From: Jim Baker, Pastor and Founder of Wealth with God
I get it. The “money thing” can be frustrating.I’ve been a pastor and traveling speaker for 25 years and here is what I see: many Christians who genuinely love God struggle with money.
They want to be more generous…
They want to create better memories with their family…
They want to be out of debt…
Here’s what I know:
Christians who want to have more money for more impactface two major obstacles…
These 2 obstacles always keep their vision just out of reach.
What are the two obstacles?
Well, before I tell you, let me show you the kinds of statements I hear from Christians all of the time.
Which of these can you relate to?
“I’m so tired of living paycheck to paycheck.”
“There has to be more to Kingdom finances than just tithes and offerings”
“I don’t even know where to begin.”
“I don’t know how or what to invest in…and I’m afraid of losing money.”
“I’m starting too late.”
“It feels like nothing will ever change in my finances.”
“I feel like I should be farther along…”
“I’m not providing for my family the way I want to…”
“I don’t know if I’ll ever get out of debt. I feel like a slave to it.”
“I feel like I am living in survival mode. It’s hard to even dream about more.”
“I wish my spouse could stay home with the kids, but they have to work.”
“I’m afraid I won’t have enough in retirement.”
If you are like most of my students before they start working with me, then you have already been thinking some of these thoughts to yourself.
So, why do so many Christians struggle with money?
I’m so glad you asked…
I see 2 main reasons:
THE #1 REASON CHRISTIANS STRUGGLE WITH MONEY
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“MY PEOPLE PERISH FOR A LACK OF…”
Go ahead and finish the sentence, “My people perish for a lack of…”
“Money.”
No.
“Time.”
Nope.
“Faith.”
Not it either.
God said, “My people perish for a lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6).
Go back and look at all of those statements above Christians make about money. What is the root cause? Lack of knowledge.
It is either a lack of knowledge about God—what He is really like and who He actually wants to be for you.
(He is better than you think…so let’s change the way you think!)
Or it is a lack of knowledge about money—how it actually works in the Kingdom of God and on earth.
What 95% of Us Were Never Taught
If you’re like most Christians, you weren’t taught in church about money beyond tithes and offerings.
Listen: You cannot build wealth through tithes and offerings alone, but you will not build wealth with God without generosity.
Your family probably taught you to go to school, get a good job, and work hard for your money…but you weren’t taught how to have your money work for you.
As important as money is in our daily lives, most Christians have not taken their financial learning seriously.
Kingdom Wealth Builders, however, are different.
For them, money is just another way to be intimate with Jesus.
We don’t love money; we serve God with our money. We turn our dollars into soldiers to accomplish Kingdom purposes.
We seek vision, not provision.
The difference between financial mediocrity and financial abundance is financial knowledge.
It is having the knowledge and the wisdom of what to do…with God.
But financial knowledge isn’t enough. There is another reason that keeps Christians stuck…
When It Comes to Money, There Are Two Paths…
The path of earned income or
The path of passive income.
In other words, you can work for money or money can work for you.
On one path you get paid only for what you do; on the other you get paid no matter what you do.
At the end of this path is a place of provision for your vision where you have enough money working for you…
…so that you no longer have to work for money…
Income from Investments > Living Expenses
Where the income from your investments is greater than your living expenses…so you don’t have to ask money for permission to obey God or do what’s in your heart.
But that kind of passive income doesn’t happen by accident.
You first have to get the financial knowledge…
But there is something else you need…
THE #2 REASON CHRISTIANS STRUGGLE WITH MONEY
—
It’s been said that if you don’t know where you’re going, any path will get you there.
Interestingly, the opposite is equally true: If you know where you’re going, there is a best path for getting there.
Your fastest path to passive income comes from designing your own personalized Wealth M.A.P. (Massive Action Plan).
The goal of your Wealth M.A.P. is to get you on the positive, life-changing path to passive income in the shortest time possible.
Clarity + Action > Fuzzy
Your Wealth M.A.P. is kind of like a road map to drive you where you want to go.
It is kind of like a custom financial blueprint to build your financial house.
It makes your financial goals totally real. No more doubt. You will see if you do X, then you will get Y.
It becomes the bridge between where you are today and God’s provision for your vision
This isn’t some cookie-cutter, generic plan like you’d get from a financial advisor. Those don’t produce reliable results.
Your wealth plan must be custom fitted to your life, calling, gifts, skills, and resources.
There are many ways to achieve wealth,
but only one path that will uniquely fit you.
Your personalized Wealth M.A.P. is like your Kingdom Wealth Building Game Plan that helps you:
Get crystal clear on the exact steps you need to take daily so that wealth becomes a matter of “when” not “if”
“Collapse time” and generate 40 years’ worth of returns in 10 years or less.
Manage risk with every investment so you make more by losing less
Employ the 6 types of leverage so you can get more done with less of your own resources and shave 30 years off of your retirement plan
You risk lots of frustration and wasted time
You might be pursuing a path that doesn’t fit with God’s design for you
You could get stuck in “Where do I begin?” or “What should I do next?” syndrome
If you’re like most who have read this far, you’re starting to see the possibility of creating the provision for you vision
Imagine what it would be like if…
You never worried about finances again because you could easily trust the Lord to provide for your family’s needs.
You were wealthy on the inside—believing in the fullness of God’s ability to provide the resources, strength and wisdom to create positive outcomes in the midst of lack.
You had the financial intelligence to invest so that your money worked for you, so you no longer have to work for money
Scarcity and deprivation were not a part of your life because you moved from a budget to abundance.
You had clear action steps to take towards your wealth-building daily so that wealth was a matter of “when” not “if.”
Well, you don’t have to “imagine” any longer. Because…it’s here.
