DOES BUDGETING MEAN I HAVE LESS FAITH?

I woke up from bed this week to find a whatsApp voice note sent by one of my protegees and this was her question: “How do you balance financial planning and budgeting with being completely reliant on God for provision?” (paraphrase). Now, that’s a good question, right? I honestly had never given it a deep thought before until she asked that question. Nonetheless, I gave her my response and actually she really appreciated it. So, after mulling over it for sometime, I was inspired to write this article. I actually think that how you spend your money and what you spend your money on is more important than whether or not you budget. However, to answer her question directly, I would say that budgeting and being completely reliant on God are not mutually exclusive. Actually, I believe that the former must be a consequence of the latter. In other words, because I am completely reliant on God for provision, I will plan my finances and budget. I will give you three reasons to support my conclusion:

1. Money is a good servant but a bad master. It has so much power that Solomon actually said that it is the answer for everything [under the sun] (Ecclesiastes 10:19) [Emphasis mine]. No wonder Jesus confirmed its power by comparing money to God (Matthew 6:24). As a result, I want to argue that the best way to make money a servant (for that is when it can be good to you) is to plan and budget how to use it.

2. It reflects good stewardship. If you believe that God is the source of your finances, won’t you out of gratitude spend it in such a way that will honor him? If yes, how can you if you don’t plan and budget? Check out how God really expects us to be good stewards of what He gives us in Jesus’ parables written in Matthew 25:14-30 and Luke 19:11-30.

3. It prevents the potential abuse of God’s graceful provision. Undoubtedly, it’s easy to become a spendthrift - which does not glorify God [refer to bible passages in point 2 above] – if you don’t have a financial plan. I am not saying that budgeting automatically exempts you from becoming one. However, what I am saying is that it reduces the probability that you will become one.

because I am completely reliant on God for provision, I will plan my finances and budget

Now, let me continue by sharing with you from my experience, how you can budget. What I am going to share is not explicitly written in scripture and therefore must not be taken as a law. However, it’s consistent with scripture and has worked for me for at least the last two years or so (previously I didn’t really have a plan) and so I believe can be a good guide for you. Let’s take a look at it!

10-10-80?

Through the years, I have encouraged couples to adopt the “10-10-80 Plan.” Save and invest 10 percent of your net income. Another 10 percent is to be given away. That leaves 80 percent to be divided among mortgage payments (or rent), utilities, insurance, furniture, food, clothes, transportation, medicine, recreation, etc. (Gary Chapman in his book, Things I wish I’d known before getting married). Gary Chapman is one of the many people who have talked about this plan and I fully support it. And although my plan is congruent with the Gary’s advice, mine is slightly different.

HOW ABOUT A T.I.E?

A tie? Yes! You read right! I believe that in budgeting you must first consider TITHE, then you consider INVESTMENT (OR SAVINGS), before considering EXPENSES. Although not all Christians believe in tithing, I do. I also believe however that, anyone who decides to tithe is not required to tithe a fixed 10% of their income. It could actually be more or less. It's all your choice because God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7). This is how I budget:

1. Tithe, which I allocate a minimum of 10% of my income to. I however, don’t think tithing must replace giving or offering. I also believe that tithing must be to your local church or the place where you get your regular spiritual nourishment. I know some people who are skeptical about tithing because it's usually not clear what the money is eventually being used for. Although it's a legitimate reason, I believe that my obedience is to God and not to man, and each man shall stand before the judgment seat of Christ to give account of their lives one day (Ecclesiastes 12:14, 2 Corinthians 5:10).

2. Investment. This is the next major thing I spend on. I have an investment account in which I make such deposits to prevent the temptation to spend it. Over here, I save a minimum of 15% of my income. I will however recommend that it’s better and easier to invest or save with a plan. I have developed two plans that can help you:

• Specific goal: Here the investment is toward something specific – marriage, school, car, house, etc. Having a goal will focus your investment and encourage you to continue investing.

• Contingency goal: Here, the investment is for the future and emergencies but not anything specific. This can be very good for teenagers or young adults who are still dependent on their parents.

3. Expenses. This is the last major thing I spend on. Here I don’t have a minimum percentage but the money left should be just enough or a little more than enough to cater for all my expenses for a period of time. That is always possible for me because I try to live within my means. The following informs how much I end up spending on my expenses at any given point in time:

• Regular needs: These are needs that recur on a regular basis. For me, it’s rent, family support, airtime, food, toiletries and transportation. Yours could be the same, more or less depending on your situation.

• Urgent needs. These are things you spend on that are based on your most pressing needs for the season. They are usually one-time or once in a while needs. Because I receive monthly salary, my urgent needs vary from month to month. I usually use a scale of preference (arranging my urgent needs in order of importance) to determine what my urgent needs for the month are. This year, some common ones for me so far have been diaries (usually spend on them once a year), grooming tools - like deodorant, tooth brush, and body lotion (usually spend on them quarterly) and partnership commitments to certain organizations (varies depending on the agreement), recreation, medicine, clothes just to mention a few.

• Surplus needs. I usually consider these needs when I still have some surplus left after spending on my regular and urgent needs. Once this happens, and depending on how much is left, I first consider my investment, then my regular needs (eg. increase in my family support for that month) then urgent needs (eg. Increase my support for God’s work or help a friend in need)

remember that obedience to God is the greatest way to please Him

As I conclude please remember that obedience to God is the greatest way to please Him. The fact that you have a plan or budget does not mean you should be fixated on it. Be open to God’s leading as you become a good steward of the financial blessing He gives you. But by all means, have a plan. Budget. And never forget that He and He alone is your provider (Psalm 23:1). God richly bless you!

And whatever you do [including how you spend money], whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him

(Colossians 3:17 – New International Version) [Emphasis mine]