Spending is Not Saving

For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? (Luke 14:28, ESV)

A second use of the money God gives us is saving it. This our second priority after sharing it. If we don’t make saving a priority, it will not happen. A good rule of thumb is that if we share 10% that we would also save 10% of what we receive.

To save – we must recognize that it is not spending. A new iPhone just came out. One of these phones sells for close to $1000. But say I found a discount of $200 and bought the phone. It would not be appropriate to say I saved $200 if I bought the phone. It would be more appropriate to say I spent $800. Spending is not the same as saving. Yet, many of us talk about saving money when we find a good deal. But I will save $800 by not buying the phone and continuing to use my two-year-old phone.

Jesus tells us that we should count the cost. Consider the cost of saving and not saving. If you saved $20 a week and gained 5% interest on that money saved, you will earn $13,700 over the course of 10 years. Do it for 40 years, and you will earn $131,900. A little bit of money and a little bit of time will go a long way. What is the cost of not saving?

One of the greatest enemies to saving is debt. The average American household has an average of close to $7000 in credit card debt. It becomes very difficult to save when we are loaded with debt. You are not going to find anything in the Bible that says anything good about debt. Avoid debt at all costs. If it means driving a used car instead of a new car, if it means skipping a purchase of this years iPhone model, if it means eating in instead of eating out – do it! So much unhappiness is linked to debt. That purchase we made that we could not afford, that we thought would make us happy, will make us miserable.

Reflection

1. How do you prioritize saving?
2. What are your barriers to saving?

Prayer

Lord, thank you for the money in my pocket. Thank you for providing for all my needs. Thank you for giving me resources to share and to save. Give me the wisdom to manage the money you have given me in a godly way that honors you. Amen.