Wisdom for the Rainy Days, Part 2 (TMF:2455)

Friday, October 04, 2024

Peace to Live By: Wisdom for the Rainy Days, Part 2 (TMF:2455) - Daniel Litton
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No matter how good one’s job is going, you never know what is going to happen. It could be that things are going fine one day and then you find out the next that your company is shutting down your department, or laying people off and you happen to be one of those people. Having that six months in the bank then buys you time. Remember, Jesus talked about being wise in the Parable of the Ten Virgins. Recall, in that parable five of the virgins took extra oil with them and five of them did not. When the bridegroom was delayed, the five who did not take extra oil were out of business. They weren’t considered the wise ones. Well, in looking at this logic, we can see that we should also be good when it comes to how we handle our money. We don’t want to be found to be in trouble because we didn’t save any money up for an unexpected turn of events. We certainly don’t want to have faith in our money instead of God; we also don’t want to be unwise. I think knowing we have at least six months pay in the bank increases our happiness. It makes it so that there is not a constant cloud of stress lingering in the background over fear of what might happen.

Wisdom for the Rainy Days, Part 1 (TMF:2454)

Thursday, October 03, 2024

Peace to Live By: Wisdom for the Rainy Days, Part 1 (TMF:2454) - Daniel Litton
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I think it goes without saying that God wants us to be responsible when it comes to our finances. I mean, we really never know when money is going to get tight, when an unexpected expense, or series of expenses, are going to be come our way. Cars can break down, pets can get sick, trees can fall, water lines can rupture. All kinds of things can happen that take away money. It’s like King Solomon said that time and chance happen to everyone. No one is exempt from the normal, everyday flow of life, and that includes things that we don’t want to happen at times. In light of all of that, it seems to me like it’s a wise practice to have some money set aside for a rainy time. Personally, I like to have at least six months of my pay stored in the bank. The logic behind that is if I were to lose my job, I would have at least six months before I would need to get another job. Six months can be a long time. It can allow enough time to figure out what to do, or land another job, without being in a hurry and perhaps settling for something you don’t want.

Spending Money We Don’t Have, Part 2 (TMF:2453)

Wednesday, October 02, 2024

Peace to Live By: Spending Money We Don’t Have, Part 2 (TMF:2453) - Daniel Litton
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The Bible, particularly in Proverbs, warns us about this time and again. It warns us about managing our money. I mean, if you really want to get technical, isn’t spending money we don’t have a form of stealing? If I really think about it, I would say it definitely could be. Most of us don’t steal, wouldn’t even think of it. So, we need to be careful in thinking about spending money we don’t have. I do want to clarify here and state that I don’t think it’s wrong to borrow for a house, or for a car, or for something like these things. I mean, I think your intention is to pay back what you owe. What I am talking about is reckless spending—spending that we do not need to do, and yet do it anyway because we want this and that. You see, it’s no fun to be in debt. It’s no fun to have that dark cloud hanging over you. You wouldn’t want a rain storm to permanently move over the area and park for three months straight and just rain, and rain, and rain. And yet, it is like that when we are accumulating debt that we shouldn’t be. We are self-sabotaging, and that will take away our happiness.

Spending Money We Don’t Have, Part 1 (TMF:2452)

Tuesday, October 01, 2024

Peace to Live By: Spending Money We Don’t Have, Part 1 (TMF:2452) - Daniel Litton
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The truth is, a lot of people just simply spend money they don’t have. Yes indeed. I first got a credit card when I was in high school. And I remember, it was probably a year or two, maybe three, after I gotten it that I spent one month during the summer just living it up. I was hanging out with a friend or two and just charging away, not really paying attention to what I was doing. When I got the bill the next month, I realized I had blown $1700 dollars just eating out and having a good time. I thought, “My goodness. I didn’t realize I was going that far.” Yes, things just got totally out of hand, and I wasn’t even realizing this fact. And, needless to say it took me awhile to pay that off. I had to do some money ‘fasting’ if you will to get rid of that debt. And that certainly was no fun. Nevertheless, at my ripe young age, I learned an important lesson. Watch your spending. A credit card just isn’t a free-for-all. And, I learned, obviously, to not spend more money than I was making, to not spend money that I didn’t actually have. This is because it’s no fun to be in debt.

Reading Your Devotions Out Loud, Part 2 (TMF:2451)

Monday, September 30, 2024

Peace to Live By: Reading Your Devotions Out Loud, Part 2 (TMF:2451) - Daniel Litton
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But, something special seems to happen when the mouth is used to read aloud whatever it is that we are trying to focus on in our devotions. It makes it so that not only are our eyes being put to work, but now our ears are as well. So, in other words, we are giving whatever it is that we are trying to read full attention. And, as a side note, if it’s the Bible we are reading, remember that a lot of the Bible was written to be spoken aloud anyway. That was the way it was done during those earlier times. And, this little tactic not only helps us with our devotions, but it can help us when we are trying to read anything really. I have used this when just trying to rest and enjoy a good book. Like, let’s say after I get home from work I want to read something but my thoughts are stuck on a thing or two from what happened at work. Well, I just start to read whatever it is out loud and sure enough, my mind zeros in on the material. So, this can be done for our hobby time, or done if we need to read something for church, work, or even school.