Proverbs About Money: A Proverb A Day Keeps Poverty
Away
January
13, 2019. by Tim Kiser
If
you could spend five to
ten minutes per day with a person who had a net worth of $2.2 trillion would
you do it?
King Solomon wrote most
of the thirty-one Proverbs and all of them are at our disposal free of charge.
The wisdom contained in
these short chapters is life-changing.
New fads appear on a
regular basis. Regrettably some survive and thankfully most die. In the realm
of money there are always new ideas and concepts. Most are baloney. I prefer to
stick with ancient wisdom that has survived thousands of years.
I realize there are
many extremely smart individuals on Wall Street but these are the same people
that lead Enron, Lehman Brothers, and similar debacles. I’ll lean on God and
His team of experts. He has promised to teach us how to profit.
Thus
says the Lord, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: “I am the Lord your God
who teaches you to profit, who leads you in the way you should go” (Isaiah
48:17, ESV).
The Bible is overflowing with money references.
Many are positive and others are dire warnings. We need both to keep us on the
straight and narrow.
I’ve pulled five
specific Proverbs in which God teaches us to profit. Perhaps you would like to
add your favorite in the comment section.
- Proverbs Teaches Us To Resist Debt
- Proverbs Teaches Us To Transfer Risk
- Proverbs Teaches Us To
Practice Generosity
- A Proverb A Day Can Improve
Your Financial Wisdom
Proverbs Teaches Us To Plan
“The
plans of the diligent lead surely to abundance, but everyone who is hasty comes
only to poverty” (Proverbs 21:5, ESV).
You would be surprised
as to how many people drift through life without a financial dream, vision, or
a plan. A paycheck is received and it’s totally spent without any consideration
of the future. When our destiny is not considered, a terrible collapse is
inevitable (Lamentations 1:9). Planning is not rocket science but it does
require effort. It’s best to begin on a small scale.
I encourage families to
start with a budget. All is needed is a piece of paper and a pencil. I support
the zero based budget idea. In a zero based budget one simply spends every
penny on paper before the month begins. It’s similar to an architect creating a
blueprint for a builder to follow. Follow the plan, then measure twice, and cut
once.
“Most people don’t have
a plan. That’s why it’s easy to beat most folks” (Paul “Bear” Bryant).
Those with more salary
than expenses will be able to save and or invest.
A Call to Action: Begin tracking your expenses today. Start the budgeting process next month.
Proverbs Teaches Us To Save
“There
is desirable treasure, and oil in the dwelling of the wise, but a foolish man
squanders it all” (Proverbs 21:20, NKJV).
When It Rains It Pours
I have some bad news
and I have some worse news. The bad news is that everything you own will
eventually break and become useless. The worse news is that these thing have
the tendency to break down at the worst possible time. It’s going to rain on
your parade several times throughout your life. That’s why a rainy day fund is
needed.
I’ve heard them called
rainy day funds, emergency funds, and
I recently heard a friend call it a POM Fund (peace
of mind). Financial experts encourage folks to have 3-6 months of living
expenses set aside for job loss or other emergencies. Save more than 3-6 months if
possible.
Sinking Funds
At the end of December
there is a holiday many of us celebrate—Christmas. According to Investopedia,
American families spent a little less than $1,000 on
gifts for the holiday. Did you know you if you save about $80
per month you will have almost $1,000 to spend next Christmas. I know it’s like
some kind of magic! What else could we do with this financial freakiness?
Cars stop working,
appliances go kaput, roofs need to be replaced, and clothing becomes
unfashionable. These are all candidates for a sinking fund.
A technical definition
for sinking fund is an account established for the gradual repayment of
debt or the replacement of an asset (car, appliance, etc.).
Maybe you cannot tackle
all of these things right now. You can, however, choose one and begin to make
progress.
A Call to Action:
Save something each and every paycheck. When I first began
investing in my work 401(k) it was only 1%. It was a great way to dip my toe in
the water. Can you save $5.00 per check? Just start.
Proverbs Teaches Us To Resist Debt
“The rich rule over the
poor, and the borrower is slave to the lender” (Proverbs 22:7, NIV).
I wanted to write, “avoid
debt” instead of “resist debt” but it now requires more than simple avoidance.
Steering clear of debt requires tremendous grit and resistance. We must
intentionally decide to live a life free of debt and then fight tooth and nail
at remaining free from it’s siren song.
Long ago my wife and I
had our hearts set on spending a year in Sweden at Living Word Bible College.
Several of our friends packed their stuff and moved away for a life-changing
year of intensive discipleship. We did not get to go. We stayed back in
Kalamazoo, Michigan and paid off debt. It
was a humbling experience and one I have no intention of living again.
Debt steals from our
future. I want to remain financially free to do whatever God says whenever He
says to do it.
Let’s heed the warnings
from the Good Book: The borrower is slave to the lender.
Call to Action: Opt out of
prescreened credit card offers for five years. Maybe if you don’t see them you
won’t get tempted.
Proverbs Teaches Us To Transfer Risk
“A
prudent man foresees evil and hides himself; the simple pass on and are
punished” (Proverbs 27:12, NKJV).
I’m fascinated with the
book of Nehemiah. He was called to repair the protection around Jerusalem. The
wall was rebuilt and the gates were restored in only fifty-two days.
We all will need
financial protection at some point in our lives. Rainy day funds protect
against job loss. What about catastrophic events? How do we protect ourselves
from a catastrophe? We do so by transferring risk. It’s also known as
insurance. With insurance we purchase a policy and transfer the risk to the
insurer.
Everyone needs a
handful of different insurance types.
1.
Home
or Renters Insurance
2.
Automobile
3.
Health
4.
Term Life Insurance –
Stick with the inexpensive term policy through a reputable company. Get
coverage outside of your company if you’re able. Why? If you lose your job you
lose your coverage. Life insurance is another way we tell our family that we
love them.
5.
Long
Term Disability – What if? Unfortunately, I know several people that could have
benefited from LTD insurance but did not have it. At least check into it.
6.
Long
Term Care (before 60) – Similar to term life policies these become more
expensive as you age (for obvious reasons). Nursing homes are expensive.
Please, seriously consider transferring this risk. I have a family member that
could have used this coverage and does not have it. It’s real and it’s painful.
Call to Action: Get a
term life quote. Shop around for your home & auto—get at least 3 quotes. Do
you even know how much LTD or LTC insurance cost? The call is free.
Proverbs Teaches Us To Practice Generosity
“A
generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed”
(Proverbs 11:25, NIV).
I’m amazed at how God
orchestrated the interaction between His kids and money. Jesus was crystal
clear when He said we could not serve two masters. Money touches every area of
our lives. Everyday we’re interacting with dead presidents. Yet, we’re supposed
to stay free from the love of money. God teaches us to profit and empowers us
to get wealth but we must not love the stuff! The best way to stay free from
the love of money is to practice radical generosity.
The Kingdom of God is
an upside down Kingdom. It’s paradoxical in nature. If we want to be first we
must be last. Those who want to lead must serve. God promises those who give
will prosper. Jesus said that when we give it will be given
back to us. It does not make sense to our natural mind. Do it anyway.
Be a giver. Imitate
God by loving so much that you give!
Call to Action: The
next time you’re in a fast food drive through, pay for the car behind you.
A Proverb A Day Can Improve Your
Financial Wisdom
The Proverbs are
awesome.
I pulled five of them
for this article but there are dozens—maybe hundreds more that teach sound, financial
wisdom.
Read one per day and
commit to practice what you learn. After one month you will notice a major
improvement in your financial wisdom!
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