Financial Peace Progress

I have started to get more serious about putting myself out there as a writer. I started this (new) blog to get me back into the process of writing for a large audience. I also signed up for Associated Content (finally) and currently have three items published on their site. One is a creative short story, another is a fun article for teachers about April Fool's Day, and the third is the article below. A wide range of submissions, you say? Indeed. I haven't quite found my niche and am exploring all of the avenues. Plus, I'm showcasing my (1) ability to adapt and (2) well-rounded-ness.

The third submission to Associated Content was for their Business and Financial section. I chose to write about my progress with Financial Peace University with a unique spin. I am very (VERY) impressed that this piece was published (in the Business and Finance section) because it is heavy on biblical reference. I'm so proud that I stayed true to myself and allowed myself to listen to the message that God placed on my heart. I'm incredibly grateful that He is exemplified and glorified through this posting on a mainstream site. Enjoy!

  

My Financial Makeover

Undoing a Lifetime of the Wrong Thinking

By Meagan Rae

Anyone who knows me knows that I'm huge on God. I pray multiple times daily. I praise at home, in my car, and at church. I teach preschool Sunday school and am a member of the Young Adult bible study group. I love Jesus and am so incredibly blessed to know Him. Yet I struggle daily with remembering the ways I need to honor God. There are some areas which I need to work on. Not many are aware that we are to honor Him with our money. Proverbs 3:9 reads, "Honor the LORD with your possessions, And with the firstfruits of all your increase." This means being responsible with finances and faithfully tithing. I do tithe - and faithfully. But I do not honor God with my finances.



I have made a lot of bad decisions in terms of finances I have credit card debt, major student loans, and an auto loan on a vehicle that never should have been purchased. I live above my means and sweat the few days right before a paycheck because I never seem to have any money. 

Who in their right mind would continue to live this way? It's depressing. And it's wrong. I'm done digging myself a hole while debtors speedily and all too happily pile in the dirt with increasing interest rates and extra fees. I'm tired of living this way.

I enrolled in Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University approximately six months ago. The course is 13-weeks long and covers topics like saving, budgets, getting out of debt, credit cards, and insurance. I had an eager heart when I started the class - I was ready to make some changes.

The first baby step is saving $1000 for an emergency fund (or $500 if you make less than $20k for the year). I am still working towards accomplishing this step, but I have a steadily growing savings fund. I struggle with the envelop system - placing x-amount of cash in a marked envelop for categories like food and entertainment and gas. It is so much easier to use my debit card - and I get points for purchases too! The "gas" envelop is a tricky one. Say I put $50 in it and towards the end of the month I only have $10 left but need to put $20 of gas in the car? What happens? 

I'm still working out the kinks. Dave Ramsey says that it will take three months to find a budget that works. Luckily each month my bills are very similar to the previous month's so I don't have to make many changes or accommodations. 

I do not use my credit cards anymore. I actually stopped using them months before the class started. I'm working hard to become credit-card debt free (the student loans are going to take a while). I learned in FPU that you really don't need a credit card. "You have to have one to rent a car or reserve a hotel!" <- MYTH! You can use a debit card. "But they place a dollar-amount hold on the account." <- Sure, but you'll have money in the account to cover this by the time you're done with the steps of FPU.


The goal of this class is to change participants' attitudes toward finances. Only halfway through I have already noticed a change in my thinking. Normally I would not have thought twice about making purchases or shopping at the mall or even going on a date. Now I say, "It's not in the budget. Sorry." I think seriously about whether or not I really need that shirt or if I need to drive thirty miles just to do one thing for work. I am conscious of my driving so that I can try to spend less on gas (a difficult feat with prices reaching and surpassing $4 per gallon in my region).

I am paying my bills with "gazelle intensity" as Dave Ramsey instructs. In order to do this, you would write down your bills, total owed to each creditor, and the minimum payment. Arrange them in order from smallest balance to largest. When you pay off the first one, take the minimum payment that you were sending them and apply that to the second bill. Continue paying that new amount until it is paid off (while still making minimum payments to the other creditors). When the second is paid off, take that minimum payment (coupled with the first's minimum) and add that to the third. Continue this process until all bills are paid off. This is paying off debt with gazelle intensity. The process is named after the way a gazelle outruns a cheetah (the cheetah is the fastest mammal) - with intensity! I almost have the smallest bill paid off and will take that minimum payment and add it to the second bill. As much as I would love to have an extra $25/month to spend, I'm happy to sacrifice it for another six months so I can be debt-free for life!

Of course throughout this entire process I have continually prayed for God to help change my heart and mind so that I can get my finances under control and be able to honor Him. I want to invite Him into my everyday life and be magnified and glorified through my actions. My former attitudes certainly did not glorify Him. As I continue to change the way I view money, I find that I am being blessed - I somehow end up with just enough money to put in my savings account after I do my budget. The bible says that God will honor you and what you do if it is good and according to His word. In 1 Samuel 2:30, the Lord says, " Far be it from Me; for those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me shall be lightly esteemed." So I pray that He gives me strength and willingness to learn so that I may bring honor to Him. 

Fin. You may view the original article here.