My pastor made a pretty profound statement today: the same boiling water that softens a carrot, hardens an egg. So are you a carrot? Or an egg? Many of us have been put into some boiling water lately financially. We’ve watched gas prices soar and the cost of groceries skyrocket. Home values have dropped and the economy has entered rough water. Think about Paul. He writes in Ephesians 3:13, ask you, therefore, not to be discouraged because of my sufferings for you, which are your glory. Why did Paul have such a great attitude about his suffering? He didn’t blame those that persecuted him. Perhaps those of us going through financial struggles can learn something from Paul’s attitude. How did he get that perspective?

1. Because he saw first hand the unshakable faith of other believers. That’s why it’s important for us to spend time with other believers and read biographies of other believers who have overcome struggles.

2. Because he knew right from the start that the Christian life wasn’t going to be easy. God never promises an easy life, but He promises He will never leave us.

3. Because he believed in the total sovereignty of God in his life. He knew that nothing that happened to him was outside of God’s plan.

How about you? Are you letting boiling water soften you? Or harden you. Are you a carrot or an egg?

I came across an article that asks interesting questions about Christians facing economic challenges. Do Christians find themselves in the same despair as the rest of the world? Or can we use our faith to gain strength during this time of financial struggle? Katrina Howe wrote “The Credit Crunch” for UK-based Lifetimes Magazine. Even though the magazine caters to residents in Ireland and England, the concerns are much the same as the US when it comes to the economy.

Katrina writes that by knowing that ultimately God’s plan for our lives is unchanging, we can view the financial crisis in a new way. We can actually look at this economic struggle as a positive obstacle because it’s a challenge that pushes us to grow in our faith. It’s a time when we can focus on God’s promise to take care of us. In Joshua 23 of The Message, Joshua describes victory in God:

God has driven out superpower nations before you. And up to now, no one has been able to stand up to you. Think of it - one of you, single-handedly, putting a thousand on the run! Because God is God, your God. Because He fights for you, just as He promised you.

This verse illustrates the power that is within every believer to rise above any difficult circumstance and come out of it with victory. God’s unchanging character proves that if we immerse ourselves in the Word and practice Godly principles, we will feel secure and safe regardless of what’s going on in the world around us. Isn’t that the message of Psalm 1:1-3?:

Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of sinners or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.

There was a recent news story about Christians that were allowing homes to go into foreclosure rather than cut out the tithe to make the budget balance. The idea is that it is more important to give to God than it is to pay others what is owed them.

The tithe was set up in the Old Testament as a means of supporting the Levites (who did not work outside of the temple). When Christ came he fulfilled all of the laws. That meant that all the Christians were not obligates to follow the hundreds of rules, regulations and laws set up to guide the Jewish people - the Law was not to live inside each Christian.

Practicing the tithe is a way of training a person to freely give from what God has provided. Ideally the entire Christian world should be living off the 10% and giving the 90%, but I digress. It is important to support the Church and its missions, but a Christian that defaults on his finances will do more harm to the cause than the tithe could ever make up for.

Romans 13:7 is a reminder to ‘Give everyone what you owe him’

Now it is more important than ever for the Christian community to follow through on promises - whether it is a promise to pay a debt or just a promise to help with a school event. Why should the world trust someone who has proven to be untrustworthy?

There is a huge divide between those Christians that follow ‘prosperity teaching’ and those that don’t. There are very few people around that haven’t heard one side tearing down the other for what is believed or isn’t believed. It’s times like this that it is no wonder the world avoids Christians. Like most every thing else, the truth is neither here nor there but somewhere in between.

Money and wealth are valuable tools for Christianity. Without money there would be no missionaries. It is money that keeps the church doors open. Money makes the world go around - even the Christian world.

The problem is not with wealth or even the accumulation of wealth - the problem is the same that it always is. If money controls the heart then money is a problem. Any time anything draws the heart away from God then it is bad.

It really is that simple.

Solomon ‘who was actually blessed with over flowing wealth from God’ said this:

‘He who loves money will not be satisfied with money’ - Ecclesiastes 5:10a

Being wealth and having money to spare is a good thing - if the money does not control you. Developing the personal relationship with God and walking in that relationship will open up doors so that He can bless the world through you.

The current economic times have made more people worry about their financial future than any other time in recent history. It doesn’t help that the current trend is to buy now and pay later. Debt is crushing the American consumers and Christians are not immune.

Debt freedom is a vital tool for the Christians. You belong to the person that you owe. The bank (loan company or other lender) dictates where you work, when you work and how you work. Having debt means NOT having control.

- If you have to make payments each month then you do not have the freedom to leave your current job until you have some other form of income lined up.
- If you owe someone money on your house or car (or any other item) then you do not own that item. You could not give it away if you felt led to do so - it’s not yours to give.
- If you are making payments on items then that money is tied up and can not be used to bless someone else or to assist the Church.
- If you are living in debt then you are teaching your children to live in debt (and bondage to the ones who own the debt).

There is nothing good about debt. It is the number one hindrance to a blessed walk with God. It is hard to act by His direction when you are so busy taking your orders from the people and places that own you.

Are you frugal or are you cheap? I had an experience the other day I thought I would share. To me it illustrated the difference between being frugal and being cheap. I sold a double oven and cook top on Craigslist last week. As soon as I listed it I had a lot of response. The first woman who came by to look at it decided she only wanted the cook top, and I told her I was selling them as a set. The second person who responded told me he was extremely interested but couldn’t pay until Friday, which was five days away. Although I didn’t really want to wait that long he explained it was on the “Dave Ramsey” plan and could not spend anything until he received his next paycheck. Having a soft spot in my heart for Dave Ramsey, I agreed to wait until Friday.

The day rolled around and the man came to pick up the appliances. They were listed for $195. The man gave my husband $200, but my husband explained he did not have change. I looked in my wallet and I had three $1 bills and a $20 bill. We thought maybe the $3 change would suffice since my husband had helped him load the heavy appliances into his SUV and since we had waited five days to complete the transaction. But rather than simply take my $3 change and pay an extra $2, the man drove up to a nearby Starbucks to make a purchase that would give him change.

We waited for him to return and finally he did. He put a handful of bills and some change into my husband’s hand, saying something about how expensive Starbucks is. Then he drove off with his new stove and cook top. When my husband counted the money it was about $.20 short. Do we care about the $.20? Heck no. We are just frustrated that this person would rather give Starbucks money than just cut his $2 loss.

Isn’t it funny how $2 was the difference between us feeling good about this transaction and us feeling cheated? We didn’t even celebrate the fact that we had made (nearly) $195 because we were dwelling on the man’s actions. And here’s the part that I need your help with. The man (perhaps in his haste to drive away before we counted the money) forgot a small part to the stove. He’s been asking for it and we fully intend to give it to him. But do you think we should call his attention to what he did? Or should we just drop it?

There have been a lot of talks about more stimulus checks getting sent out to try and boost the economy out of its slump. I guess that’s an understandable move - since the first stimulus check helped the economy so much.

The scripture tells us to support one another and that all things belong to all people. It is one thing for God to dictate how His blessings are utilized. It is quite another when the government steps in. There is something that makes me inherently uncomfortable about spreading the wealth around.

Watching the television reports and reading the print media make me wonder if I’m all alone in my concerns. According to these reports the other people in my position are excited.

My family is not rich. Even if you use the terms set forth by Senator Obama my family is still not rich. But when we do reach that peak of financial success we should be the ones that determine how (and if) we share that success.

Even though I might be one of those that benefits from the wealth sharing today, it will only be stealing from my children. There is an ultimate price for all of these packages that are beginning given and being promised - it’s the future.

A recent article in Time asks, ‘has the so-called Prosperity gospel turned its followers into some of the most willing participants - and hence, victims of the current financial crisis?’ A religion professor at University of California at Riverside thinks so.

While researching a book, Jonathan Walton discovered that during the sub-prime mortgage boom many parishioners felt that getting a loan despite their poor credit scores was a gift from God, an answered prayer. They used home equity as an ATM to purchase cars, vacations and more. The idea behind the Prosperity gospel is that if you are faithful enough and good enough you will be blessed richly for it.

But is that what the Bible preaches? Those who teach and believe in prosperity often point to 3 John 2: ‘Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. But some say John’s purpose with that verse was simply to serve as a greeting. Also, experts argue that the meaning of the word “prosper” in that verse does not mean “gaining material possessions.” Instead it means, to lead by a direct and easy way.’

What do you think?

A recent article in USA Today discussed how some homeowners are choosing to go into foreclosure rather than stop tithing. Experts estimate that around 5% of all American adults practice the tithe (10% of income to the church).

The conviction to tithe is deep rooted for many. But is it right to go into foreclosure because of the tithe if everything that can be cut has been cut and there is still not enough to make the payments after the tithe? Actually the answer is two fold.

First, the tithe will NEVER cause foreclosure. By definition the tithe is off the top of the income so it should never be included in the figures people use to get loans or credit or even to create a budget.

Second, there is always another way. Making the mortgage payment may require creative income development, but it can be accomplished.

Should Christians walk away from their commitments because they are unable to pay? The answer should be no. Christians are representatives of God here on the earth and must rise to a higher standard.

Will Christians be condemned for going into foreclosure? The answer is definitely no! The best benefit of being a Christian is that repentance brings healing.

“Neither a borrower nor a lender be.” This is a basic biblical principle that many people grew up hearing. It was usually used when someone gave money to a friend or family member (although RARELY brought up when getting a mortgage). But is this really the way the bible views finances?

The quote actually comes from Shakespeare - Hamlet to be exact. The Scripture actually tells believers that they will ‘lend and not borrow.’ (Deuteronomy 28:12). There are also several different scriptures that specifically condemn charging brothers interest.

There is a good reason why the Bible teaches against the practice of borrowing money. The lender is always in control. When you borrow money, you are locked into a relationship with the lender and are limited to your obedience to God. After all, if you have committed to pay back this loan then you can’t follow God’s direction to leave your job to go on a mission trip (or just to change to a job that pays less money).

At the same time, if you lend money with a dependence on getting that money back then you are controlled by the financial situation as well. If you are not in a position to forget about the money then you need to hold on to the money that you have.

Although the principle for to neither borrow nor lend money is a wise one, it’s not a biblical one. The bible tells you not to borrow, but lending is optional. Be sure that you can walk away from the money if you do decide to give loans to your brothers. And always lend to non-believers in a prayerful manner.