Christian finances
Financial affairs are important for everyone. Many times, a person falls short of required money for fulfilling different types of objectives and in such cases; he has to take loan from various types of financial institutions. Christian finance is all about the control on the monetary needs of a person as well as his family. Families observing Christian finance principles actually go by the sayings as provided in the Holy Bible. There are many types of financial tools, tips and information regarding budget available in Bible by following which, a person can easily lead a Christian life. Whether it is a Christian family or Non-Christian family, financial difficulties are faced by all of them and financial requirements can be fulfilled by way of Christian principles also.
BASICS OF CHRISTIAN FINANCES
There are many basics of Christian Finances that should be understood clearly for leading a Christian life. First of all, a person should accept that God is interested in financial lives of people and wants everybody to be fit financially in every areas of life. Of course, as per the Bible, there is a financial plan provided by God and a person should follow this plan to fulfill financial requirements. This plan includes Biblical principles pertaining to credit, budget, employment, investment, debt, and savings. Thus, each aspect of finance is covered in this plan. There are many views regarding money found in Christian community. Some says that possessions and money are evil and a pure Christian should never go for these. There is also another group of people that says God does not deny anything and all wealth with a person is result of believing in this faith only. These teachings have been drawn from different parts of bible. There are also many Christian organizations that teach another theory regarding possessions and money. As per these organizations, a person should give specific percentage of possessions and money back to god. There are also some organizations that believe that taxation departments are doing this on the part of God and thus, there is no need of doing so.
So far the employment and earnings are concerned, as per Christian principles, one should work and earn, as it is not right as per bible to be unproductive or lazy. God has made us to work and earn. We should not expect God to provide us all the required things. If we are not working in the required manner, we are stealing something from the employer and it is strictly against the Christian principles. Thus, a person should work hard to deserve good money. Other part of Christian Finances that should be understood carefully is budget. As per the Christian principles, it is not enough on the part of a person to earn money and have all the things he requires. A person should use the money in a careful and planned manner. Budget should be made with regards to income and for earning enough money; it is very much required that a person controls his spending, which can easily be done by way of Budget. As per Christian principles, a good budget include all financial aspects like loan payments, expenses, housing, transportation, clothing, food, gifts, communication, gratuities, taxes, entertainment, communication, investment, travel, insurance, donations and savings. Each item of budget mentioned above should contain appropriate percentage of overall spending. For example, if made in Christian way, debt payment can be 40%, savings and giving can be 20% each and lifestyle spending can be 20% of the overall amount. Thus, if any person takes a loan of $100 from any financial institution, he should make $40 towards the debt repayment. Managing the credit and debt is also important part of Christian Finances. As per the Christian principles, a person should avoid debt. This is because a person cannot serve money as well as God at the same time. Thus, for leading a Christian life, it is must that a person leads a debt free life. However, for fulfilling his basic requirements, a person can go for getting loans on Christian principles like going for mortgage loans for owning a house. Christian Finances also say about savings and investments. A person should not consume the whole money earned by him. Only foolish people do that. A person must save some money from his earnings to for fulfilling other objectives later in the life. Similarly, investment made by a person should not be confined to one source only. A person should make investment in different types of source in different types of instruments. Attitude towards money is also important. A person should never put money above God or himself or family members. Wealth must be used in Christian way to fulfill the Gods plan.
Christian finances also deals with Christian Giving and Receiving. If a person wants to be a receiver, he has to first become a giver. Once a person has become a giver, he becomes worth to receive the blessings of god. It is said that god allows a person to be receiver of His generosity only when he has become a giver. However, this philosophy on giving and receiving has been greatly debated. Some says a person should give at least 10% of his income to be a true Christian. Some says 10% factor is not rigid. A person can give as much as he can afford or as per his requirements. Different ways of giving included in the Christian Finances include Cheerfully giving, Willingly giving, Privately giving and Generously giving. There are also some people that include First Giving, that is, a person should give before he makes his budget.
HOW TO GET CHRISTIAN ADVICE
There are many sources that provide advisory services regarding Christian financial planning. In fact, a person can get Christian investment advice also from such sources. In most of cases, advice is provided on the basis of fiduciary-fee only. Such sources do not sell any type of financial product and instead, they provide quality Christian advice only. For example, Prestige Advisors is one such firm in United States, which is located at 1100 S. Townsend Ave. Montrose, Colorado.
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