Saving and investing money is good stewardship. Erika F. Puni

Walking in God’s Favor: The wise man saves for the future, but the foolish man spends whatever he gets. Proverbs 21:30 TLB

If you want to keep your finances from falling off a fiscal cliff, you must begin the process of saving a portion of your money and avoiding debt. Moving to a higher level of stewardship requires dedication, discipline and diligence. Living the life of surplus and overflow takes wisdom.

Many of you only dream of saving money.  Here’s a quick  snapshot of America’s finances.  The Wall Street Journal indicates that 70%  of all Americans  live from paycheck to paycheck. The  Oprah Winfrey Show indicated on an online survey that 70% of responders had no savings anywhere.  You almost have to pull a gun on Americans to get them to save.

We have learned in Financial Peace University www.fpu.com (3) key reasons to save money; for emergencies, for purchases and to build wealth. Working in the risk management and academic arena for over 20+ years, we label emergencies in 5 categories we call the 5 storms of life or the 5D’s.

D1 – Disasters – Car accidents, weather related perils, any unexpected incidents.

D2 – Disability – Any physical condition that prevents your daily living activities.

D3 – Downsized – Loss of employment, bankruptcy or divorce.

D4 – Death – The loss of a  person who contributes to your financial well being.

D5- Deployment- Active & reserve military called to serve 6 or more months away.

Many of you have struggled so long in your financial lives you get comfortable being able to pay your bills on time.  Now is not the time to rest, keep moving. There is so much God have for you to learn, experience and become. You must choose to make saving a  top priority.  The choice is up to you.

Prayer of Blessing: Dear Lord, help us to save for our future.

Michael Vance is a senior account executive  with Hundley Batts & Associates and the co-founder of stewardshipofwealth.com. Ardella Vance is  a gifted educator and  a Master Guide in the Pathfinders  Club, a global organization empowered to teach life and leadership skills to young people.  The Vance’s have been married well over 25 years and share their lives with four adult children and five grandchildren. They currently reside in Huntsville, Alabama and blog weekly from their financial workbook ” The Stewardship of Wealth“.