Getting to the Heart

If you’re a math person, it might be easy to get excited about crunching numbers to figure out how to spend less, save more and give more.

If this isn’t you, but you’re married to someone like this, it probably seems like your spouse was born to budget. All the while, you hyperventilate when you see a spreadsheet.

“Maybe I’m just not cut out for this whole financial stewardship thing,” you think.

If the heart of stewardship was a fascination with numbers, that would be true. But thankfully, it’s not. The heart of financial stewardship is, simply, a love for God.

That’s good news for you and me because it means any one of us can steward our money well. When we love God above all else, we’ll start to see money for what it is. Money is not a god that rules us. It’s a gift from God to be used as a tool for God’s glory and the good of ourselves and others.

That’s exciting whether or not you’re a math lover.

How do we begin to address this in our own hearts? We need to ask one crucial, game-changing question: “Do I really want to be a good steward of what God has given me?”

I’m willing to bet you do. I’ve seen God take that “yes” desire in me and many others, grow it, and turn it into something that allows people to use money for good. And that’s really what stewarding God’s money is all about.

Sometimes we have to answer that game-changing question with a resounding “Yes!” every morning when we wake up. Or even multiple times a day.

But once we say “yes” and commit to saying “yes” over and over and over, we’re already on our way. I’d even argue that the hardest battle is already won.

James Pruch
Campus Ministry Field Staff | Stewardship Coach

P.S. Here are some suggested resources:

Escaping from the Love of Money (video) – Randy Alcorn

Thinking Right About Your Money (video series) – Ron Blue

A Call to Stewardship – Dave Ramsey