Money Life: Understanding God's View of MoneySample

The Plan - Part 1

It’s no coincidence that the words discipline and disciple share a common root. A disciple learns to follow his master over time; it doesn’t happen all at once. In 1 Corinthians, Paul compares spiritual training to athletic training. He writes,“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? … They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable” (1 Corinthians 9:24-25).

Just as you cannot compete as a runner without proper training, our financial lives require discipline as well. We have to be consistent in our daily disciplines and remain dedicated to achieving our goals. But more than that, we need to know and follow God’s ways if we are ever to know true financial freedom.

During His earthly ministry, Jesus talked about money and our hearts. How we handle money is an outward indicator of our inward spiritual condition.

If our hearts are filled with greed, our finances will reflect greed. If our hearts are filled with the desire to get rich quick, our finances will reflect it. If our hearts lack contentment, our finances will reflect it.

The first and most important step in changing our hearts is to acknowledge that we are not owners, but temporary stewards. God owns everything … literally. We own nothing … literally. The Bible says we are born naked and will return to the dust naked. We take nothing with us! We simply manage money and possessions for a short season.

So our plans should not be to become successful builders of wealth, but faithful workers and managers of what God entrusts to us, whether a lot or a little.