As we come to the end of this book, I start this last chapter with the Apostle Paul’s words (which were inspired by the Holy Spirit) from Colossians, Chapter One: “We have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy; giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins” (Colossians 1:9b-14).
That is my prayer for you. Paul’s and his co-laborers’ prayers for the saints at Colossae were that they be filled with godly knowledge and wisdom, and strengthened by God for patient endurance in light of the distractions, deceptions, and obstacles that they faced. That’s my prayer for you: not that you master all the details of this book, but that you seek godly knowledge and wisdom to understand and apply it in ways that benefit you, your family, and please the Lord.
Biblical stewardship goes well beyond formulas, frameworks, or financial tools. At the heart of everything we’ve explored together isn’t just money and building wealth; it’s about bearing good fruit, living joyfully and generously, and giving thanks to the Father who has freed you from darkness, as you share in the inheritance of the saints.
You see, whether we were talking about the FLE (you knew I was going to bring that up again, didn’t you?), or budgeting, investing, taxes, giving, or debt—the “levers” of your financial life—it’s more about learning how to live with godly wisdom and purpose in a world of noise, pressure, temptation, risk, and uncertainty. And that’s what this book has really been about: being faithful to God by wisely managing all that He has entrusted to you and living a life of financial wisdom, diligence, and generosity for your good, the good of others, and to the honor and glory of God.
We’ve covered a lot of ground in these 59 articles. In the larger context of biblical stewardship and Christian discipleship, we’ve discussed:
Earning with integrity, diligence, and purpose
Spending with contentment and restraint
Saving for the future with wisdom
Giving with joy and generosity
Investing with patience and long-term thinking
Paying your debts and debt avoidance
Planning with humility, knowing you’re not in control of tomorrow
Practically speaking, if you take anything away from this writing, remember that when it comes to your financial life equation (FLE), it’s not going to move in a positive direction if you don’t follow one important principle: spend less than you earn. That’s where it starts; everything else depends on it. No matter how much you make, spend less.
Here’s a few more practical reminders:
You don’t have to get fancy when it comes to investing. In fact, you probably shouldn’t. Just keep these basics in mind and you’ll be fine.
And when you do invest, don’t get discouraged when the market turns against you. It will. Repeatedly. Learning how to lose small (and sometimes larger) amounts without panicking prepares you for the better times and helps you stay the course when others are bailing out, which is essential to building wealth over the long term.
Your timeline is probably longer than you think. God holds our futures in His hands, but if you’re in your 20s or 30s, your investing timeline isn’t 10 or 20 years—it’s potentially 60 or 70, maybe even 80! That’s an unbelievable amount of time for compound interest to work its quiet “magic”.
It’s also plenty of time for inflation, fees, and taxes to erode your wealth if you’re not paying attention. This is a hard reality—you can't stop those things altogether, but you can minimize their impact if you do the things I suggest in this book.
But it’s also a lifetime of giving, blessing others, and building God’s Kingdom on earth. If you steward your finances well and lay up treasures in heaven, you may start small, but you'll eventually have a surplus that can be used for those godly purposes and others.
Even if life is unexpectedly cut short—you hit by the proverbial bus (incidentally, when was the last time you heard of someone being hit by a bus?)—your wealth passes to your spouse or kids. The horizon is still long. That means every wise financial decision you make today has the potential to ripple forward for generations to come.
Learn at least the basics of how the tax code works. You don’t have to be a CPA, but implementing the strategies I outlined in these articles could save you hundreds of thousands of dollars over your lifetime.
This isn’t about perfection. You won’t get everything right. None of us does. But don’t let that stop you. Keep learning. Keep growing. Keep surrendering your life, your finances, and your plans to God’s greater purposes for your life. Stay humble when you succeed and teachable when you fall short.
Finally, when you feel overwhelmed, remember: it’s about stewardship. You don’t need to be perfect; you just need to be faithful with what you’ve been given. Stewardship also means managing today with tomorrow in view while keeping your heart anchored in something (and Someone) bigger than money.
Writing to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul also said, “This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found faithful. But with me it is a tiny thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself. For I am not aware of anything against myself, but I am not thereby acquitted. It is the Lord who judges me” (1 Corinthians 4:1-4).
Those verses mainly focus on the importance of faithfulness for those whom the Lord has entrusted His good gifts. Generally, it means being found faithful (wise, reliable, honest, etc.) in managing anything that God has given to you in a variety of contexts (spiritual, personal, or professional).
Next Gen Stewardship is, therefore, a call to faithfully manage the resources God entrusts to you as a young adult, and then continuing this practice for the rest of your life. It’s about taking ownership of your financial situation, while putting your trust in the Lord, not as a pursuit of riches or the mythical “heaven on earth” of early retirement, but as a means to live freely, give generously, and plan with eternity in mind. That may sound lofty, but the path is anything but glamorous. It’s daily faithfulness over the course of decades that gets it done. You want to hear the Lord say, “Well done, good and faithful servant,” one day in heaven.
If you’ve made it through all of the pieces, I hope you feel more inspired and equipped to live differently from the culture around you. So, get out there and live below your means, give generously, invest wisely, and steward everything—not for your glory, but for the glory of the One who owns it all and who gave His only Son for us.
What’s next? Well, expect another email from me in a few days about what’s next for NextGenSteward. I think you’ll like it.