Practicing Faith Within Your Financial Habits

Every new year countless individuals across the country recount the past year and how to improve themselves heading into the new year. One way many individuals do this is in the form of developing better habits while striking bad habits.

Financial habits tend to make it on the list for many Americans. But what if there was more opportunity for us than just better “financial habits”? There is, but it comes with striving to practice our faith more within those habits.

As Christians we should be consistently determining how we can practice our faith within our habits, including financial ones.

What place do financial habits have amongst us as Christians?

Ways to practice our faith within our finances

Let’s be honest, we all can have a little more faith when it comes to our personal finances. I’ll continue to preach that personal finances are amongst the most prevalent vices and idols among the American Christian.

Why? Because money can easily turn us into our own gods if we allow it to.  And the lie that more money will solve all of our problems is a dangerous one.

Even if our personal finances don’t have a tight grasp on us it doesn’t mean that we are stewarding well or in an honorable way.

So what can we do?

Vulnerability within your finances

Money, and discussing it, continues to be a taboo topic within the church at large. You rarely hear preachers talk about money unless it’s in regards to giving/tithing.

Because of this, Christians rarely exhibit vulnerability within their personal finances. Instead, it tends to be a place of isolation. I get it. It’s very personal. It likely reveals our habits, tendencies, and priorities.  What’s even worse is that shame is typically wrapped up within the personal finances for so many. And it's unfortunate that our shame typically stands between us and accepting the grace of Christ.

The reality is that transformation can’t occur in areas that we aren’t willing to be vulnerable. Full stop. I don’t care what area of life you’re talking about. That’s the gospel truth.

When we aren’t vulnerable we’re denying the Holy Spirit from completing its work within us.

I love what my pastor preached recently, “The difference between transparency and vulnerability is that vulnerability comes with risk.” The risk of being rejected. The risk of being judged. The risk of uncertainty. It takes faith & humility to be vulnerable enough in allowing the Holy Spirit to work within us.

So find your community where you can be vulnerable, don’t go at it alone. This could be a confidant, your mentor, your small group, a pastor, etc. Accountability is essential in order to mature spiritually.

Expect to hear some hard things. Oftentimes it isn’t easy, but it’s good.

‘Better is open rebuke

than hidden love.

Faithful are the wounds of a friend;

profuse are the kisses of an enemy.’

Proverbs 27:5-6 (ESV)

Questions to be continually asking ourselves:

• Where does the enemy have a foothold in my personal finances?

  • Ask your trusted community as well

• Where are the opportunities for the Holy Spirit to transform my life in regards to what I steward?

• How can I begin surrendering and healing in these areas?

Praying about your financial decisions

How often do you take time to pray about the financial decisions that stand before you? I know I don’t as much as I should.

And honestly, I don’t hear about others doing it as much as you’d think (again, unless it’s just not being talked about).

Remember, every financial decision is a spiritual decision because we’re managers on behalf of God.

As we mature in our faith, our obedience to the Holy Spirit is more in step which means that the decision making process may seem quick.

However, I’d consider still praying for wisdom and discernment. We can still have our own biases and blind spots. Since we’re all of one Spirit, it doesn’t hurt to ask others for guidance and prayer as well to combat these things.

But above all else, let’s not forget to ask for wisdom and guidance from the Holy Spirit.

‘If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.’

James 1:5 (ESV)

Faithful & sacrificial giving

No matter what we’re talking about, sacrificing is almost always a good thing when done with the proper motive.

It often hurts and we have to endure a degree of suffering (or we’re not really sacrificing) but it’s worth it.

Sacrificing fosters humility within ourselves and tends to benefit others, often in unimaginable ways. Ultimately, sacrificing is a crucial way to become more like Christ. Just look at the cross. Jesus became nothing and was poured out that we may have EVERYTHING. Sacrifice.

I’m reminded of what fellow advisor Ben Wacek wrote in his last blog post about the humility of Jesus, “Jesus did not lay His glory aside to live a life of power and luxury as a human. His whole earthly life was one of sacrifice and service, which culminated with hands and feet nailed to a tree.”

‘Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.’

Philippians 2:5-8 (ESV)

When it comes to money, I think it’s important to remember that faithful and sacrificial giving breaks the power that money can have over us WHILE simultaneously creating a deeper dependence on God (instead of ourselves). It’s these things that keep us from wandering.

So what are some different areas that we may be being called to give in a sacrificial way?

• Giving the first fruits of what we earn or receive. In scripture, this was typically through the best of the harvest or livestock. Today it could translate into the first of what we earn or receive. When we don’t give from the first fruits we tend to give less AND out of obligation.

• Identify how much is enough. Whether we’re talking about income or wealth that we’ve accumulated, it’s important that we define how much. Once that is defined then we can begin compounding our giving where the Holy Spirit leads us. When we set these boundaries it allows to be fully satisfied in God. A great example is Chuck and Helga Feeney. They determined how much was enough and then set the goal of giving away the rest of their fortune while they were living.

• Breaking the notion that 10% is the “right” amount to give. One very clear thing I learned in my Kingdom Advisor education is that 10% is rarely the amount that every Christian is being called to give. If 10% isn’t stretching then consider increasing your giving.

• Deferring gratification. I firmly believe that God wants us to enjoy what He has entrusted to us. But some times we develop an unhealthy relationship with something OR it simply isn’t the best use of our money. A great opportunity is to defer our own gratification (i.e. not spend money on ourselves) and instead spend money on others. This yields way more than just the pleasure we would’ve received otherwise.

Also, remember that what we have to steward extends beyond just financial resources. We can give in many other ways. And honestly, it may require more from you than money would (i.e. time).

'And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”'

Mark 12:41-44 (ESV)

Conclusion

Again, it doesn’t need to be a new year to form good financial habits. Today is the best day to start. But as Christians, we need to be proactive about how we can incorporate our faith into our habits, especially financial ones.

For most of us, there’s typically room for us to grow when it comes to vulnerability, prayer, and sacrificial giving. However, the question is “Will we faithfully step out and pursue those things?”