Bills. Expenses. Income. Do these words sound familiar? Do these words haunt you in your sleep? They did me, or at least they used to.
Budget. Strength. Organization. These particular words, on the other hand, don’t induce fear and anxiety but excite freedom and security.
From a young age, my parents instilled the notion of responsibility and good stewardship with my money. Sure, did we shop and spend, but we were taught you set a limit and you abide by the rules. It was important to set limitations, boundaries, and guidelines regarding finances.
Boy did I learn what that really meant when (by the grace of God) I married a certified public accountant whose current occupation was (and is) financial reporting and budgeting for a large corporation. He taught me the basic principle, financial freedom means joy and security for a family.
Does that mean you are completely out of debt with no bills or expenses?
No, definitely not.
It does mean that there is a plan in place, budget, and organization amongst your spending and saving in order to reach that goal.
In our home, we have monthly goals, yearly goals, and five-year goals, all of which have specific budget plans attached. Do we follow it perfectly every month, no?
We’re still learning how to communicate financially in our marriage.
We’re still learning how to let go of selfish desires.
We’re still constantly pushing each other to be better than we were last month.
Nevertheless, there is a budget in place. By getting yourself in some form of a financial path you can begin to instill real change and freedom in your life.
“There is too much in life to stress and be anxious about. Do not let the devil use finances to steal your security and joy.
[easy-tweet tweet=”There is too much in life to stress about. Don’t let the devil use finances to steal your joy. ” user=”@jaymehull” hashtags=”#finances”]
I encourage my friends to set a goal this month of formulating a budget. Whether your single or married, God calls us to be good stewards of our financial gifts.
Matthew 25:20-21 states, “And he who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five talents more, saying, ‘Master, you delivered to me five talents; here I have made five talents more.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.”
If it is evident to Christ that we are good stewards of the financial circumstance we’re in now, He will present you and me with so much more.
Be encouraged! Follow His words.
Don’t let the devil win and cause strife and anxiety in your life or family.
Set goals.
Meet those goals.
Experience true freedom and joy.
Thanks for you post! I think we both were thinking about finances this month because I too wrote on a similar topic!! Haha! This is awesome and great info to know and practice.
Thanks Nicole! It’s always such a big topic in our marriage that I thought why not express what were all going through day to day! Looking forward to reading your perspective as well!