Saving--from Money (for women only)

"Steady plodding brings prosperity; hasty speculation brings poverty." Proverbs 21:5 (TLB)

Steady. Steady working, steady spending less than you earn, steady giving, steady saving....consistency is what brings prosperity. Little by little.

In the Christian community, we have a few ways that saving is viewed. Some might say that because saving for the future is considered wise (particularly from many passages in Proverbs) that it is unwise to be very generous because you aren't preparing for the dangers to come. Others would say that if you're saving so much for the future, you're holding out on following God's command to give, especially sacrificially. Others would say that by saving, one lacks the faith that God would provide in your time of need. However, saving in itself is not necessarily a result of a lack of faith in God's provision. It's all a matter of the heart.

One heart may be saving out of fear, hoarding money and possessions to be able to provide for oneself against something that may or may not happen in the future. Or another heart saving in order to live quite comfortably in retirement in those greener pastures we hear about. One heart may be selfishly spending or carelessly giving away everything he has without any consideration as to what God's plan for the provision is. We must listen to the Holy Spirit, watch for the Lord's working, seeking out His counsel through prayer and reading the Bible in order to know what God wants us to do with His money and His things.

Really, saving IS considered wise:

Proverbs 30:24-25 says "There are four things on earth that are small but unusually wise: Ants--they aren't strong, but they store up food for the winter." And it goes on to discuss the wisdom of some other creatures. Joseph was an extremely wise manager who helped Egypt prepare for the coming famine that God revealed to the Pharaoh through a dream. Joseph listened to God's warning and prepared for the dangers, not out of fear, but in wisdom--you'll see more from Joseph in our Bible study from this week.

We save also so as not to presume upon God. What I mean is that we should not go and spend everything we get, or even give everything we get so as to presume that God will provide for us in our need when it comes--especially when it is the abundance that we are giving away that is to be our provision. How do you know how to handle that? That's why we are to make our spending, giving and saving decisions spiritual decisions, ones in which we seek the Lord on a daily basis to find out His plan. We make goals that we believe will honor God, and we need to continually put those before Him and allow Him to make changes as well as show His favor on us through helping us achieve those goals.

Whether we save a lot or a little, the way to keep our heart in the right place is to always walk with open hands--be ready to let some or all of it go when He calls. We don't want to become focused on this earthly treasure that rusts, gets eaten by moths or can be stolen, but we do want to focus on the heavenly treasure that God promises is waiting for us. Let's also not become like the Rich Fool in Luke 12:13-21:

"Then someone called from the crowd, 'Teacher, please tell my brother to divide our father's estate with me.' Jesus replied, 'Friend, who made me a judge over you to decide such things as that?' Then he said, 'Beware! Don't be greedy for what you don't have. Real life is not measured by how much we own.' And he gave an illustration: 'A rich man had a fertile farm that produced fine crops. In fact, his barns were full to over-flowing. So he said, 'I know! I'll tear down my barns and build bigger ones. Then I'll have room enough to store everything. And I'll sit back and say to myself, My friend, you have enough stored away for years to come. Now take it easy! Eat, drink, and be merry!' But God said to him, 'You fool! You will die this very night. Then who will get it all? Yes, a person is a fool to store up earthly wealth but not have a rich relationship with God.'"

Some translations say "are not rich toward God." Yes, I think it's talking about having a rich relationship with God, but you also have to remember that Jesus really is talking about money and possessions here, and we also know that Jesus identifies himself with the poor and the needy from reading in Matthew 25. So when we are generous toward those that are hungry, thirsty, needing clothes, or visit the sick and those in prison, are we not being rich toward God? "I assure you, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!" Matt 25:40

What can you say? It is a balancing act that requires constant communication with the Lord, sensitivity to the Holy Spirit. Yes, spend less than you earn and give and save the rest. It's wise to save, but remember the widow and her two pennies? She was commended by Jesus for giving all that she had--more than what the religious leaders were giving and with a heart focused on pleasing God rather than following rules.


Finish up reading The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey. Next week, we'll begin reading Money, Possessions & Eternity by Randy Alcorn.

Click here for week 6 Bible study on Saving

Continue working on your 30-Day Diaries and filling out your Income & Expenses worksheet. We will begin to adjust our budgets as we finish the originals.