4—Where Are You?
If you don't know where you are, you can't get to where you want to go
The tagline for this article is a twist on a familiar Lewis Carroll quote: "If you don't know where you're going, any road will get you there." We must consider the "life stage" context of money and stewardship. A 25-year-old is in a different stage of life (or "time of life") than a 45-year-old, and a 45-year-old's situation is different than a 65-year-old's. You get the picture (and I'm not talking about hair loss).
In your teens and early 20s, you probably relied on your parents, the Federal Direct Student Loan Program, and maybe some part-time work in high school and college. Because you didn't have much money to manage, you didn't have many money management problems.
You may still be in this situation. That's not a sin; it should improve as you age. I suspect (hope) that your (and your parents') goal is to earn a living, become financially independent, and depend on God instead of them.
Maybe you've finished school and are getting your feet wet in your first "real" job. Still, it's probably a job you won't have for long. Not because you’ll get fired (although that happens), but because job changes are inevitable; you could have 20 or 30 or more at a dozen different companies in your lifetime.
As you move through your 20s into your 30s, you may get married, start a family, buy your first house (whether you get married or not), etc. These can be fun but financially challenging because they require a lot of money.
You may have debt (student loans, credit cards, car loans) hindering your financial progress. Your income may not be what you had hoped or needed. You may not have a spending plan or be able to save much, if at all.
Plus, there's a tendency (sometimes a seemingly urgent need) to take on additional debt due to overspending, but also occasionally due to unexpected circumstances or even a crisis (health, job loss, helping loved ones, etc.). You may not have the insurance you need.
As you read through the articles on this site, think about your specific situation (it's hard not to, isn't it?). Where are you financially? Understanding where you are is wise because it helps you better visualize where you want to be and what you can do to get there with God's help.
Here's a "continuum.” It shows different levels of financial health along several dimensions. Where are you versus where do you want to be?
You will fall (or sit, if you prefer) somewhere on this continuum based on your:
Cash flow (your expenses in relationship to your income)
Level of saving (both short-term and long-term)
Level of giving (none, very little, sacrificially, radically)
NextGenSteward is all about helping you understand where you are, where you want to be, and how to get there.
It’s pretty simple yet paradoxically complex: When your cash flow improves because of better expense control, an emergency fund for unexpected expenditures, paying off debt, and increased income, your levels of giving and saving can increase. Consequently, your overall financial status improves.
That’s our goal. But before we start nerding out and getting into the financial nitty gritty, I want to lay out the most important biblical principle guiding our attitudes and actions toward money: STEWARDSHIP. That’s what the following article is about.
For reflection: Are you hopeful for your financial future? Why or why not? How can you do your part to chart a more promising path forward, and what do you need to ask God for to help you with that?
Verse: “I can do all things through him who strengthens me” (Philippians 4:13, ESV).