Thrifty Tuesday...

The meaning of money...

Recently, my DH and I had a conversation with a newly married couple. The wife has been a hard worker and very responsible for money since she was a young girl -- long before she met her husband. The husband is also frugal and sound in his financial thinking. Normally, they work together very well. However, they recently found themselves at an impasse over what to do with a relatively small amount in their budget.

The husband saw the money as something to be put away for future financial security. The wife wanted to spend it on something that she felt was a good bargain and a useful and needed item. The more we talked, the more we realized that the issue was probably not the money itself, but the the emotional meaning each had ascribed to the money. The husband saw the money as a building block for their future financial health, while the wife saw his objection to her spending it as a lack of trust in her ability to manage. They quickly worked through this by identifying what the situation meant to each of them and by each being considerate of the other's feelings.

I'm sure we've all been involved in discussions about small things and have wondered , "Why are we spending so much time and emotional energy on this?" I know it sounds silly, but many years ago my dh and I had a few disagreements about how to fold towels! Usually, when something small becomes the focal point of that much discussion, it is merely a sign that something larger is going on. In my case, I was placing a desire to have a bathroom that looked like Martha Stewart's above my husband's comforts.

Now, we all know that Jesus tells us in the Sermon on the Mount and in other places that God loves us and knows our needs and that He will provide for us as He, in His Supreme Wisdom, knows is best for us. He is a loving Father who delights in taking care of his children. Christ encourages us to seek the Kingdom first and God's righteousness and trust God's provision. This ties in with one of my favorite Pslams -- 127 -- which says, "It is vain for you to rise up early, To retire late, To eat the bread of painful labors, For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep."

Of course, this doesn't nullify our responsibility to work whole-heartedly out of respect for the Lord, to provide for the needs of our family and the church, or to plan and use our money wisely in the service of the Lord. (I Timothy 5:8; Proverbs 6:6; Titus 3:14). God calls us to work whole-heartedly out of reverence for him (Col. 3), and also to be faithful, good, and thankful stewards of the many blessings he gives us.

So, if God has promised that He will meet our needs and He has also given us sure instructions about work, money, and stewardship, why do we sometimes fret about money? Why is this especially true for we Americans, who live in a land of comparative abundance? If we have a clean and safe place to live -- no matter how small it is -- and if we have drinkable running water and electricity, something to drive, access to even minimal medical care, and a job, we are supremely blessed when compared to what many people have.

My son visited Manilla as part of a project to build a youth center for impoverished children. He visited villages that were built on top of giant trash heaps. The people there make their living by picking through the trash for things to sell. The most famous of these villages -- Old Smokey -- had been shut down some years before his visit. Still, there were many similar ones that were still thriving.

This is not to minimize the real poverty that exists in our country or to downplay the real financial stresses that a hard-working American family might face. However, we've all met people who possess very little of the world's resources and are joyful, peaceful, hard-working, trusting, and generous. We've also met people who possess an abundance of wealth and are haunted by the fear of never having enough. They may be greedy, anxious, and either workaholics or lazy. The same is true in reverse. The point is that it's not necessarily the size of our bank account that determines whether we have a trustful and obedient attitude concerning money.

The short and true answer is that if we find ourselves becoming anxious about money, we need to repent. We need to trust the Lord, as well as search the scriptures for his instructions about money and put them into practice. We need to put away sins that trip us up financially, such greed, envy, and a lack of self-control, and put on faithfulness, trust, and responsibility.

This process is sometimes helped if we examine our attitudes about money. Rightly viewed, money and material goods are wonderful tools that are to be used to further the gospel, take care of our families, take care of those with greater needs, and to be enjoyed with thanksgiving. However, we can assign meanings to money and material goods that they were never meant to bear.

Some of these money-meanings might be security; independence; freedom; participation in the American dream; a means to gain others' approval; a measure of our self-worth; a band-aid for fears about present inadequacies or future dangers; the supreme source of our pleasure rather than a blessing to be enjoyed in its proper place; a fantasy that if we could only acquire enough, we wouldn't have to work so hard; something we are entitled to because we have suffered in some way; something to spend as a means of comforting anxiety, stress, or emptiness, etc; the source of our self-esteem.

We may also falsely equate having a lot of money as a sign that God is pleased with us or feel that if we are struggling to make ends meet that must means God is angry or unloving toward us. That's a whole other topic in scripture. Suffice it to say, however, material wealth or the lack of it is not always a measure of God's favor. Jesus was more impressed by the poor widow who gave back to God all that she had to live on than he was with those who were able to give vast amounts to the temple treasury out of their surplus. If we have somehow gotten the idea in our mind that money equals God's love, our faith rests on an insecure foundation. In that case, we would do well to give the topic more study.

We can all be tempted to elevate money and other earthly blessings above their true purpose in our lives. When we do that, we make money an idol. We seek from money the things that can only come from a relationship to God. The irony is that when we do that, we don't enjoy our money or our material comforts. When we receive our money as a blessing from our loving Father and we trustfully obey his commands concerning money, we use and enjoy money with a peaceful, unworried heart. We, like Paul, will learn how to be content with much and with little -- in whatever circumstances we find ourselves.

Enjoy!
Elizabeth

Steward, Owner, or Consumer?

If you ask me at any given moment if I see myself primarily as a steward, an owner, or a consumer of the blessings that God has entrusted to me, I will say that I am a steward. However, in the rush of daily life, it's easy for me to act more like I'm the primary owner or the entitled consumer of the goods that the Lord has placed in my care. It's good for me to reflect often that I am a steward who is working for the King.

What is a steward? Here's the definition according to the 1828 edition of Webster's Dictionary:

1. A man employed in great families to manage the domestic concerns, superintend the other servants, collect the rents or income, keep the accounts, &c. See Genesis 15:2 and 43:19.

2. An officer of state; as lord high steward; steward of the household, &c.

3. In colleges, an officer who provides food for the students and superintends the concerns of the kitchen.

4. In a ship of war, an officer who is appointed by the purser to distribute provisions to the officers and crew. In other ships, a man who superintends the provisions and liquors, and supplies the table.

5. In Scripture and theology, a minister of Christ, whose duty is to dispense the provisions of the gospel, to preach its doctrines and administer its ordinances.

Webster's uses the following quote to illustrate these uses of the word steward, "It is required in stewards, that a man be found faithful." 1 Corinthians 4.

In Luke 12:13-48 KJV, we find an example of Jesus' teachings about stewardship:

"And one of the company said unto him, Master, speak to my brother, that he divide the inheritance with me.

And he said unto him, Man, who made me a judge or a divider over you?

And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.

And he spake a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully:

And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits?

And he said, This will I do: I will pull down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my goods.

And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry.

But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?

So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

And he said unto his disciples, Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat; neither for the body, what ye shall put on.

The life is more than meat, and the body is more than raiment.

Consider the ravens: for they neither sow nor reap; which neither have storehouse nor barn; and God feedeth them: how much more are ye better than the fowls?

And which of you with taking thought can add to his stature one cubit?

If ye then be not able to do that thing which is least, why take ye thought for the rest?

Consider the lilies how they grow: they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

If then God so clothe the grass, which is to day in the field, and to morrow is cast into the oven; how much more will he clothe you, O ye of little faith?

And seek not ye what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink, neither be ye of doubtful mind.

For all these things do the nations of the world seek after: and your Father knoweth that ye have need of these things.

But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.

Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

Sell that ye have, and give alms; provide yourselves bags which wax not old, a treasure in the heavens that faileth not, where no thief approacheth, neither moth corrupteth.

For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning;

And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately.

Blessed are those servants, whom the lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them.

And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.

And this know, that if the goodman of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through.

Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not.

Then Peter said unto him, Lord, speakest thou this parable unto us, or even to all?

And the Lord said, Who then is that faithful and wise steward, whom his lord shall make ruler over his household, to give them their portion of meat in due season?

Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.

Of a truth I say unto you, that he will make him ruler over all that he hath.

But and if that servant say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; and shall begin to beat the menservants and maidens, and to eat and drink, and to be drunken;

The lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in sunder, and will appoint him his portion with the unbelievers.

And that servant, which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.

But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more."

What are the qualities of a good steward? I think we can learn from this that the faithful stewardess of her home has her master's interests in mind. She is rich toward the Lord and uses her money and other resources to further the things that matter to Him. She is watchful and not slack or lazy. She is not anxious or greedy, for she knows that she is the recipient of the Master's loving and abundant care. She knows that He provides for her now and also will bestow on her a great, eternal, and graciously-given reward. She is thoughtful of the other servants in the Master's house, and she sees to their needs. She is ready at any moment to give an accounting of the blessings entrusted to her. Her treasure is in heaven, with her Master, and she looks forward to His coming.

Enjoy!
Elizabeth

Stewardship Part II

Here are some words to ponder:

Luke 16:9-13: And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous mamon, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal habitations. He who is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and he who is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much. If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful in that which is another's, who will give you that which is your own? No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.

Well, I don't know about you, but that's challenging to me! So, here's my prayer:

Father, thank you for the material blessings and the spiritual riches that you graciously shower on me. Please give me an undivided heart that is fully devoted to you, as well as a heart that shares both spiritual and material blessings with others. Help me to be a more faithful steward so that I do not waste the gifts you have given to me and so that I will be able to give.

Enjoy!
Elizabeth

One of my goals: To be a better steward of our home resources in this current economy.

With the help of many thrifty bloggers, I am going to embark on a Biblical and financial study about how to be a better steward of our home resources in this current economy. I am going back to the basics, as if I had never studied this topic before, and I hope -- Lord willing -- to take an in-depth look. From time to time, I will post about what I am learning. I hope you'll join me on my journey and offer any suggestions, comments, or questions you may have.

First, here's a great article by Julieann. She is not feeling the pinch in her grocery budget. If you haven't read her tips for shopping economically yet, I think you'll enjoy reading her post.

I am feeling the pinch in my grocery bills and my gas bills, too, of course. Milk is definitely higher here.

Part of the reason I've blown the budget lately has nothing to do with the current higher prices, though. I've bought a few extra necessities that I'd been putting off. Plus, we've hosted a few more dinners lately than we had been for a few months. Not only that, but I've bought some higher quality, more nutritious, more expensive items where I used to buy something more basic. And, to tell the truth, I've indulged in a few luxury items, as well. So, I need to evaluate to make sure that I'm not wandering too far off track.

I also plan to take a notebook with me next time I do a full shopping and do a price point comparison to see which items really are higher and which aren't.

One place I really need to be more careful about is cooking for two. I had gotten used to cooking for a family of four, with frequent friends of my children at the table, as well. So, now, I often cook way too much for just dear hubby and myself. I plan to use the leftovers, but don't always get them worked in to our eating schedule. Here's where I either need to plan smaller portions or freeze leftovers right away. I used to cook for two when we first started out, but I've forgotten how, I think. LOL. (Portion control will not only be good for our budget but for our waistlines!)

Well, those are my three practicals to think about this week. Now, on to the deeper study.

Here's the 1828 Webster's definition of economy:

ECON'OMY, n. [L. oeconomia; Gr. house, and law, rule.]

1. Primarily, the management, regulation and government of a family or the concerns of a household.

2. The management of pecuniary concerns or the expenditure of money. Hence,

3. A frugal and judicious use of money; that management which expends money to advantage,and incurs no waste; frugality in the necessary expenditure of money. It differs from parsimony, which implies an improper saving of expense. Economy includes also a prudent management of all the means by which property is saved or accumulated; a judicious application of time, of labor, and of the instruments of labor.

...

8. Judicious and frugal management of public affairs; as political economy.

9. System of management; general regulation and disposition of the affairs of a state or nation, or of any department of government.

Here's Wickipedia's definition:

Economics is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Greek for oikos (house) and nomos (custom or law), hence "rules of the house(hold)."^[1]

Here's a little more about the history of the word from a textbook on Macroeconomics.

1.1 Origin of the term "Economics"

The term "economy," from which we get "economics," comes most directly from the Old French word "economie," meaning "management of a household." The French adopted the term from the Latin word "oeconomia," which was in turn derived from the Greek word "oikonomia." Oikonomia came from the word "oikonomos," which separates into "oikos," meaning house, and "-nomos" meaning managing.

The oldest recognized written work in the field of economics is Oeconomicus, a book on farming and household management, written by the Greek philosopher Xenophon (430?-355? B.C.).

Despite the Greek origins of the term, economics was not an important field of study for the ancient Greeks, who, despite occasional references to economic matters, were more interested in philosophy and ethics.

Note: All three sources connect the origin of the word economy to Greek words meaning the rules or management of a household. Home economy is a vital part of our role as keeper of the home. For more on this topic, see my post Economy: A Word Study.

Enjoy!
Elizabeth