Walking in God’s Favor: But don’t begin until you count the cost. For who would begin construction of a building without first getting estimates and then checking to see if he has enough money to pay the bills? Otherwise he might complete only the foundation before running out of funds. And then how everyone would laugh! Luke 14:28-29 TLB
Let’s face it, as we gracefully age we generally have less energy and our health slowly begins to decline. As a result, we need to decrease the amount of physical work we perform, so we don’t injure or prematurely kill ourselves. In other words, we have to work smarter not harder.
You must begin with the end in mind. If you plan to become faithful stewards of your wealth in this life you must be willing to pay the price. You are going to have to develop the habit of saving and investing your money.
While you are young and healthy you must develop the practice of saving for your golden years. Otherwise, your golden years will not be so golden. Many employers are no longer contributing or providing retirement plans for their employees. Therefore you must become personally proactive in saving and investing money for your golden years.
With that in mind, what is your plan? Do you have an emergency fund for the storms of life that are sure to come if you live long enough? Have you begun setting aside money for your golden years? Years ago, Ardella and I began the practice of saving a certain amount of money from our income so that we could have the flexibility to follow our dreams, passions, and opportunities in life during our golden years.
The Joseph principle is the ability to look around the corner and anticipate life’s challenges you may or may not face one day. In the Bible, Joseph wisely counseled Pharaoh in the book of Genesis. ” And let them gather all the food of those good years that are coming and store up grain under the authority of Pharaoh and let them keep food in the cities. Then the food shall be as a reserve for the land for seven years of famine which shall be in the land of Egypt that the land may not perish during the famine.” Genesis 41:35,36 (NKJV)
Joseph was divinely given the principle of saving for the storms of life and saved the entire Egyptian nation and his family. There are many lessons you can learn and practice in your life from the Joseph principle. We will end our blog with these words of wisdom.
Our greatest lack is not money for any undertaking, but rather ideas. If the ideas are good, cash will somehow flow to where it is needed – Robert H. Schuller
That which lies at the foundation of business integrity and to true success is the recognition of God’s ownership. God is Creator of all things; the Original Proprietor. We are His stewards. All that we have is a trust from Him to be used according to His direction. – Ellen G. White
One of the greatest needs of the modern Christian Church is for its disciples to swim away from the shallow banks of peripheral Christian living and plunge into the deep waters of faith and loyalty to God – Julius R. Scruggs
Our lives are the only meaningful expression of what we believe and in Whom we believe. And the only real wealth for any of us lies in our faith. Gordon B. Hinckley
Prayer of Blessing: Lord, help us to have great faith in our planning.
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 six grandchildren. They currently reside in Huntsville, Alabama and blog weekly from their financial workbook ” The Stewardship of Wealth“.
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