The tagline for Provident Planning used to be “Personal Finance from a Christian Perspective”. And though that was clear and got the gist of what I wanted to focus on here, it still missed something major. What makes Provident Planning different from any other Christian personal finance site?

So a while back I decided to change the tagline to the current one – “Personal Finance for Life in the Kingdom”. It’s a little more obscure, but I think it comes closer to answering that question.

My hope is to focus on personal finance in a way that starts with the understanding that we, as followers of Jesus, have our primary life in the Kingdom of God. It’s eternal life, but it’s an eternal life that we’re already living now. It doesn’t just start at death.

So anything we do has to start from that perspective – including personal finance. It’s far too easy for me to take regular, good personal finance advice and try to add a Christian spin to it. That’s generally what happens in the Christian finance realm. And while I think we mean well, we can miss the broader picture of what Jesus has called us to.

By putting the focus on personal finance as it works in our life in the Kingdom, my desire is to start from a thoroughly Kingdom-focused perspective and understand what personal finance is meant to look like there. I feel that I’ve been sidetracked in the past by starting with a “worldly” personal finance focus and then trying to understand how the Kingdom of God works in that context. Wrong approach.

So “Personal Finance for Life in the Kingdom” is supposed to mean that what you’ll find here at Provident Planning is centered around the Kingdom life.

• It’s about trying to look at all aspects of personal finance in light of eternity.
• It’s about trying to understand how what we’re doing now fits into the economy of God rather than our economy.
• And it’s about trying to keep our heart focused on our treasures in heaven while staying free from the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth, and the desires for other things.

Now a tagline is just a tagline. It doesn’t mean much unless I stick to it. So I’m asking you all to help me keep this focus. It isn’t easy when we’re being swamped by a culture that drowns us with false ideas of “the good life” all the time. I need your help in keeping that Kingdom perspective throughout everything I write or do.

So leave a comment in a post if you think I missed something. Or just send me an email through my contact page. Walk alongside me as I walk alongside you, and let’s help each other grab hold of the prize.

When I was trying to decide on a name for my business and this blog, I wanted to find something that kept God connected to our personal finances. For too long I felt like I had segregated my work from my faith. I helped people with their finances but God was hardly ever a part of the conversation.

When it came time to start my own business, I wanted to pick a name that would continually remind me that God has a very active role in our finances. I wanted a name that would point to God first and us second. I wanted a name that would integrate faith and financial planning. So I chose “Provident Planning”.

Provident

Provident points to God’s foreseeing care, guidance, protection, and provision for us. It reminds me that no matter what happens – even if all around me starts to crumble – I am still in the hands of a loving and faithful God who wants what is best for me and will provide it.

Provident emphasizes the peace and security we can have when we place all of our hope and faith in God. It carries the idea that God already knows what we need and when we need it, and He is ready and willing to supply it to us as we seek His Kingdom and His righteousness first.

The whole image of God’s providence is woven throughout Scripture in the many ways He provides for His people. He is mindful in making provision for those in need. He creates food from nothing. He sends birds and angels to minister to us. He even blesses us with rain and sunshine when we don’t deserve it at all.

And the greatest example of His foresight in providing for us is found in His Son. He made a way for us to be reconciled to Him long before we even realized our need.

Planning

Planning brings in the other side of the equation – our part. All throughout Scripture, we see a call to work diligently and use our resources prudently. Many times God’s provision required action on the part of those He was helping. They had to go do something or take a course of action that required their own effort while trusting God for the result.

Planning is not the same as worrying. In planning, we do our best to look ahead, think it out, and prepare for what is most likely. In worrying, we simply torment ourselves with anxieties and fears of the very worst. Worrying is where you’ll find a lack of trust in God.

Planning doesn’t necessitate distrusting God. The best planning happens when we do the best we can, trust the outcome to God, and rest in the assurance that this world is a perfectly safe place to be while we’re living in God’s Kingdom.

Provident Planning

I struggled for quite a while in coming up with a name, but when I put provident and planning together it just felt right. Provident Planning – it’s all about trusting in the good, beautiful, and faithful God who wants the very best for us while doing our part to use the resources He’s given us in the best ways we can.

I don’t pretend like I always remember those truths but that’s my goal. I want to live in the reality of God’s Kingdom and help others do the same – all while prudently using and caring for what He has given us.

I invite you to come along. Come and take hold of that which is truly life!

       Several weeks ago, I interviewed Chuck Bentley about his new book The Root of Riches. I really enjoyed the book and thought Chuck and I had a great conversation. I highly recommend the book for anyone looking to go beyond the right financial practices and get to the heart of what it means to follow Christ in our finances.

       Crown Financial Ministries has graciously given me a copy of The Root of Riches to give away in addition to a lifetime membership for Crown Mvelopes – an online budgeting system. You can learn more about Crown Mvelopes here.

       To win, all you need to do is like Provident Planning on Facebook before Friday, August 5, 2011 at 5:00 PM EDT. (Note: This is different from my previous Facebook page which was through NetworkedBlogs. So if you’re already following Provident Planning on Facebook through the NetworkedBlogs app you are eligible to enter this giveaway!)

       Anyone who becomes a fan on Facebook between now and the deadline will be eligible to win. I’ll randomly select two winners – one for the book and one for the Crown Mvelopes lifetime membership. If you have a preference, let me know in the comments below.

       I’ll announce the winner on Provident Planning’s Facebook page so be sure to keep an eye out for it Friday evening. If you win, make sure you get back to me so I can arrange to get you the book or membership code. If you don’t get in touch with me by Monday, August 8, I’ll select another winner. Good luck!

       Alright, so this doesn’t have anything to do with personal finance or a Christian perspective on money. But I found it useful and thought some of you might, too. We’ve had a big problem with stinkbugs in our area lately. And after spending way too much time flushing them or sucking them up with the vacuum, Michelle and I were looking for an easy way to kill them and we found it. Here’s our secret weapon:

       It’s just a spray bottle filled with some soapy water. I just put about 2 tablespoons of dish soap in the bottle and shook it up a bit. Some recipes online say to use a whole lot more than that, but I found this to be effective. No need to waste a whole bottle of dish soap on this. Then I went on a rampage killing every stinkbug in sight. It works surprisingly well for something so simple. You usually only need about three or four good, direct hits to kill the stinkbug.

       Obviously, this has no residual effect and will not prevent future stinkbugs from entering your house. But it’s a convenient way to kill the varmints without touching them and getting the stink all over your fingers. (Even using a tissue or some toilet paper to grab them doesn’t keep the smell off.) After they’re dead, you can just vacuum them up or gather by hand. As a plus, you don’t have to worry about kids being around when you’re spraying it. Well, as long as you don’t spray them in the eyes…

       Don’t believe it’s that easy? Here’s a short video of me killing a couple stinkbugs with the solution. I went a little overboard on spraying them because I was trying to get quick results for the video, but you can confidently spray them a few times and move on. They’ll die within a couple minutes.

       Happy stinkbug hunting!

       Are you all still there?! It’s been a while since my last post.

       After not writing for almost six months, I’m ready to get back to it. I stopped writing for a while as I was taking on new responsibilities at church. Now that I’ve had time to settle in a bit, I’ll be writing here on Provident Planning again.

       I also needed a break because I was struggling with what I wanted to do with the content on here. I was getting distracted with things that don’t really matter and began to emulate many of the other personal finance blogs out there. I don’t want to do that. I want to keep the focus here on following Jesus in our finances – whatever that may cost. But I also want to help people with the practical side of things.

       So I won’t be writing as much as I used to. I want to create higher quality articles – not more articles. Right now the plan is to have two posts a week published on Mondays and Wednesdays. I may occasionally post a short article or some links on Fridays, but I’m not making any guarantees there.

       I’ll be balancing the articles between the strictly spiritual side of things and the practical (how to, information, general PF type of articles). However, I will try to incorporate a Christian perspective in everything when it fits. It’s sort of difficult to do that in a post that’s simply explaining what a Roth IRA is, but it’s certainly possible when talking about retirement planning. My hope is that this will meet both sides of my goal – looking at how to follow Jesus in our finances but also providing helpful resources to apply it to our financial decisions.

       Thanks for hanging in there during this break and for all your support. Many of you have encouraged me to get back into writing and that has helped motivate me to start again. I’m looking forward to learning and growing with you. God’s blessings to all of you as you seek Him!

       For the last few years, Free Money Finance has held a contest called March Money Madness (works like the college basketball competition). It gives bloggers a chance to highlight their best posts and see how they stack up to others. Additionally, FMF donates money to a charity of the blogger’s choice for the top 4 winners – $500 for 1st place, $300 for 2nd, and $100 each for 3rd and 4th.

       I’m playing for 50% to HOPE International and 50% to Mennonite Central Committee (or 100% to MCC if FMF doesn’t want to split the donations).

       Thanks to your help in Round 1, I’ve made it to Round 2! This week I’m in Game 2 with “The Save 10% for Retirement Rule Is Stupid“, and I’m up against Craig at Money Help for Christians. He’s a good friend of mine and a great writer, so I’ll be happy either way. But if you’d like to support me, leave a comment on today’s March Money Madness post saying “Game 2: Stupid”. Thanks for your support!

       Last week I was in Free Money Finance’s March Money Madness for Game 4. Thanks to you all, I won and will be going on to the second round for that post.

       But I was lucky enough to get two posts in this year’s competition, so I’ve got a second article in today’s Game 10. The article is called “Wake Up from the American Dream“. It’s not looking too well for me right now, so I could really use your help. All you have to do is leave a comment on today’s post saying “Game 10: Dream”. (You can vote for Game 9 while you’re at it if you want to.)

       FMF donates money to a charity of the blogger’s choice for the top 4 winners – $500 for 1st place, $300 for 2nd, and $100 each for 3rd and 4th. I’m playing for 50% to HOPE International and 50% to Mennonite Central Committee (or 100% to MCC if FMF doesn’t want to split the donations). Having two posts go on to the next round will really help the chances of seeing these charities get a donation.

       So if you can take just a minute to go vote by leaving a comment that says “Game 10: Dream”, I’d really appreciate it. Thanks for your support!

       Last month, I posted an update about how my wife and I are raising a cow for beef. This is the final post in the series. Bambi is back from the butcher and sitting in our freezer right now. Generally, we start each post by checking Bambi’s growth. That’s not an issue any more, but here he is at fifteen months old on the way to the butcher:





       And here’s a more recent picture:





       Yes. He is delicious.

Video Tribute

       In my last post I promised a video tribute for Bambi. Those of you who came in on the end of this little experiment can catch up on all of Bambi’s growth with this video. And those of you who followed the whole time can remember him fondly – plus you’ll get to see pictures of the processed beef in our freezer. You should at least listen to the song if nothing else…

The Final Tally

       All the numbers are in and I can tell you exactly what it took to raise and butcher Bambi (but this is specific to our situation – you’ll have to read the old posts for details – it’s probably less expensive if you’re in the business of raising steers). Here are the totals:

• Cost of Bambi – Free!
• Castration & Dehorning – $16.00
• Milk Replacer – $45.54
• Miscellaneous – $46.87
• Feed – $362.77
• Hay – $88.00
• Straw – $20.00
• Medicine – $5.00
• Boarding – $100.00
• Butchering Fee – $305.42
• Total Spent – $989.60
• Time – 102 hours

       Here are the cuts we ordered, how many pounds we got for each cut, my estimate for what it would cost to buy each cut at the store, and the total value of each cut.
 

 
       I based the estimated retail price on a combination of data from the USDA, wholesale meat prices, and store prices. I may have overestimated on some items and underestimated on others. If you have suggestions for alternative prices, please let me know. I did the best I could with the information I had and tried to remain as accurate as possible.

       The weighted average for the retail prices I came up with was $3.36/lb. Based on what it cost us (just money) to raise Bambi, we spent about $3.96/lb. So I guess if it’s worth $0.60/lb to you to know where your beef comes from then this isn’t too bad of a deal – especially for mostly grass-fed, hormone-free beef.

       Interestingly enough, my cost to raise Bambi before considering butchering fees is similar to what I would have paid if I had bought the same amount of beef from a farmer. Bambi’s hanging weight was 406 pounds and my cost before butchering was $684.18 or about $1.69/lb for hanging weight. Farmers tend to charge around $1.65/lb for hanging weight in my area. (Hanging weight is the weight of the cow after it’s been initially skinned, gutted, and cleaned but before it is cut into smaller pieces – so there’s still a good bit of bone and fat there.)

       But if you figure in the value of my time, things don’t look so good. If I valued my time just at minimum wage ($7.25/hr), that would increase my total cost to $1,729.10! And that would bring the average cost per pound to $6.92. That’s some expensive beef! To be honest though, I probably chose the most time-intensive methods for raising a cow for beef. This was especially true for the first few months of Bambi’s life. We bottle fed him for two whole months – a total of 60 hours of time. In contrast, most farmers take calves off the bottle in two weeks or less.

       But as I’ve said many times before, this was never really an experiment to see how frugal it would be to raise your own beef. I did it more to get the experience and have something to share in common with people in my church and community. Raising Bambi was interesting and occasionally fun. I’m glad I did it, but I’m not in a hurry to raise another cow for beef any time soon. If I had wanted it to be a strictly frugal experiment, I would have gone about it a little differently.

       I will say it’s kind of nice having such a huge selection of beef in our freezer. Unfortunately, it also makes meal planning a bit too easy. To finish all this beef in one year, we’d need to eat about 2/3 of a pound every day. That’s a lot of beef to split between two people each and every day of the year – especially when we’re used to not eating much meat. All I know is we’ll be having quite a few parties this summer because we’re not even close to being on schedule to eat all of this beef within a year.

       I’d say I’m going to miss Bambi, but I’d be lying. Some of you will find that harsh, but I’m going to guess you never raised a cow for beef either – especially the way I did it. It’s not that I hate animals. I just knew Bambi’s purpose from the beginning and kept it in the front of my mind. Plus, he was a bit of a pain and that certainly didn’t help him build a place in my heart.

       As far as I can tell, this is the last post I’ll have about Bambi and our experience of raising a cow for beef. If you’d like to read all the posts, here they are in order: (There is no month 1 post. I was tracking everything the whole time. I just never posted about it until month 2.)
 

• Raising a Cow for Beef: Month 2
• Raising a Cow for Beef: Month 3
• Raising a Cow for Beef: Month 4
• Raising a Cow for Beef: Month 5
• Raising a Cow for Beef: Month 6
• Raising a Cow for Beef: Month 7
• Raising a Cow for Beef: Month 8
• Raising a Cow for Beef: Month 9
• Raising a Cow for Beef: Month 10
• Raising a Cow for Beef: Month 11
• Raising a Cow for Beef: Month 12
• Raising a Cow for Beef: Month 13
• Raising a Cow for Beef: Month 14
• Raising a Cow for Beef: Month 15 – Goodbye, Bambi!

 
       If you have any questions, feel free to ask me in the comments. Thanks for following along!

       For the last few years, Free Money Finance has held a contest called March Money Madness (works like the college basketball competition). It gives bloggers a chance to highlight their best posts and see how they stack up to others. Additionally, FMF donates money to a charity of the blogger’s choice for the top 4 winners – $500 for 1st place, $300 for 2nd, and $100 each for 3rd and 4th.

       This year I’ll have two posts in the competition – one from a regular submission and another for having a top article in the Best of Money Carnival. I’m playing for 50% to HOPE International and 50% to Mennonite Central Committee (or 100% to MCC if FMF doesn’t want to split the donations).

       This week I’m in Game 4 with “The Save 10% for Retirement Rule Is Stupid“, and I’m up against Craig at Money Help for Christians. He’s a good friend of mine and a great writer, but thankfully he’s got two posts in today’s competition. So if you’d like to support us both, leave a comment on today’s March Money Madness post saying “Game 3: Writer & Game 4: Stupid”. Thanks for your support!

       On December 29, Rob at Dollars and Doctrine launched a new network of Christian Finance websites, the Christian Financial Alliance. The concept is simple: Define a set of core beliefs regarding biblical finance and hold ourselves accountable to it. After much thought, study, prayer, and help from other great blogs, he put together a list of 20 Core Beliefs of what the Bible teaches regarding money.

       I’ve chosen to join the Christian Financial Alliance. I hold myself accountable to teach and adhere to these fundamental teachings of Scripture in anything I post regarding biblical finance on Provident Planning.

       Want to add your blog or site to the Alliance? Read the core beliefs and if you agree, follow the simple instructions below:

       Put something on your site stating that you are a part of the Alliance. (How you go about doing this is completely up to you.)
 

- Post link or link image as badge on sidebar, footer, etc. Or…
- Post link back to this post somewhere on your site. Or…
- Run this information (and 20 core beliefs) as a post/guest post on your site stating that you support the cause.
- Email Rob to let him know that you support the effort and he will add your site to the C. F. Alliance.

 
       How you want to be a part is totally up to you. Anyone can join. There are no restrictions or policing by Rob (you hold yourself accountable). All you have to do is join with the honest effort of adhering to these core beliefs in your posting and teaching, and you are part of the C. F. Alliance! It is Rob’s hope that this network will provide readers with a foundational understanding of biblical financial truth from websites they already trust. In addition, Rob hopes it provides a level of distinction for bloggers who take great pains to make sure they are “accurately handling the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15)

Christian Financial Alliance Core Beliefs

1. I believe Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life, and no one comes to the Father except through Him (John 14:6). My heart, soul, mind, and strength seek to glorify God through the pursuit of Christ, and it is my hope that my life and financial management will reflect this fundamental purpose (Luke 10:27).

 

2. I believe the Bible is the supreme authority and source of truth and instruction for Christians; therefore, I seek to root my financial teaching in the truth of God’s word (2 Timothy 3:14-17).

 

3. I believe stewardship does not equal salvation (Acts 8:20). We are saved by grace alone through faith alone (Ephesians 2:8-9). No financial action can save a soul (Matthew 16:24-26).

 

4. I believe God owns everything (Psalm 89:11) and I am merely a steward of His resources for His purposes (Luke 12:42).

 

5. I believe the heart is the focus of the New Testament’s instruction regarding money (2 Corinthians 9:7). This does not make obedience contingent upon our feelings, but calls our attention to focus on the intentions of our heart (Proverbs 21:2).

 

6. I strive to be rich towards God (Luke 12:21) and not place my hope or trust in riches (Revelation 3:17-19).

 

7. I seek to serve God as my master, not money (Matthew 6:24).

 

8. I believe how we spend our money reveals what our heart treasures; therefore, if God’s kingdom has its rightful place in our hearts, it should show up in our budget (Matthew 6:21).

 

9. I believe prosperity is not the purpose of Christianity (John 6:29). It is a gift that God may or may not choose to give (1 Samuel 2:7), and should be handled with generosity and humility recognizing that to whom much is given, much is required (Luke 12:48).

 

10. I believe Christians are called to be content in all circumstances (Philippians 4:11) because God has given us everything we need in Christ (2 Peter 1:3).

 

11. I believe we are called to be wise stewards of resources (Luke 12:42) but not consumed with a love of money (1 Timothy 6:10).

 

12. I believe stewardship, generosity, and contentment are fruits of a deeper walk with Christ, not ends in themselves (1 John 5:21). I seek first His kingdom and wait for the rest to be added (Matthew 6:33).

 

13. I believe the Bible does not speak highly of the bondage caused by debt (Proverbs 22:7); therefore, it should—if nothing else—be approached with extreme caution (Proverbs 22:26-27).

 

14. I believe Christians are called to be generous (Acts 20:35) to their family (1 Timothy 5:8), God’s kingdom (1 Corinthians 9:14), and those in need (1 John 3:17). After these things, we are free to spend money on ourselves (Proverbs 10:22).

 

15. I believe heavenly reward awaits those who choose to invest in God’s kingdom (Luke 12:33), and whether or not God chooses to bestow earthly reward is up to Him (Job 1:21).

 

16. I believe integrity is more important than financial gain (Proverbs 10:2).

 

17. I believe money can be a blessing and a curse depending on the heart of its holder (Luke 6:44-45).

 

18. I believe that the way we handle our money should be a testimony of our devotion to God not a distraction from Him. (Colossians 3:17)

 

19. I believe there are many things in life that are more important than money. (Proverbs 23:4-5)

 

20. I believe true riches are found in Christ alone. (Ephesians 3:8)