Does the Bible Influence Your Money Decisions?

When I got started on my journey to become excellent at money management, I religiously listened to money podcasts, read personal finance blogs, and devoured every book I could get my hand on at the library. Each of these things was very helpful in filling me with the knowledge I currently have today about money management. 

As I filled my mind with visions that these books gave me, I really believed that becoming a millionaire, retiring early, and enjoying the “good life” were all possible for me. Because these books gave me a new way of imagining myself, I began to embody that exact person they were describing within the pages. 

During his recent sermon at church, my pastor shared this quote, “Who or what we imagine ourselves to be shapes our living, our being, our very sense of self.”  What we choose to fill our minds with daily is what will have the greatest impact and influence over who we are. 

Looking back at that time in 2017 when I started reading all of those books, this statement was SO true for me. I had become that person described in those books; obsessed with my financial status and not really caring for others through the way I spent my money. I allowed those books to be my most foundational source of wisdom, when in reality, it should have let the Bible influence me and the way I used my money. 

Many Christians, maybe even you, profess that they believe in the doctrine of Scripture, but it probably doesn’t change their everyday living to the extent that it should. I know that it doesn’t always for me… 

Pastor and author, Paul David Tripp, said in one of his recent weekly devotionals, 

“Sadly, many of us do not spend daily time in our Bibles. Many of us are not avid students of God’s word. Many of us are only fed from it for one hour each week as we gather together for Sunday worship. Yet, we spend hours and hours allowing our hearts and minds to be influenced and shaped by the internet, social media, and political commentary on TV. Functionally, these voices of influence are often more authoritative than Scripture.”

So today, I want you to be really honest with yourself… Does the Bible influence your money decisions? 

Your Friend, 
Katie Jones