"Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." Hebrews 13:5 (NIV)
He closes the checkbook and lays his head in his hands.
"Every time I pay the bills we go deeper in the hole," he groans.
"But both of us are working. I don't see how we can do more," she answers.
"We just can't make ends meet. Good thing we have credit cards to take up the slack."
Life in America is an expensive proposition. We scramble just to stay even. There seems no choice but to spend whatever it takes. Even two income families can't make it anymore. It's impossible to get by on what we have. Or is it?
Statistics show many average Americans spend 120 percent of their income. So we're paying out everything we have and then some. But has this really bought us happiness? Our shopping bags seem filled with emptiness instead.
Perhaps we need a contentment make-over. For example, many think that cable TV is a basic necessity of life. But would we die without it? Now paying for TV isn't wrong. The real issue is to focus on what we truly need.
If our goal is contentment, let's turn our gaze in the right direction. Do we really trust God? He trusts us. In fact, he's given us the world to manage for him. But we are just that – managers. It's up to us to live on what he's provided, not to use up what he hasn't.
Having trouble staying out of the 20 percent zone? Try this:
·See where you stand. Check your inflow against your outgo.
·Evaluate your wants and needs. Are the wants taking over?
·Leave the plastic at home. Let God fill your shopping bag.
He wants to provide what's truly needed. So why not reverse the 20 percent formula? Live at 80 percent instead. Then tithe 10 percent and save 10 percent. Watch your contentment factor soar as you trust in God.
Living for God (TM) offers resources on Christian living. Check them out at www.livingforgod.net or call (719) 578-8837.
