Why do we turn to the Bible for financial guidance? Because our personal financial plan is about more than an abstract mathematical concept; it’s about us and our behaviors. Money is emotional and relational, and our spiritual life undoubtedly affects our finances. Dave says a personal financial plan is 80% about behavior and only 20% head knowledge. That means we need more than just a theory; we need to deal with the emotional, relational, and spiritual aspects of creating a financial plan.
In this week of FPU, we’re talking about relating with money. Learning how to relate with money is crucial for our relationships. Men and women tend to relate to money differently. Some people are spenders and others are savers. This makes financial unity with your spouse challenging! There’s a reason the number-one cause of divorce in North America is financial conflict. But when you can agree on a value system and create a budget together to reflect that, you will reach a deeper unity in your marriage. God has you with your spouse because you need each other. Both of you need to work together to come up with your financial plan!
Singles, you’re not off the hook when it comes to coming up with a budget. Having a written plan will give you self-accountability and empowerment over your personal finances. It’s also a good idea to have an accountability partner – someone who understands your goals and will help you stick to your budget.
The best way to know what our priorities really are is to look at our calendar and to look at our checkbook. How we spend our money reveals what’s most important to us. Creating and sticking to a financial plan enables us to have a deeper and more unified relationship with our spouse and ensures that our values are reflected in the way we give, save, and spend.
Action Items This Week:
Identify your accountability partner
Review your Quick-Start Budget together
Let's Discuss...
-Throughout this program, you will be challenged to try things you’ve probably never done. Just for the next eight weeks, are you willing to commit yourself to the principles, even if you have disagreements? Why or why not?
-Take out your Quick Start Budget and not the three areas where you spend the most money. What surprises you about your top three categories?
-Do those three largest expenses accurately represent what is most important to you? If so, how does that feel? If not, what would you like your largest budget categories to be in the future?
Please leave a comment responding to one or more of the questions above!
