The Blessings of Budgeting

In my previous post, I explained how the Lord has lead us to be better stewards of the money He's entrusted us with. Now I want to give some examples of how we've been blessed by this method!

Last year, we noticed a really bad leak in our roof. Water would poor in down our fireplace! Michael, by then, was convicted of not using debt, and when we realized how much it would cost, we decided we would just wait until we had the cash to pay for it. We prayed about it, and the Lord kept our roof leak free for several months following that decision! In the spring, Michael earned some extra money from his real estate pursuits (he is an agent and also does some investing), and we decided right away that it was time for a new roof. That very night, the roof started leaking again - we took that as confirmation! By the next weekend, a new roof was on our house and we are again leak-free, and still debt-free. In the past, that extra money would have been owed to someone else already, and not our own to use as needed. Being debt free is *so* important.

Just recently, our Suburban's transmission died. To have it replaced is going to cost us around $2000. In the past, we would have had to borrow that sort of money - from family, or just use the credit card. But because we have been slowly and surely putting a monthly amount of money into our car repair account, plus a little bit of savings, we will also be able to pay for this expense with cash! And we will still have some savings left! Its amazing what a blessing this is, it is absolutely a first for us.

Finally, the biggest way we've been blessed in how free we are to give now. Instead of being under the burden of debt, or barely able to make our own ends meet because of poor management and discipline, we are now in a position to give - freely and generously! On top of our regular tithe, we have been able to bless others with small gifts of encouragement, give to organizations like the local Pregnancy Resource Center, and to ministries across the country and around the world that are blessing others through their outreach. This, by far, is the most rewarding aspect of managing our finances well.

The money that we earn is, like all of our lives, to be used for the glory and in the will of the Lord. Without proper management, this is impossible! I hope that our testimony has encouraged you in your budgeting goals.