Christ and Your Money (11.25.08)
We’ve been hearing a lot in the media about the current “financial crisis.” We’ve been hearing how it is, at least partially, driven by problems in the credit industry. Just this morning in the car I heard on the radio the bad news that people are borrowing less. It strikes me funny that we would measure the health of the economy by how much money people are borrowing. I was raised believing that, though there are appropriate times and ways to borrow, in general, borrowing money is not a good thing. Aside from my mortgage, I have never borrowed money. I have no credit card debt. I have never taken out a loan on a car. And it’s not because I make a ton of money. But I may be an anomaly in our culture. But maybe that’s because there’s a problem with our culture’s view of money. First, our culture wants to earn it fast. It seems that the first concern for college students choosing a career is to get a well-paying job. For money, people will work long hours, ignore their families, and skip out on worship. People play the lottery, gamble, go on game shows. But working hard at a well-paying job is not the problem. Going on a game show is not the problem. The problem is the love of money. “For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil” (I Timothy 6:10). Money is not the problem, it’s the love of money. Second, our culture wants to spend it big. People want to have a nice car, a big house, and lots of toys – even if they have to borrow to get it. We’re materialists: Stuff is all that’s important so get as much stuff as you can. But Jesus said, “Don’t store up treasures here on earth… Store your treasures in heaven” (Matt. 6:19-20). We’re greedy: We want more, even if we have to deny someone else to get it. Might it be greedy to buy a really nice car or a really fancy phone if, instead, you could buy something less expensive and send the money to someone in need? Jesus said, “Sell your possessions and give to those in need” (Luke 12:33). We’re in debt: Buy whatever you want, even if you don’t have the money for it. But the Proverbs say, “the borrower is servant to the lender.” There’s a problem with our culture’s view of money. But the biggest shopping day of the year is coming up on Friday! So now what are you going to do?
Holiday season, Holiday recession?
During Holiday everybody is hectic on working to earn money to be spent for holiday shopping. There’s nothing wrong on longing for money but praising it is. This season of recession and holiday season several are desperate to have money. But, in spite of this recession yet, people are still having fun this holiday season. And though we are struggling financial tight still we do shopping. Online shopping is becoming more and more popular, especially during this holiday season, where deals are plentiful and it keeps you out of the cold, but you may want to snag a faxless payday loan while you're at it. News reports are indicating that today is the busiest day so far of the online shopping year, and with those online deals going fast it may pay to pay attention to them and the fast convenience of faxless payday loans.
Money, Money, Money...
I believe that money is the main root of evil. People’s desire of money causes them to do commit sin. But, of course, let’s accept the fact that we need money to provide our necessities, for us to survive in this world. And one more thing, I think, everyone borrows money. Even if it is small amount, yet, we can call it as borrowed money. Every year in the United States, about 10 million households declare bankruptcy. A lot of people try to blame the payday loan industry, and cite that there are more payday loan stores than McDonalds or Starbucks. A lot of negative media coverage has been inflicted on the payday loan industry, especially since the industry has become so popular and prevalent. A good deal of media coverage likes to link the two things, claiming that getting payday loans causes bankruptcy. This isn't really good thinking, since it is relatively common knowledge that just because two things coincide, doesn't mean that they are linked. The Vanderbilt Law School's Assistant Professor Paige Marta Skiba found that applicants that were approved for payday loans were more likely to file for bankruptcy than those who didn't. Now, that isn't surprising – the people who applied for payday loans needed money! People who don't need money, don't apply. In other words, people who need money are more likely to declare bankruptcy. Anybody could have told us this. A payday loan is like any other debt – you take out the loan and you have to pay it back responsibly, and those people who borrow and spend irresponsibly are the ones who are the most likely to wind up with bankruptcy. It is unfair, and not really logical to blame payday loans for the rate of bankruptcy – instead of irresponsible financial planning. Click here to learn more on Payday Loans.