Christians can and should live abundant lives. If they don’t, it might be because they haven’t set the right priorities in life. Jesus said, “Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” (Matthew 6:33) However, even people with the right priorities can struggle financially. If you are one of these people, you may lack practical knowledge in dealing with financial matters.
To help our church members learn to manage their household finances, we will offer another “Life” series, called “The Abundant Life”. This course will not only deal with how to manage family finances but also help clarify the purpose of individual life and how to live it fully, based on the Bible. The class teaches how to become masters of money instead of being slaves to it.
The first step to an abundant life is to learn to enjoy your job. There is no enjoyment of life when work is simply a means to making money. The course teaches the true meaning of work based on Scripture, with the result that you enjoy your work more and consequently experience freedom in serving people.
The course also teaches practical things about family finances, including how to make a budget, how to clear debt, how to choose life insurance, and how to make a will. It also addresses common misunderstandings abut family finances. For example, when young mothers with small children work, they assume that their paycheck will help their family income. The class shows that this is frequently not the case, because of hidden costs. When young mothers start working, there are extra expenses for child care, transportation, new clothes, and frequent dining out. The class examines the tradeoffs by analyzing real numbers.
The course was originally developed by Crown Financial Ministries. The Korean version was offered by a church in Southern California. 11 leaders, including myself, attended the seminar early this year. We then met and taught it to ourselves over 12 weeks, the normal length of the course. The class consists of small groups not exceeding 12 people. Since we have many leaders, we can accommodate many people. The classes will require group members to complete the workbook each week, compare answers, and share thoughts about the theme of the week.
There are countless books written about how to make money, but very few on how to spend money. This course will help provide a solid foundation for both aspects. I hope that all our church members take this course and learn to live abundant lives.
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