MoneyWalk 288: Giving That Prospers You

This program will help you undo financial bondage.

You have a gift to give and serve for the sake of the unsaved who need to come to Jesus Christ and people who are already believers that need encouragement to live holy, be an example for, witness to, and disciple others. God will use every person who opens their heart to Him and He will bless them financially and in many other ways to continue the work He gives them.

Everyone who has put his / her faith in Jesus Christ is a member of the body of Christ. That person realizes that Christ is the head of all things and thus the Church organism and operation and that he / she must die to him / herself and allow His life to be lived in and through him / her. You will never be on the wrong path and your life will be a complete success no matter what the situation looks like on the surface when you follow His directions for using your gifts, money, and resources.

As more members are added and taught to live, talk, and walk like Christ, the body becomes stronger and stronger in the earth by the power of God and it positively affects our communities, workplaces, and nation. You represent a unique part of the body with gifts that supply exactly what the other parts need. The unique gifting of other parts of Christ’s body also supply your need. We show the harmony that God wants for His body when we consistently and regularly use our respective gifts, skills, and abilities to faithfully tithe for the spreading of the gospel in our communities and beyond, for serving others who have spiritual and physical needs, and for upkeep of facilities and tools that meet fellowship needs.

Giving of our time, talent, money, and other resources is a sweet smelling aroma in God’s nostrils and it allows you in partnership with the Church to help organize and maintain fruitful ministries that reach out to pull many unsaved people to Christ and to teach and help those who are already saved to continually mature in Christ-likeness. When you join this giving plan, your example shows other people that Jesus Christ is Savior & Lord who is worthy of eternal adoration and allegiance.

Please pray for this ministry and email any questions. May God bless you richly as you follow His plan!!!

Luke 6:38, Romans 12:4-9, 1Corinthians 12:7-26, Ephesians 4:16, 1Timothy 4:14-16

Please forward these bondage breaking articles to other people who can use helpful insight!!!

You can find books authored by Randy Parlor and Karen Parlor at www.Amazon.com

You can find many other MoneyWalk articles on Facebook by looking at the NOTES created by Randy Parlor at https://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=100000444069041&sk=notes.

You can also connect with Randy Parlor on Twitter and Linkedin

MoneyWalk 287: Prosperity Via Emergency Fund And Investment

This program will help you undo financial bondage.

Your saving and investment activity should be consistent in good and bad economic times. You, your spouse, and advisors should consider your risk tolerance, current age, probable longevity, and income needed to fund the lifestyle you want once you retire from your usual employment. To be sure, you should not at any point in life stop doing good works and being involved in services that help other people, however you should work in accordance with biblical instruction to get you to a financial position in which you no longer need to rely on an employer to provide income for your needs. Instead, you should build an amount of assets through long term investing (20 to 40 years) that brings abundant growth allowing you to give and live at a reasonable level of comfort at which it is highly likely the value of your assets and your annual withdrawal amount will outlive you, no matter the age of your demise.

Realize that when it is time to withdraw money from long-term investments you should not plan on withdrawing more than five percent of the value of your invested assets in any year. A greater proportion of your current investible income should put in at least six different types of equity investments like stocks, real estate, etc. A variety of no load, low expense stock index funds fit the bill for most people because they are easier to understand and there is a lot of market information you can research in order to appropriately measure them for your portfolio. One could consider a base portfolio that is 75% stock based investments and 25% bond based investments and tweak it to fit his or her particular situation. Others may choose to partially invest in a debt-free manner in a diversified portfolio of low cost, debt-free real estate flips and/or rental units or in an entrepreneurial endeavor that thru research, wise advisors, hard work, great management and leadership could grow to epic value.

You can invest on a long-term basis largely in equities that fluctuate from day to day or year to year, without pulling your money out of such investments due to fear when the market has declined because you have been working heartily at first building an emergency fund to cover your monthly expenses when emergency situations occur that take you away from debt repayment / elimination for a short period of time. Also, you can feel secure because research will show you that the history of the stock market is such that declines are overtaken by growth that eventually takes the market to a higher point than it was at when the decline started. Most times this growth takes place in two years or less.

You should immediately build your emergency fund to $1,000 before you begin to pay higher than minimum required monthly payments in order pay off all non-mortgage debt within the next couple of years or less. Then, build it to $10,000 after all non-mortgage debt is paid off. Finally, build it to six to twelve months of income necessary to pay bills after you have paid off all mortgage debt or when the $10,000 emergency fund would not cover at least five months of mortgage payments in the event of an emergency or before you eliminate debt whenever you have credible news of imminent job loss, layoff, a big decline in take home pay, a large uncovered medical bill that will soon occur, or another large unplanned expense that it seems is going to soon occur in your life.

Use investment accounts with various brokerage houses in a manner that diversifies your money across a broad spectrum of risk from large capitalization stocks to small capitalization stocks, from corporate bonds to government bonds, and from real estate to other sound investments. As you age, you could place a greater percentage of your money in bonds and fixed-income investments so that more of your principle is safe when you don’t foresee your lifespan allowing the short and intermediate term market fluctuations to smooth themselves out to result in higher returns over the long-term (10 or more years). Once you have paid off your debts, faithfully invest at least ten percent of your monthly income and work your budget in order to increase this amount over the years until retirement. A debt-free lifestyle with investment growth over the 20 to 30 years that mimics historical stock market growth should allow you to comfortably continue your current lifestyle through your older years.

Please pray for this ministry and email any questions. May God bless you richly as you follow His plan!!!

Genesis 13:2, 1Chronicles 29:3, Proverbs 21:20, Matthew 25:20, 1Timothy 6:17-19

Please forward these bondage breaking articles to other people who can use helpful insight!!!

You can find books authored by Randy Parlor and Karen Parlor at www.Amazon.com

You can find many other MoneyWalk articles on Facebook by looking at the NOTES created by Randy Parlor at https://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=100000444069041&sk=notes.

You can also connect with Randy Parlor on Twitter and Linkedin

MoneyWalk 286: Desire Increase To Propel The Gospel

This program will help you undo financial bondage.

The bible identifies special building projects and helps ministries in which leaders were inspired to encourage all Israelites or Christians to give money and resources to carry out the will of God and/or meet the needs of a particular community. When you are faced with the question of whether or not you should give to a specific ministry project in addition to your regular tithe and offering, your mind may try to immediately dismiss the action whereas your heart may be wondering what to do. This happens because true Christians are givers who desire with all their hearts to help propel the gospel and minister to the world in order to lead as many people as possible to Jesus Christ.

The reasons why you need all of your current savings for possible emergencies will begin to fill your mind as well as thoughts of whether or not it is good to build a bigger meeting place or provide for hungry, homeless, and dying people in the community. Scripture shows that God’s will encompasses both of these endeavors and so much more when they will truly be used to bring Him glory in the earth and lead people to salvation’s door. It is important to pray and listen for God’s direction for your part in giving in response to such request, so that you know exactly how He wants you to help such endeavors: with surplus money, physical services, technical skills, or a faith promise in which you are committed to giving a sum of money or resources when the LORD provides it over and above your usual income, assets, tithes, and offerings.

Sometimes, God’s will is brought about using means that are illogical to the mind. Such as raising a stick to part the Red Sea in order for people to walk across on dry land or pouring water in empty wine tanks in order to miraculously turn it into the best wine for the wedding celebration. His instruction for taking action in each situation (conventional or unconventional) works itself into the absolute best outcome for everyone that is obedient to His will, whereas actions we pursue without direction from the Holy Spirit result in unnecessary physical and mental effort that often leads to no earthly or eternal benefit and much stress, pressure, and financial bondage.

Please pray for this ministry and email any questions. May God bless you richly as you follow His plan!!!

Exodus 35:4-9, 1Chronicles 29:1-5, Nehemiah 3, Acts 5:1-11, 2Corinthians 9:1-8

Please forward these bondage breaking articles to other people who can use helpful insight!!!

You can find books authored by Randy Parlor and Karen Parlor at www.Amazon.com

You can find many other MoneyWalk articles on Facebook by looking at the NOTES created by Randy Parlor at https://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=100000444069041&sk=notes.

You can also connect with Randy Parlor on Twitter and Linkedin

MoneyWalk 285: Consistent Giving Instead Of Promises Not Kept

This program will help you undo financial bondage.

It is best to consistently tithe and give offerings to your local church and ministries that are feeding, strengthening, maturing and developing you into the disciple-maker and blessing to your family and other people that the LORD called you to be. Those that help others find relationship with Jesus Christ and provide the impoverished with necessary provision through consistency in giving store treasures in Heaven that cannot be corrupted or stolen from them. They far exceed in character those who on a whim make vows to give but often fail to come through with the promised gift.

Often those who are moved to give spontaneously by emotion, but not in consistency through a steadfast heart, fail to understand that God rewards consistency in giving and established the inner-working of the Kingdom economy so those who regularly sow in the manner and proportion of their income instructed by scripture also regularly and abundantly reap of the fruit produced by the seed they continue to sow. The scripture declares that those who sow sparingly also reap sparingly. Do not buy into emotional appeals that fail to inform you of this truth while at the same time make you think you will be abundantly blessed and rewarded if you just promise a huge amount during this appeal even if you have failed to faithfully and consistently give in the past and continue to do so in the future.

You will encounter emotional appeals that would have you vow the moment you are asked to do so. It is necessary to seek God’s will on an ongoing basis before you give one-time or consistently to specific appeals. His will is found in prayer, scriptural study, and asking the Holy Spirit for wisdom and strength to consistently give abundantly in proportion to what He provides you and to whom He would have you direct your giving.

It is not good to make promises base on emotions or fear of damnation or lack for not giving when a particular appeal is made. Operating in this manner often solidifies poor stewardship, leads to financial problems within marriages and families, can produce unforeseen legal obligations, causes some to pursue sinful methods to obtain money, and sometimes results in broken relationships between those who are supposed to love one another when ministry complications arise or payment in not forthcoming. Listen to the Holy Spirit and stand on the Word with regard to believing in the blessing and reward produced by abundant giving and then take action to consistently do what He instructs. He will provide abundantly, so in all things at all times, having all you need, you will abound in every good work and also be able to give abundantly and proportionately to many spontaneous and special appeals that spread the gospel and help the oppressed.

Please pray for this ministry and email any questions. May God bless you richly as you follow His plan!!!

Matthew 5:33-37, Luke 6:38, James 4:13-17, 2Corinthians 9:6

Please forward these bondage breaking articles to other people who can use helpful insight!!!

You can find books authored by Randy Parlor and Karen Parlor at www.Amazon.com

You can find many other MoneyWalk articles on Facebook by looking at the NOTES created by Randy Parlor at https://www.facebook.com/#!/profile.php?id=100000444069041&sk=notes.

You can also connect with Randy Parlor on Twitter and Linkedin