Gather Little by Little

The Microsoft Office suite of programs is nearly universal when it comes to personal computers. Nearly everyone has a working knowledge of Word and is familiar with PowerPoint. Outlook, Microsoft’s email software, also has wide use and acceptance. However, my favorite MS program is Excel. When I worked as a soccer coach, I used Excel in almost every facet of my program, from budgets to planning practice to recruiting to filling out rosters. There was almost nothing that I did in the office without Excel.

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This is a guest post by Pastor Eric Johnston of the Christian Prayer Center, a site to post and receive prayer requests.

At the Christian Prayer Center, we often get prayer requests asking for miracle financial blessings that include new homes, luxury automobiles, fancy motorcycles and the like. Instead of people praying for wisdom in effectively managing their finances, many modern day Christians pray that they will win large sums of money in a lottery, or receive another type of large windfall such as an inheritance from a lost uncle. Although miraculous financial events do occasionally happen to faithful devotees of Christ, we can look to the Bible for common, sensible advice in how we should behave when it comes to our pocket books and financial goals.

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Earlier this summer, Mrs. Stew and I went on an overnight trip in honor of our 10 year anniversary. We were able to stay at one of the nicest vacation venues that either of us had ever experienced due to an offer through a website called LivingSocial. We got a fantastic price because everything came together at once: available when we needed it and when we could afford to take advantage. Last week, Ace Hardware held a “bucket” sale, meaning that you received 25% off everything that could be fit into a 10-gallon Ace buck. My timing was perfect as we needed a new bathroom fan . . . which fit in the bucket . . . I got a steal.

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Last week, I decided to refinance the loan on our van. Interest rates have dropped so low, that I cannot put it off any longer. Furthermore, our credit score has recovered so well from our 0% APR balance transfer days, that loan companies are offering really incredible rates to customers like me.

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I was a little late in getting our 2011 family budget put together for this year, but better late than never, right? Well, it is up and running, but what I discovered is that since we have kept a budget for so long and because our budget has stayed relatively static for so long, we can function for a few months without looking at it daily or even weekly. I am in the middle of entering our information from January and February and even though I have not completely filled in all the numbers, I have a rough idea of where we stand simply by having a general idea of our “intake” and “outflow”.

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What is a budget?

A budget is a visual representation of your financial priorities. It is a plan for dealing with the money that flows into one’s household and a plan for how that money will flow out of one’s household. It is a systematic plan for the expenditure of a fixed resource, such as money or time, during a given period.

What purpose does a budget serve?

A budget sets financial goals.

A budget shows the small steps needed for a long journey.

A budget represents potential.

A budget will help you to organize family financial discussions.

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Why are personal finance professionals so focused on budgets? Because a budget is a plan for spending money, a written record of spending and the consequences of that spending. A budget provides accountability for the money that flows in and the money that flows out.

One of the worst financial habits that a person can have is the habit of spending money without a plan. This is the reason why credit cards can be such a trap – it is so easy to spend a couple of extra dollars every time that piece of plastic gets run through the machine. If I go shopping with $10 cash in my pocket, I can only spend that $10. If I go to the store intending to spend $10, I often walk out having spent $11.40 or $12.75 or even $15.38 without really thinking about it.

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Okay, I have always thought that I was pretty close to the cutting edge of technology, the internet and all the rest. Yes, I do not have an iPod, but that has more to do with the fact that I do not really listen to music much, not that I do not know how to use one. I bank online, I book flights and hotels online I get my news online . . . Hello! I am a blogger, for crying out loud! Of course, I buy stuff and sell stuff on the world wide web through sites like Ebay, Craigslist and shopping portals like Fatwallet and Ebates.  I use internet tools such as Gmail, social sites, Google documents, Mapquest and more. I feel like I have a pretty good handle on this thing that one recent president called “the internets”.

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Although it may be tough to think about spending any more of your hard-earned money right now, economic downfalls have created a great consumer environment for buying a new car. If you have a steady job, great credit, and are confident it can fit into your budget, you may be ready to make the leap towards buying a new car. If you do make the decision to buy a new car and you are not paying for it in full with cash, one of the most important aspects of the process is getting a quality car loan rate. Here are 5 tips to help you get started:

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A couple of days ago, I recounted the story of the calling of Matthew the disciple. Except, at the time, he was not a disciple, but rather one of the most despised members of the nation of Israel. In fact, he held one of the most despised occupations in all of the Roman Empire.

Matthew was a tax collector otherwise known as a “publican”. On Wednesday, I explained that publicans were not just the first century equivalent of our present-day, friendly IRS agents. But rather publicans were crony capitalists of the worst kind, using the power of the government to take money right out of the pockets of citizens, making no pretense of offering a product or service.

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