Why oh why do I fall away from what I know works? It doesn’t require copious amounts of energy. But what’s comfortable, or “the way I’ve always done it” is hard to let go of, even if it is making us miserable. I know, it doesn’t make an ounce of sense. Before Financial Peace, I was not so blissfully ignorant of how better my financial life could be. I assumed it would be hard to be responsible. The truth is that it is in fact so simple that my ignorance is hard to swallow when I must confess to irresponsible financial behavior. Less stress is the result when you have an accurate and truthful screen capture of your financial life. It is hard to let go of the bad financial habits. We are absolutely light years of where we were when our minister first said the words “Financial Peace” in a sermon last January. Now at least I know better and have a little disappointment- even shame- when I don’t name every single one of the dollars in our income and outgo. I know now that I can blow all my hard work in one shopping trip, and that shopping trip might make the difference in how long it takes us to break free from Financial Peace. Dollars that are being frittered away because of poor planning aren’t going to pay down off our dept.

I hate balancing the checkbook. I hate paying bills (if you do like it, you’re weird). I spend more energy dreading doing the tasks than it requires to do them, and since starting Financial Peace, it’s never as bad as I feared. I’ve been conditioned to think the worse. But the truth is that the lessons really are sinking in, and one day of less than perfect (not necessarily bad) choices doesn’t throw it all away. I’ve just got to break the budget forms out again and sit down and have our budget committee meetings. We need a Financial Peace Check-up. It’s been our 3 months (actually a little less )or 30k miles.

There are a number of ways to get back on track. The easiest for me is to go to Dave’s website and do some reading. Today I read of How to Become a Stress-Free Shopper. There’s nothing new learned because the steps to Financial Peace are consistent and Biblically based. It isn’t a gimic, or membership dues. In fact, it is possible to take Dave’s advice for free. Check the books out from the library, download the budgeting forms for free. His radio shows and TV show is also free. The FPU course is reasonable, and it’s a lifetime membership. It’s necessary for hard heads like me to have accountability. I can’t begin to quantify the stress that we’ve let go of since making the commitment to start the program. I’m grateful that now, with Dave’s help, I have the common sense to know when I’m making bad decisions and can be responsible and accountable to my self. I have the fundamentals that are important to our financial plan, and must be in place in order for us to obtain Financial Peace. How long it takes us to get there is dependent on how well we stick to our plan.

~Manda

17 He who loves pleasure will become poor;
whoever loves wine and oil will never be rich.

This verse in Proverbs doesn’t expressly explain will those who love rich will become poor, but it can be studied and applied to several scenarios. In the context of Financial Peace, I believe that we can safely infer that someone who spends all his money on things that gratify him will not obtain Financial Peace. Dave says over and over that a mature adult delays gratification, children do what feel good. We’re a country of poor people because we love pleasure. We see it, we want it, we get it. So what if we can’t afford it.

Our very economy is based on borrowing. Debt is our National Product. What would happen to our economy if everyone quit loving pleasure, and bought things that they could afford with cash. According to the book of Proverbs, we would be a rich nation. Driving home tonight I heard on WTOP News (although I can’t find a link to it and couldn’t write it down), that the ultimate cost of this bailout will be more than all previous major government purchases and bailouts (Lousianna Purchase, New Deal.. etc) combined, even factoring in inflation. Yowzaa. The bailout is to keep stimulating our economy, so that… we can continue to borrow. So that we the Government can continue to be our master. Debt indentures you to your creditor.

Proverbs 22: 7b

and the borrower is servant to the lender.

When does the Government run out of money?

To continue the Proverbs lesson:

Proverbs 11:5
He who puts up security for another will surely suffer,
but whoever refuses to strike hands in pledge is safe.

Proverbs 17:18
A man lacking in judgment strikes hands in pledge and puts up security for his neighbor.

Proverbs 22:26-27
26 Do not be a man who strikes hands in pledge
or puts up security for debts;
27 if you lack the means to pay,
your very bed will be snatched from under you.

Security in today’s context is credit. In Financial Peace, Dave gives the generational evolution of how credit in the country. Henry Ford gave no credit in his lifetime, but now the auto industry is now holding out its hand. Our economy is broken beyond repair. Those who have given credit will suffer Proverbs said. The government has designated industries that “can’t fail”. They can’t fail, to complete the cycle, because the Government needs to keep the country in a state of servitude.

The truth is that the country can survive without debt, because it has. Only in the last 2 generations has the country become reliant on credit. Our grandparents thought debt was stupid. Our great grandparents were embarrassed and ashamed of debt. Our country now relies on it, to the point that we borrow from the citizens in order to pay the industries so that the citizens can borrow {?!?}. We freak out when we can’t gladly pay you on Tuesday for a hamburger today (apologies to Wimpy). Perhaps not in our lifetime, but even perhaps during our lifetime, these “can’t fail” industries can fail, or in the vary least must be reformed into an industry that we no longer recognize. We should work diligently to break free from their indenture and obtain Financial Peace and the Freedom that comes with it.

On this Thanksgiving Day, I’m thankful that God led me to Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace, and I’m happy that I can live as an example (of not only what to do right, but the struggle, and what can go wrong), and that hopefully, one day, I’ll no longer be indentured to my debtors and I can work in order to help those willing to rip up their contracts, and break free.

~Manda

The other reason I have been blogging much on Time to Budget is because I don’t really like to take about my financial stresses. Things have not been easy for my husband and I. The rising gas prices was the start of it and since the prices rose we have not been able to get a good handle on our finances.

When things become difficult to handle thoughts of throwing in the towel often pop into my head. When I have these type of thoughts I always come back to reasoning – eventually. Why would we just quit and forget all the progress we have made over the last few years? Sometimes quitting seems easier than moving forward but it really isn’t.

Quitting is not an option. If we were to quit now then all of what we have learned over the past few years will have been a waste of energy. The knowledge we have gained through Financial Peace would be meaningless if we do not put them into action.

We have to remember that steps in the right direction will eventually help us reach our target. How ever small the steps may be they will still take us to our destination.

We are still on the road to Financial Peace…one small step forward at a time.

~Mona

Our “gazelle intensity” has reduced significantly and I think it has to do with the fact that things don’t appear to be changing very. Things are improving slowing but not as fast as I would like it to. We have not acquired any new debt since November of 2005 and I am quite proud of that. Even when times were tough we decided to trust that God would provide and He always did.

There are some things we decided not to give up that would have probably helped our financial situation. Our two horses have added to our expenses but I don’t want to give them up because quite frankly, I am attached and good horses are hard to find.  Unlike a car or a boat, it takes time for a horse and human to bond. Time invested in training and bonding is not simple process either. My husband and I both realize that by not letting go of these horse we are sacrificing at hopes of gaining financial freedom sooner than later but we feel it is worth it anyway.

Though things did not go the way I had hoped this year I am still hopeful that next year will bring better results. There are a lot of plans in the making for increasing my income in 2008 and I am confident that my income will increase. Now that I have my own laptop I am able to work more in less time which means the new year will be far more productive than this year.

Investing time into blogging and other online ventures is very important key in success. Since I am a home schooling mother of two children and a toddler, time is usually not on my side. As a wife, work-at-home mother and teacher, I have had to find balance this past year. This is not an easy task because there are so many responsibilities that need balance. This past year I decided that what time I could contribute to my online ventures would have to be enough and have asked God to bless the time I could contribute. Just about on a daily basis I have asked God to bless my efforts. By giving up my perception of control and allowing God to do His work in me, He has truly blessed my efforts.  I will continue to do this in 2008 and believe that God will continue to bless my efforts.

My hope is that this blog as well as my other blog can be an encouragement to the people who read it. Whether it is that you can relate to our families financial struggles and find comfort in that or that you have found information I have posted useful my hope is that this blog can be helpful to it’s readers. Have a Happy New Year!

I searched online for a story that would put things in perspective for us and I found a great one on Inspirational Journal.

One day a father and his rich family took his son to a trip to the country with the firm purpose to show him how poor people can be. They spent a day and a night in the farm of a very poor family. When they got back from their trip the father asked his son,

“How was the trip?”

“Very good Dad!”

“Did you see how poor people can be?” the father asked.

“Yeah!”

“And what did you learn?”

The son answered, “I saw that we have a dog at home, and they have four. We have a pool that reaches to the middle of the garden; they have a creek that has no end. We have imported lamps in the garden; they have the stars.

Our patio reaches to the front yard, they have a whole horizon.” When the little boy was finishing, his father was speechless.

His son added, “Thanks Dad for showing me how poor we are!”

Isn’t it true that it all depends on the way you look at things? If you have love, friends, family, health, good humor and a positive attitude towards life – you’ve got everything!

Whether we are speaking of success with finances, building a business or overcoming something the basic truths are the same. In order to be successful we need to expect failure and be able to embrace that failure by learning from it. We need to persevere and “keep moving forward”. Here are some quotes that sum up what it takes to achieve success.

“If at first you do succeed — try to hide your astonishment.”
Harry F. Bank

“Success is not a matter of desire, but the product of hard work.”
Jack Barringer

“I have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome while trying to succeed.”
Booker T. Washington

“Success seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after others have let go.”
William Feather

I think that even though we may understand that family is more important than money our actions don’t always show that we believe it. If we live a life that is focussed on money and don’t recognize that our families are really much more important than money, we might live a life that is unfulfilled. Chasing the dollar is not a reason for living.

The importance of money varies from household to household but for the most part I think most can say that money is not what brings happiness. It is true that some families are truly suffering because of the lack of money but I don’t think that the money itself is what should be sought. Our families and friends can bring us much more fulfillment than money could ever. God did not design us to find long term satisfaction in anything other than Him but I think relationships with people are a close second.

Money and power give temparary comfort and satisfaction. This is why so many people with money and/or power strive to get more. There is never enough money or power for those that seek it. Relationships however are lasting. A good friend, a child, a mother or a sibling can give your life meaning and satisfaction.

I for one don’t want to let my money troubles take the focus off of what really matters in life which is my family and friendship. I hope you don’t either

Doubt has crept into all of our lives at one time or another. Sometimes doubt is there when we wake up, driving to work or school, going to sleep at night or in the middle of a restless sleep. Should we allow doubt to control us? If we are doing the right things in life, should we be letting doubt have any control?

The lack of confidence in our ability to do things that others don’t feel important is another issue we often struggle with.  Even when others do share the same goals we often have to battle with our own disbelief. Should we allow the lack of self confidence to control us? When we know we are making the right discussions, should we allow our lack of confidence to have any control?

What does a person who is self assured (or Christ assured) look like? A person who does not let doubt and lack of confidence control them is focussed, intentional, plans ahead, and lets life happen with out becoming discouraged or distracted. I wish I could tell you that I was this person. As long as I am striving to be the person that I know I should be, great improvements can take place. We should not disregard the small steps that are taken. Taking small steps are still steps taken to reach the finish line.

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Tags: goal+setting, financial+freedom, self+confidence

My teenage daughter predicted I was going to blog about a conversation I had with my neighbor today about money. She was right but it was my daughters suggestion that prompted me to write about it .

My neighbor was talking about some improvements she wanted to make to her house and said “The money tree stopped growing money”. I thought this was very funny and proceeded to tell her we never had a money tree and that we are still trying to grow ours.

I think we all wish there was a money tree. We may not have the ability to plant a physical seed and grow a physical tree but we can grow money. Proper handling of money and smart investing is a way of growing money. My response to my neighbor may have been good for a laugh but it really did have truth to it once I thought about it. I am still growing my money tree. At this point my tree is still a seed under ground but eventually it will take root, sprout and grow into a tree as long as my husband and I stay focussed on nurturing our seed.

We must not forget to water it (pay down debt), keep the soil fertile (spend wisely), offer it sunlight (save for the future) and prune it when necessary (have self-control and say no to impulse buys). As we watch our money tree grow we need to be sure we are not neglecting any of it’s needs because it only takes a short time for a tree to die, especially a money tree .

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The question I have been asking myself most lately is “Can I be happy with what I already have?”. Yes, I can be happy with what I already have but I need to make a conscious effort not to think about what I don’t have. The baby steps necessary to reach a life of financial freedom are also necessary to reach a content state of mind.

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