Managing God’s Money: 7 Branches Workbook: Becoming A Good Manager Of God's Resources

By Michel A. Bell

This book is ideal for small groups and premarital counselling; it’s an excellent wedding gift. It guides you step-by-step through proven principles and practices to help remove financial stress, and gain confidence deciding financial matters. Here you discover strategies to stay on top of your finances, develop disciplines to control variables that cause spending, and learn tips to prevent fighting over money. You will learn you don’t need math competence to stay on top of financial affairs and see how to stop living pay-check-to-pay-check. Newlyweds and debt can be a terrible combination. Even worse, many folks say is money and marriage. So, is adebt-free lifestylepossible for young and middle-aged couples? Yes, it is, when they learn and practice the essence of managing God’smoney and marriage. This book will help this journey. For over 21 years, I counseled many engaged couples who wanted me to help with financial matters. Each time I assured them money never is the issue but attitudes to moneyis crucial—lifestyle choices that lead to debt and arguments. Money is a horrible master that left uncheck will lead you to ruin. Those gorgeous sale items tell you to borrow; don’t they?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Managing God's Money
• Release date: Oct 2, 2022
• ISBN: 9781625178213

Book preview

CHAPTER 1

The First Branch: ABCs and the GAS Principle

All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness - 2 Timothy 3:16

Money is important to God, just look at these facts¹:

1. The Bible devotes twice as many verses to money, wealth, and possessions ² than to faith and prayer combined.

2. Jesus said more about finances than heaven and hell.

3. Fifteen percent of Jesus’ words are about finances.

4. Jesus said more about finances than any other item.

3-Ms of Money

What is money? Before I answer, let’s review a money transaction. It involves a merchant, money, and me—the 3-Ms. The merchant buys or produces goods or services to sell me. Through clever, seductive advertising, he entices me to buy. In the past, the merchant’s sales pitch would highlight product features only, but not any more. These days, he presents attractive financing as bait, hoping I will buy the product or service even if I don’t need it.

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If I buy the product or service, I will use money as the means of exchange—in essence, as a bridge. I could use cash, debit card, credit card, IOUs, anything the merchant will accept to part with his goods or service.

So which of the three Ms can I manage? I can’t manage the merchant who decides the product, service, and bait. His single purpose is to get me to buy.

I can’t manage money; it’s merely the bridge to get goods or services from the merchant to me. It is lifeless; it won’t respond to me. That leaves me. Yes, I can manage me only.

Learn ABCs Not 123s

What about me should I manage? I must understand my attitude to money, which decides my behaviour, and my source of choices. My attitude is my worldview. It’s what I believe that leads to my decision to buy or not.

Money management is a misnomer. I need to surrender my attitude, behaviour, and choices (ABCs) to Christ so He will help me distinguish wants from needs. As well, I must crucify my greed nature that responds to merchants’ seductive baits.

But first I must surrender my life to Christ. Otherwise, I won’t get right attitudes to money, and my source of choices will depend on my circumstances. No wonder Jesus spoke so much about attitudes to money.

In Luke 16:13, Jesus tells us to choose between Him and money (mammon³). His other teachings show us the right attitude is to use money for God’s glory and the wrong attitude is to love money. Nothing is wrong with money itself; it’s our attitude to it that’s an issue.

We must learn and follow the many truths in the Bible about our ABCs and money so money doesn’t enslave and control us. Will we become rich if we learn biblical financial truths? It depends on how we define rich.

1. Was Mother Teresa, in the abject poverty in Calcutta, rich? My wife and I visited Calcutta and never have we seen such poverty; yet we believe Mother Teresa was rich in her poor surroundings. She stored treasures in heaven.

2. Were Jesus’ apostles rich? They too had no material wealth, but walked, talked, learned from our Lord and Saviour—they stored immeasurable riches in heaven.

As you start this journey, stay focused on Jesus because from Him you will learn right attitudes to serve Him.

We can describe riches from surrendering our lives to Christ in two words: eternal life. Come as you are on this special trip to get freedom from financial stress. Always remember, Jesus loves you so much He died for you. Besides, He assures you and me today, everything is possible for him who believes.

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The GAS Principle (Three Key Biblical Truths)

Jesus and His Word anchor the 7 branches of Managing God’s Money. Each branch represents specific unchanging truths from the Bible. The first, which filters through all branches, the GAS Principle or Three Key Biblical Truths, when understood and accepted, will cause you to change your attitude, behaviour and source of choices.

• Key Truth #1: God Owns Everything.

• Key Truth #2: Accept What You Have.

• Key Truth #3: Seek First His Kingdom and Submit Your Requests to Him.

Before you start digging in this section, think about the implications of God’s ownership of everything. Is it practical to live in this consumer-driven society accepting and following these key truths? To be effective as God’s manager, you must know Him and His Word and follow His direction. Are you ready for this?

You will come back to this question often as you go through this workbook. Don’t answer it now, just mull it over—especially how your attitude to your family, work, neighbours, belongings, should change to show God’s ownership of everything.

By God’s grace, the GAS Principle will become the cornerstone for all your financial, time, and family decisions. Prayerfully, answer these questions:

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