BUDGET
Jenna Worsham
Today’s Scripture: “Know well the condition of your flocks, and give attention to your herds.” Proverbs 27:23, ESV
Theme: Be deliberate, not flippant, with the resources you are responsible to manage.
THINK ABOUT IT
We have a limited budget, whether it be time, money, or chess pieces. So we think carefully about our next move. Detailed scheduling, coordinated apps and calendars, meal planning, activity limitations, clothing purchases, or moves on the board are deliberately managed. Well, maybe.
Jesus tells a parable about a manager: “He also said to the disciples, ‘There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his possessions’” (Luke 16:1, ESV). This manager was wasting his employer’s possessions. Good managers consider what they have, the best way to use it, and how it can help reach goals in the future. The rich man wanted the wasteful manager replaced. We are all managers of time, talent, and money. When our limited budget of time feels endless, maybe we waste some of it. When our limited money is plentiful enough that we squander some of it on things we don’t need or that have no lasting value, we waste it.
IMPULSE BUYS
You know all the stuff right near the checkout or strategically placed on the end caps of aisles? Those are placed in our view so that we will decide to buy them...even though we didn’t plan or budget to do so. Marketing and salespeople know that if we see it beautifully displayed, we are more likely to add it to our list, especially if it is “on sale.”
Do you look back at your shopping trip and think, “I’m so glad I got that candy bar, seasonal drink, cute serving plate, or trinket?” I’m usually glad I remembered the necessities. They don’t put the things on my list right where I need them. I have to walk to the back of the store for eggs, veggies, garbage bags, detergent, school supplies, or toilet paper. All of the things on my list are deliberately selected and will help me manage the household well. They aren’t impulse buys.
ON PURPOSE
We serve who and what we love. The manager in Jesus’ parable ends up being dishonest with those who owe him a debt. He uses what resources he has to reduce other’s debts, make friends, and make a way for himself. Although he is a selfish man, he isn’t too proud to use what resources are available to build relationships. He doesn’t love money too much. He lowers debts, and he builds relationships.
Confusing as it is to us, this is an example of how we should use and value temporary resources. Love people and relationships more than you love wealth. The manager is dishonest, tricky, and manipulative, but he values money and relationships accurately. “And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings” (Luke 16:9, ESV). When wealth fails (and it will), friends will remain, including Jesus. Manage temporary resources by knowing what you have and paying attention to it, so that you can build permanent things. This pleases God.
Make It Personal: How intentionally do you manage your resources? Consider your time, talents, and monetary resources. What evidence of wise or poor management is there on your calendar, in your monthly expenses and income, and in your relationships? Is there anything God is telling you as you think about your management habits?
Pray: God I recognize that You are the provider and the best manager of resources. Help me to see and wisely value the money, time, and talent You have given me. Help me to be deliberate. Help me to build lasting relationships and focus more on the eternal than my own wants. God, You could do everything without my help. You don’t need what I have, yet You choose to include me for Your glory. Please make sure I have enough. Help me to be a provider and builder. Turn my attention to this good work. Protect my heart from becoming divided or enchanted by shiny things. Amen.
Read: Luke 16:1-15; Colossians 3:23; Psalm 90:17
Weekly Memory Verse: “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’” Hebrews 13:5, ESV