Christian Personal Finance

Actor Clint Eastwood is shown here in this 1967 still from the western drama, 'For A Few Dollars More.' When he was just starting out, Mr. Eastwood was told he wouldn't succeed as a actor. (Newscom/file)

How to turn failures into opportunities

By Joe Plemon, Guest blogger / 02.25.10

– Before Lucille Ball became famous for “I Love Lucy”, she was dismissed from drama school for being too quiet and shy.

– Albert Einstein did poorly in elementary school and failed his first college entrance exam.

– Henry Ford went broke five times before achieving success.

– Clint Eastwood was once told by a University Pictures executive that his future as an actor was not promising. The man said, “You have a chip on your tooth, your Adam’s apple sticks out too far, and you talk too slow.”

How about you? The question isn’t whether we will fail…we all do. The challenge is to examine the failure, learn from it and move on. Can you do that? Do you do that? If we will start viewing our failures as opportunities, I am certain that we will be able to look back some day and realize that we needed those failures to guide us, force us to re-prioritize our values, assess our strong points and move ahead.

Laying the groundwork

Not everyone turns failures into opportunities. Why? It is quite possible that they don’t delineate the differences between their careers and the rest of their lives. If we define success only by how well our careers go, we are putting all of our eggs in that one basket. However, by seeding success in several areas of our lives, we are conditioning ourselves for career successes even when failures happen. Think “diversification” as you invest some great seeds into your personal life. Here are some examples:

Marriage.

Block out together time in your schedules. Plan and keep dates. Say, “I love you.”

Emotional.

When circumstances or people hurt you, allow yourself to experience the emotions instead of internalizing them. Be quick to ask for forgiveness and anxious to grant forgiveness.

Physical.

No surprises here: eat healthy food and exercise.

Personal Finance.

Whatever your financial status, don’t settle for it. Always be working on and executing a plan to create financial peace.

Spiritual Growth.

Spend time every day in prayer and Bible reading. Keeping a close relationship with the Maker of the Universe will keep failures in their proper perspective.

How do I turn this failure into success?

Change your language

Say Opportunity instead of Failure.

Learn.

This is like an autopsy…you are examining the failure to see exactly why it failed. The oft quoted story is that Thomas Edison, after trying thousands of experiments to refine the incandescent light bulb, was asked by a young reporter, “Mr. Edison, how does it feel to have failed 5000 times?” Edison answered, “Young man, I haven’t failed 5000 times. I have discovered 5000 techniques that don’t work.” If you learn what not to do, next time you will not repeat that mistake.

Don’t be afraid of another failure.

Fear of failure will paralyze you. But realizing that failure is a passageway to success will squelch that fear and motivate you to try again. Mickey Rooney said, “You always pass failure on the way to success.’

Continue to dream.

When your dreams stop, your life loses its purpose. God gives you dreams for a reason: he wants them to come true. Joseph of old had dreams that he would some day rise to prominence. Before he became Prime Minister of Egypt, he was thrown into a cistern, sold into slavery, arrested and imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit and lied to by those who could help him. It took 22 years, but God worked through all these seeming detours to fulfill that dream. God has not forgotten your dreams and you shouldn’t either.

Pray

God’s plan for his son Jesus was to allow him to be executed for a crime he did not commit. For some, this would seem like a failure, but of course the death of Jesus was followed by a resurrection, and his resurrection is our promise of eternal life. This same God wants to hear your prayers and “resurrect” your failures into amazing successes.

Concluding thoughts

We all fail. How we deal with the failure will determine our life course. The challenge is to see the failure as an opportunity. If you can learn from the failure, squelch your fear of trying again, and continue to dream and pray, you will have come far on this journey of life: you will discover yourself.

A closing quote from Pope John XXIII: “Consult not your fears, but your hopes and dreams. Think not about your frustrations, but about your unfulfilled potential. Concern yourself not with what you tried and failed in, but with what it is still possible for you to do.”

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The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by the Monitor and the views expressed are the bloggers' own, as is responsibility for the content of their blogs. To contact us about a blogger, click here. To add or view a comment on a guest blog, please go to the blogger's own site by clicking on the link above.

Can money buy happiness? Is that even the right question? (Newscom)

Will money buy happiness? Who cares!

By Jason Price, Guest blogger / 02.23.10

You’re probably familiar with the following question often the subject of study and discussion: Can money buy happiness? In fact, if you Google the question you’ll run across articles and perhaps research trying to determine the answer.

In most cases, at least in what I’ve read, researched, and experienced, the answer to the question in general is no. But I’ve read some studies which point out the answer is yes, to a certain point. In other words, once basic needs (food, clothing, shelter) have been met, having more money doesn’t really make people any happier.

However, one study I came across says that money can actually bring happiness beyond meeting basic needs if you’re using money for giving and for entertainment such as taking a vacation. The experience you receive with your money for a vacation results in greater happiness. And with giving people are more selfless, which generates some feeling of happiness.

A more worthwhile topic

This is all fine, but it wasn’t until just recently I realized a more interesting and worthwhile topic to explore. I think it’s how our finances related to joy (not happiness). After listening to Warren Jacobs, the worship director at my church, speak at our men’s Bible study; I understood the difference between happiness and joy.

Happiness

Happiness is related to an event (something happens). It’s when certain circumstances occur in a way that we feel are favorable.

For example…

I work hard to get a job promotion and pay raise. I receive it and now I’m happy.
I’ve always wanted a brand new big screen TV and now that I have one, I’m happy.
I got out of debt and well, now I’m happy.

But do all of these things make us more joyful?

I believe that such results of happiness, as described above, are temporary. The happiness will run out and then there will be a new pursuit to find more happiness elsewhere. So, why even ask the question: will money buy happiness? Who cares! It’s not an everlasting feeling like joy.

Joy

Joy is a much deeper feeling that we can only receive from God. It’s much more worthy of our pursuit and attention. Philippians 3:1 tells us to “rejoice in the Lord.” God is the source of Christian joy.

Rather, we should be exploring joy in every aspect of our lives, including our finances. And, if you’re a Christian, joy can be present in anything, including difficult financial situations.

Joy in difficult situations

But, you may ask: how can I be joyful if I’m facing financial struggles? Or, to be more specific:

How can I find joy in being in more debt than I know how to manage?
How can I find joy when I just got laid off from your job and I’m not quite sure how I’m going to pay next month’s mortgage?
How can I be joyful if I just lost most of my retirement investments when the stock market crashed?

An example of joy during financial struggle

The important thing to remember is God is present in our struggles. And if God is with us, we can certainly find joy.

Let me give you an example. A few years ago I was laid off from my job. We hadn’t done a very good job of saving for such emergencies, so there really was no money to fall back on if I didn’t get a job in the next few months. My severance would only help us for a short amount of time.

Strangely enough, this was one of the more joyful time periods in my life. Why? I came to realize I only had two approaches: 1) carry the entire weight of the situation on my own shoulders which would result in more stress and probably some panic, or 2) Do everything I could to find a job, but ultimately let God carry the weight for me through my trust in Him.

What was the result? I found great joy and peace in what was a real financial struggle because of my strong faith. I became encouraged about what God had planned for me. I rejoiced in Him! It was actually one of the more peaceful times in my life because my focus and dependency became entirely on God and not myself.

Practical steps in pursuing joy

So, what are some practical steps to help you find joy? I heard some great ideas from Warren while he spoke:

1. Submit yourself to God. As I did, realize God is in control and you can find the joy, peace and comfort in almost any situation.

2. See God in everything. If God is with us in our struggles, then he is everywhere. If God, Himself is joy, we can find joy in absolutely everything. You can be engaged in your situation or a conversation, but have God in your thoughts.

3. Contend what kills your joy. Yes, you have to fight and make changes. For me, I realized recently that one of the things that tries to compete or stifle God’s joy in my life is my life’s pace. Therefore, I have to learn to say no to certain things and slow down so that I can experience the true joy in what God is doing in my life.

Can you find joy while being in debt, having lost a job or having lost investments? While happiness may be absent around those situations, you can still be joyful.

Be joyful always; pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. (1 Thessalonians 5: 16-18)

A final thought

Warren wrapped up his discussion with a couple of important points. Depression and difficult struggles are real. They shouldn’t be taken lightly, or you shouldn’t think you have to go at them alone. Sometimes help is needed and that’s okay. If this is you, please seek Christian counseling through your church to discuss your situation.

What are your thoughts on the differences described between happiness and joy? How do you think relates to your finances?

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The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there. Their postings appear here on the Monitor's Money site as well as on their own individual blog sites. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by the Monitor and the views expressed are the blogger's own, as is responsibility for the content of their blogs. To contact us about a blogger, click here. To add or view a comment on a guest blog, please go to the blogger's own site by clicking on the link above.

Even beginning the process of creating a household budget will put you ahead of most people. (Newscom)

Creating a household budget

By Steve Toschlog, Guest blogger / 02.23.10

If you’ve ever sat down to write out your financial budget you know it can be one of the most frustrating things you’ll ever experience. No matter how hard you try, it just never seems to work out. The expenses are always greater than the income. On the rare occasion when you think it’s going to work out and the whole budgeting process seems at least doable, an unexpected emergency pops up, leaving you hopeless. You think to yourself, “This will never work!”

Here is some encouragement and advice.

1. Give yourself a pat on the back.

You’re at least attempting to do something about your situation. The average person does not bother to put their income and expenses on paper (or

computer). The poor think they don’t have enough money to make a budget work. The rich think they have too much money for a budget to even be necessary. As for the ones in between – well, they don’t do budgets either for any number of reasons.

Those who properly manage the resources they have (no matter how much that is) through the use of a written budget are the ones who make the most of their money and improve their financial situation. Those who take time to put their current income and expenses on paper have a better understanding of exactly where the money is going and therefore can make informed decisions about how to spend it.

So, give yourself a pat on the back. You’re willing to put yourself on a budget and say “no” to yourself (regarding purchases) at least once in a while. That makes you above average, at worst.

2. Be honest with yourself.

The word current above was italicized for a reason. That’s because many make the mistake of doing their budget based upon income or expenses that are not reality. They inflate the income based upon a bonus or pay increase they hope to get. Or, they lower their food, clothing, and entertainment expense categories to a number they think they can stick to. It’s good to have goals and to have a financial budget that you want to make happen at some point in time. However, if you’re a first time budgeter, it’s important to be honest with yourself about how much you have been spending in each category and how much you have coming in right now.

Put your current income and expenses on paper (or use a budgeting spreadsheet) first. This will give you the complete picture of where your money is going, and will be an eye opener in most cases. Skipping this step leads to denial. You need to come face to face with what you currently spend. Afterwards, you’ll be much more likely to set a realistic budget amount for each expense and actually stick to it. If you’re not sure how much you really spend in a particular category, write down every purchase for a month or some period of time. This will give you a good idea how much should be budgeted for that category.

3. Pay attention to details.

Budgets fail because they are too general and missing information. If you’re struggling financially, and your current written budget balances (income = expenses) the first time you do it, then it isn’t detailed enough. You left out some expenses (or possibly overstated your income). Some common budget omissions are: License plates, auto and home repairs, book fees, school functions, stamps, fast food, trips to the vending machines, Christmas (believe it or not), or extra trips to the grocery. Even small purchases must be budgeted for because they can add up to a significant amount of money very quickly.

For the first several months, track “every” expenditure on paper and keep all receipts. You’ll need this information to make adjustments to your budget. It may take some time, but you’ll eventually find ways to reduce expenses and/or generate more income so that your budget will balance AND have ALL expenses included. However, you’ll always find yourself out of money if you leave out too many details.

4. Remember who your source is.

God promises financial increase as well as other blessings to those who bring the first 10 percent of all money they receive to their local church as a tithe. (Malachi 3:10) God also promises to meet your every need. Philippians 4:19 – “And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” (NIV) So, when your budget just isn’t adding up and the situation seems hopeless, remember that you’re serving a God who is incapable of failing you. If you lose your job, that’s ok because you didn’t lose your true source of income. He cannot and will not go back on His promises to increase you and meet your needs.

If you’ll take the time to budget your money and make the most of the other 90%, God will honor you’re efforts. Your diligence will pay off, both in personal satisfaction and in your wallet. Proverbs 21:5 – “The plans of the diligent lead to profit…” (NIV) Never give up. God rewards tithers and those who are good stewards of His money. Bring your tithes to your local church and manage the other 90% properly through the use of a financial budget and you will have no choice but to be blessed. Budget, plan, and work like your financial success is all up to you. Do your part, and God will do His

The Christian Science Monitor has assembled a diverse group of the best economy-related bloggers out there. Their postings appear here on the Monitor's Money site as well as on their own individual blog sites. Our guest bloggers are not employed or directed by the Monitor and the views expressed are the blogger's own, as is responsibility for the content of their blogs. To contact us about a blogger, click here. To add or view a comment on a guest blog, please go to the blogger's own site by clicking on the link above.

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Financial guru Dave Ramsey in his broadcasting studio in Brentwood, Tenn. (Josh Anderson/AP/File)

Financial Peace University | Review #1

By Christian Personal Finance, Guest Blogger / 02.19.10

This week Bob and I started Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University. It’s a thirteen week class. Each week starts with a DVD of Dave Ramsey talking about certain topics and then after we have small group time where we are free to talk about what we just heard and ask questions, etc.

I’m really excited because I feel like I’m going to learn a bunch! I’m excited to see and hear what everyone gets out of this class since I only have a 28 year old experience with money. Here are a few nuggets I got from this week…

“One definition of maturity is learning to delay pleasure. children do what feels good; adults devise a plan and follow it.”

Very true. A clean house is better and more comfortable than a dirty house – especially when your parents come over. Ha ha!

“No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.” Hebrews 12:11

“Money is amoral.”

It’s not good or evil. This was a good one for me. I used to just absolutely hate money. I just wanted to avoid it! But Dave Ramsey used an example of a brick. If a person has a brick and throws it through a window, they’re using it for evil purposes. But if they take the brick and build a home for someone who doesn’t have a home, then they’re using it to make a wonderful difference. And it’s the same with money.

I realized that one of my main motivations for being interested in money is for reasons like helping the people in Haiti. I can’t really help them if I don’t have enough money to pay my bills. But if I can use money as a tool to get a job done, then that sparks my interest. God has put it in my to give. It’s part of my genetic make-up as a Christian. So I’m going to use that to complete Hebrews 12:11. I may not enjoy telling myself “no” when I find new boots that I want to buy, but I really enjoy sending my church mission organization down to Haiti because I skipped a few worldly “feel goods.”

So, what about you? What are your motivations for being interested in changing your financial situation?

Have you been to this class? What did you get out of it?

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A bunch of great ways to save money

By Bob Lotich, Guest Blogger / 02.16.10

This year I’ve been doing a series of resource posts on some of the most widely covered topics. So far we’ve covered how to make a personal budget and ways to cut your debt. This week we are focusing on some great ways to save money.

I still remember the day it dawned on me that by actually thinking about and monitoring where my money was going, I could actually have a lot more of it. As a person who spent many years not paying attention to where my money was going, it was quite an eye-opening experience.

I remember seeing my credit card bills and wondering to myself how going out to eat a few times and a knick-knack here or there could add up to hundreds of dollars. I would often recalculate the totals because I was sure that the credit card company had made a mistake. Yet I never found a calculation error on their end – it turned out it was just foolish overspending on mine!

Begining to try to save money

I then began to actually try to cut back on going out to eat, say no to unnecessary purchases, and invest some time shopping for a better deal. To my surprise, the small amount of energy that I put into saving money yielded hundreds of dollars of savings – rather than just a few bucks that I previously assumed.

To clarify, I just thought all the money-saving techniques, like buying used, cutting coupons, and cooking food at home would only yield a small amount of savings – so I never tried them. Since I was good at spending more money than I had, I was able to save a lot of money just by making a few small adjustments.

Americans love new cars and eating out

I remember interviewing a very wealthy mentor of mine and he said that many Americans trade retirement savings for being able to drive a new car and go out to eat. He explained that just by making the sacrifice of not always driving a new car and eating at home, it is so much easier to get ahead and build wealth. (Related Article: How your car affects your financial freedom)

Over the years I can say that I can’t agree more – particularly when it comes to cars. The average American spends way too much money on car-related expenses. From paying for the car itself, interest charges, insurance, maintenance and repairs, and taxes some people end up spending over 30% of their income for car-related expenses. All for something that quickly depreciates and typically sells for a fraction of what you pay for it new.

Eating out

I still love eating out, but my wife and I have chosen to make it more of a celebratory event – rather than a daily occurrence. To save money when we do eat out, we often use our Entertainment Book cut our our bill by just about half.

So anyway, while cars and food are two great places to start saving money, there are countless other ways to save some bucks…

10 Cheap (or Free) Ways to Lose Weight

By Bob Lotich, Guest Blogger / 02.16.10

Want to lose weight this year?

I officially welcome you to the club of several million people. It is one of the top new years resolutions. By the end of this year you will want to graduate from the “I decided to lose weight this year “ club and become a member of the “I lost weight this year” club. The I-lost-weight club has many less members than the club you now belong to.

The decision to lose weight is a highly emotional one. You are now looking to the future with so many hopes and expectations. You are now in a great position to start justifying some spending. What better investment could you make than into your own health? Surely every dollar you spend today will be saved in health and life insurance premiums. Think of all the medical bills you save.

Don’t wrongly justify spending a lot of money to get in shape. I come to you today as a still small voice – it doesn’t take a lot of money to get in shape. As an example, you can frugally train for a half or full marathon.

10 Cheap Ways To Lose Weight and Get in Shape

Rule #1 – Buy today what you want/need today.

With your new vision of your skinny self you head out to do some shopping.

Before you know it, you’ve spent $500 dollars on new exercise clothes, running shoes, and a gym membership.

However, you are better off asking yourself – do I need that today? Most of our fitness spending is based on what we are sure we will need tomorrow. Think, for example, about new exercise clothes. When you first start your fitness plan it will probably start with some casual walking. Do you really need a $50 Under Armor shirt to walk around the block? How about those $200 running shoes? Don’t you think that your old $50 running shoes would suffice?

Buy the minimal items at first, and then as you start to exercise you can get more ‘technical’ gear.

Rule #2 – If you buy exercise equipment, buy only one piece of equipment.

To be honest, I’m not a fan of a lot of exercise equipment. However, I recognize that many of you live in a frozen tundra and think your lungs will collapse if you try and exercise outside. So I’m going to give you a little leeway.

However, you should only buy one piece of exercise equipment. If you don’t use this rule, you will own something for abs, biceps, and cardiovascular fitness – all within the first day. You don’t need to (and can’t) get in shape overnight. If you start with one small new exercise you are on the right track – don’t buy everything at once.

Rule #3 – Shop Used.

I’ll let you in on a little trade secret …

Most exercise equipment sits in a corner collecting dust. You could probably buy a used treadmill that is four years old for a 90% discount. And the machine has probably only been used for a total of 15 hours. There is no reason to buy new equipment.

Where do you get used sports equipment?

Second Hand Stores – I think exercise equipment is on thing you should always shop second hand first.
Used athletic stores – like Play It Again Sports
Craigslist
Network – let people at church know what you’re interested in buying. Yet, another advantage of forming a frugal community.

Rule #4 – Include physical fitness spending in your budget.

It is too easy to justify fitness spending. While it is so important to get into shape, don’t give yourself a blank check for spending. Don’t destroy your finances in an effort to get fit. By the end of the year you probably wouldn’t feel any better about yourself.

All your exercise spending is subject to the old rules of the budget – budget it or you don’t spend it. If you spent the budgeted amount – don’t spend any more.

Rule #5 – Do your own cooking.

There is not a single company in the world that has a product that makes you skinny just by eating THEIR brand of food. You can get online and look for healthy recipes and cook your own food. Use sites like livestrong.com to help you monitor and track your required daily food intake.

Rule #6 – Take advantage of free.

Before you race out to take advantage of the predictable January sale at the gym, ask yourself if there is a way you could exercise for free.

Free options include – walking/running, community centers with free resources, an exercise room at work. Sure, these options might not have all the bells and whistle, but let me remind you, you are a beginner so you don’t need all the bells and whistles.

Rule #7 – Do your own exercise at home.

There are a lot of great plans for getting into shape. Most, however, require highly specialized equipment. However, you can often use resources in your own home.

Use paint cans or rocks to work your biceps.
Find a bar at home for chin ups.
Use a chair to work your triceps.
Do sit ups and push ups without any equipment.

Use your kids as weights. Sometimes I just wrestle with my kids and lift them up for the exercise. (I’m glad this post doesn’t have a full body shot because I’m about the size of a twig on a dead tree).

I’m not saying that for the rest of your life you’re only going to use paint cans to get in shape. However, after you’ve developed a habit and proved to yourself you’re going to stick with it – then go buy better stuff.

Rule #8 – Don’t sign a long term gym contract.

Hmmm. Not much more to say here. Buy it month by month until you see if it is getting used – then sign the long term contract.

Rule #9 – Buy one good fitness book or use the internet.

The internet is packed full with useful information on fitness. Find a cheap at home fitness plan online.

Otherwise, you might want to get a book that will give you some structure and exercise plans. I have the book Fit & Well – it has lots of at home exercises.

Rule #10 – Don’t register for that marathon today.

You’re on fire because on January 1st you ran around the block. As a person who was a long distant runner for several years, I’d advise you to wait to sign up for the marathon till you know you’re ready. There can be a lot of registration fees lost if you find you set your goal to prematurely.

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