No matter how old you are, you should begin to prepare for your long term future.

8. Train your children: Money management should be a family affair. Find creative ways to bring the children into the process. They will learn from the experiences they gain at home so that they will be wise stewards in the future. The investment in training your child is more important to their future success than any degree could ever be. By training them to look to God for their provision and be wise with the provision they have received they will be well equipped to avoid the trappings of materialism and be free to serve God where ever he leads.

9. Avoid debt. Paul said in Philippians, that he had learned to be content in whatever circumstance he was in. It didn't come natural. Our inclination is to want things quickly and let's be honest, we hate to wait. The more we can train ourselves to be content with what we have and thankful for God's provision, the less inclined we will be to lust after more stuff that we can't afford right now. If you had to use debt to get it; you couldn't afford it right now.

10. Right size where needed: Companies do it all the time. We can too. If your total debt payments are greater than 10% of your income, now is the time to right size. If your housing expenses are greater than 35% of your income, you know the financial pressure it is placing on everyone in your home.

Find ways to get credit balances down so that you don't become controlled by historical purchases. We need to be people who put the past behind us and live abundantly today and in hope of our eternal future. We can't do that if we are dragging around the evidences of our past. When I confess my sins, my Lord is faithful to forgive my sins and I put them behind me. We need to do the same with our debts; make them a thing of the past.

Make the hard choices: Sometimes making a new financial start means admitting that we can't afford what we have and moving to something we can afford. Is your car too expensive? Find ways to sell that car and get into a less expensive but reliable vehicle to get you where you need to go. Is the home you are in consuming too much of your income? Moving to a smaller or more affordable place is an option. Begin planning and praying now that the Lord will reveal the buyer and the affordable alternative.

10. Be a cheap date: Fun does not have to be expensive. We all need entertainment from time to time. It is part of our social nature to want to share fun activities together. God made us that way. Fun doesn't have to be expensive. You can find ways to make fun almost anywhere. Make every day an adventure. Get the kids involved in making up games that everyone can play together. Remember back to days when you had less perhaps. What did you do for fun then? It didn't have to be costly; it just needed to include the people you love.