- Part 63

Archives For Corey

10 Ways to Clip Your Food Costs without Clipping Coupons

Corey — August 10, 2009

Looking for ways to save money on your food costs? Try these 10 ideas for minimizing your stomach’s impact on your budget:

1. Stop dining out! Cook at home instead.

Paying someone else to fix your meals gets very expensive very quickly. Forget the argument that you save time by dining out. That only works for fast food – and you know better than that, right? Even if your kitchen skills are a little dull, you’ll be able to prepare a tasty meal in no time after a little practice. Make dining out a rare treat and your budget will thank you.

2. Create a meal menu for the week. Then make a grocery list and stick to it.

Don’t let your refrigerator dictate your diet. Plan your meals for the week by looking at what’s on sale (without violating any of the remaining tips). Make your meals work together by planning for dishes that use the same ingredients. Then create your grocery list around that menu. Stick to your list when you’re shopping for groceries. You’ll save money two ways here. First, you’ll waste less food because your meals are planned out and work together. And second, you’ll spend less on impulse purchases because you’re sticking to your list. Oh, and make sure you eat before go shopping!

3. Buy unprocessed foods.

Lay off the Cheez Whiz, soda, junk food, and prepared meals. These foods cost more than they’re worth, and they’re not healthy at all. Poor quality ingredients, additives, and way too much sodium mean you’re getting ripped off while destroying your health. Instead, stick to unprocessed foods. The less it’s been processed the better. Buy basic ingredients (like raw vegetables) and turn them into meals in your kitchen. You’ll be healthier and save a ton of money.

4. Buy produce in season.

When you buy produce out of its regular harvest season you’ll pay more for a lower quality product. Buying in season means you’ll get a lower price and fresher fruits and vegetables. You’re also more likely to get locally grown produce than something that’s been shipped across the nation or world.

5. Buy in bulk.

When buying staples consider buying in bulk. You’ll often get the exact same product for a lower cost per unit (ounce, pound, etc.). However, be careful to compare costs on the various sizes available. The biggest package may not always be the best buy.

6. Stock up when you find a good bargain.

If a store has a great sale on an item you regularly use and can store, you can save a good bit of money by stocking up. Just make sure it won’t go bad before you can actually use it. And don’t buy stuff just because it’s on sale – be certain it’s something you’ll eat!

7. Reduce your meat intake.

Meats are the most expensive parts of nearly any meal. By cutting back on the amount of meat you eat, you’ll save money and improve your health. Don’t worry about not getting enough protein. Americans eat much more protein than we actually need for a healthy diet. Less protein means better calcium absorption, which leads to stronger bones.

8. Don’t eat too much.

Not only is it bad for your waist size, but it’s also bad for your budget. When you eat too much your body doesn’t efficiently turn the food into energy. All you get is a stuffed belly and money down the toilet (literally). Eat moderate portions and you’ll feel better and save money.

9. Don’t waste leftovers.

If you planned your meals well in tip #2, you shouldn’t have to deal with this problem. But in case you didn’t do that, don’t forget to use all your leftovers. Anything you throw away is like throwing cash in the trash.

10. Price your recipes to find the cheapest recipes.

By figuring out the cost per serving for the recipes you prepare the most, you’ll find the most affordable meals. If you want to see a true cost, add in the time you spent on preparation (less the time you would have spent driving and waiting to eat out). If you can’t remember what you paid for the ingredients, you can estimate prices from an online comparison. I use Safeway’s “Grocery Delivery” section on their website when pricing my own recipes. You can see the price and size for almost any item. You just need to enter a zip code where a store is located. If you don’t have a Safeway near you, try “22044” for a zip code. It’ll take you a little time to price your recipes, but it’s something you won’t need to do very often. If you find yourself needing to save a little more money, it’ll help to know which recipes are the cheapest. Finally, don’t focus on cost to the detriment of your health.

In Budgeting, Frugality

Faith-Based or Socially Responsible Investing – Delusions of Righteousness

Corey — August 7, 2009

Mike at Oblivious Investor recently discussed some low-cost socially responsible mutual funds. His article prompted me to write about the issue of faith-based or socially responsible investing, which has been on my mind for quite some time now.

The idea of socially responsible investing has been around for quite some time now, and faith-based investing has seen a lot of growth in the last ten years as well. Investors are showing increasing interest in the concept and many religious teachers are touting the benefits, and alluding to the necessity, of faith-based investing. However, I have found many misconceptions in the arguments of those who support these investing ideas. Personally, I see it as another attempt to pursue righteousness through works and find little Biblical basis for such legalistic views. Here are a few of the reasons proponents give for faith-based and socially responsible investing:

1. When You Invest in a Company, You Help It.

The idea that you’re helping a company because you’re investing in it is completely flawed. The only time this matters is when a company makes a public offering of its stock. In that case, the money raised from selling the stock does go directly to the company. But if you’re buying the stock on the stock exchange, your money does not go to the company whose stock you’re buying. It goes to the investor who owned the shares you just purchased. From the company’s point of view nothing has really changed except the name on the stock certificate.

“But if everyone sells a company’s stock its share price will go down. That’ll show them!” It’s true that if a company’s stock price goes down, it will probably affect the company’s ability to borrow money and will impact those employees (mostly officers) who own stock or stock options. However, the idea that you can affect the stock price of a company is absolutely ridiculous. Which brings us to point #2…

2. You Vote with Your Investment Dollars. (Sell the company’s stock, and you’ll show them you don’t support them.)

Even if all the Christians in the world refused to buy the stock of “sinful” companies, we would see no change in the corporate world at all. If anything, these companies could become even more “sinful” because no Christians would have an ownership voice in how the companies are run. For every Christian that sells a company’s stock, there will be a non-Christian who will buy it up (especially if it is a good value). And we haven’t even looked at the fact that most stock price movements are caused by institutional investors – not individuals with $50,000, $300,000, or even $1,000,000 portfolios. The “big guys” are trading billions of dollars and your investment choices will have little impact on them or the stock market.

3. If You Invest in Companies That Sin, You’re Investing in Sin!

This claim is absurd for two reasons. First, it relies on the validity of #1 (above). Second, it has no merit even on its own – your investment in a specific company is not causing any more or less sin than if you don’t invest in it. This idea also alludes to the conception that you have control over how your money is spent. This is true only until you spend it – whether on something “holy” or something “sinful”. After that, however, you have no idea how the next person will use it. They may spend it in an even more righteous way than you did (maybe they’ll actually feed the hungry with it…) or they may use it in the most sinful way you can imagine.

If the proponents of faith-based investing actually followed this argument to its full end, they’d never watch television again. You do more harm by supporting sinful television shows through your viewing habits than you do by investing in sinful companies. First, the television networks raise advertising money because you watch their shows, which leads them to produce more of the same types of shows. And second, these shows can actually affect your conscience and beliefs and tempt you to sin in ways that investing in a specific company cannot. I’m not saying you should seek out sinful business to invest in. But if your portfolio holds 1.3% of Exxon because you invest in index funds, you’re not going to be more likely to sin because of it. But if you pollute your mind with shows that do not glorify God, you’re giving Satan a much easier way to tempt you.

4. Faith-based or Socially Responsible Investing Is Good Stewardship of Your (God’s) Money.

Take a moment to consider the prudence of investing in faith-based mutual funds where you pay 5% up front as a “sales load” (commission to broker) plus annual expenses of 1.45%. The fees for righteous investing are outrageous, and there’s no way I can consider it good stewardship to spend that extra money on something that has negligible benefits for actually improving the world. And don’t think that you’ll get better stock selection because you’re using these highly paid professionals “with a conscience”. Take a look at the actual holdings of some of these faith-based mutual funds and you’ll find some of the same companies you would in an index fund. For example, the MMA Praxis Value Index Fund holds Time Warner, which owns HBO, which in turn shows adult entertainment. I’m sure there are many examples from a variety of faith-based funds, but this one highlights an important reason you shouldn’t get so focused on this idea. The corporate world is so convoluted and full of subsidiaries of subsidiaries that it’s difficult to really know what a company is involved in.

It doesn’t get much better if you decide you’re going to buy individual stocks you’ve researched for their righteous actions (or at least non-sinful actions). First, you’re going to need to buy “round lots” (multiples of 100 shares) to avoid paying an artificially inflated price. Then, you’ll need to buy at least 30 different stocks in different sectors to create your diversified portfolio. Also, don’t forget your trade commissions – at least $7 per trade, probably more if you don’t shop around. And we’re just talking about U.S. stocks…the transaction costs for international companies can be much more, not to mention the difficulty in obtaining accurate research about their business practices.

The only socially responsible fund that comes close to having the same low fees as an index fund is Vanguard’s FTSE Social Index at an expense ratio of 0.31%. But it’s still likely that some of the companies in that fund will violate your personal morals, so you’re still back where you started.

5. Can You Own Those Companies with a Clean Conscience?

This is the only valid argument on the side of faith-based or socially responsible investing. If the Holy Spirit convicts you about owning specific companies, then there is no reason you should own those companies. But do not try to further justify your reasons by using the claims above – they are illogical and have no factual support. And do not place the burden on other Christians by preaching that they should do the same. God has provided no clear teaching on the matter in the Bible, and adding legalistic rules to faith in Jesus does not glorify Him at all. If you still feel compelled to invest according to these “faith principles”, that is fine. But do not condemn or judge others because they do not follow your opinions in such trivial matters.

The Holy Spirit has revealed nothing to me about investing in index funds as being evil. If anything, we’d be better off spending our time focusing on showing God’s love and sharing the news about Jesus rather than worrying about how our money is invested (especially when it doesn’t really affect the world). The whole concept of faith-based investing reminds me of when Jesus blasted the Pharisees for straining out a gnat but swallowing a camel. We are still finding ways to emulate the Pharisees today – using legalistic rules to justify ourselves as righteous while neglecting the things God really cares about. We worry about investing in sinful companies, but we’re fine with planing for an early retirement or a second home when people (including Christians) are starving and homeless. Which do you think God cares more about?

Where Does Your Righteousness Come From?

Just as Paul asked the Galatians to remember how they became righteous, I ask those who preach faith-based investing the same question. Did your investing habits condemn you or save you from your sin? Do you claim your righteousness and holiness based on how you choose to invest your money? Let’s not forget that we place our faith in Jesus Christ – knowing that it is by grace we have been saved through Christ’s death.

Nowhere does Christ preach such a legalistic faith as the one faith-based investors would like us to follow. What did He teach us? To love God and to love each other. His teaching focused not on the possible actions of others, but on our own actions and our own thoughts. Which is the more loving act? To invest in companies that will make us feel better about getting rich, or to give generously to those in need while remembering the gift of Jesus?

If you want to see real change in the world that will glorify God, then do the things you support. Give your time and money to causes that promote your values. And instead of relying on your investment dollars to change people, spread the Gospel. It’s the only force that will effect any lasting and truly good change in the world.

In Investing, Stewardship

Prosperity Gospel or Greed Gospel? Does God Want to Make All Christians Rich?

Corey — August 6, 2009

What do Benny Hinn, Joel Osteen, Joyce Meyer, T.D. Jakes, and Kenneth Copeland all have in common? They’re all proponents of the so-called “prosperity gospel”, a false teaching that proclaims a gospel of wealth and health instead of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Donnie Swaggart once called it the “greed gospel”. I wish it weren’t called a “gospel” at all, so that it would never be confused with the True Gospel – the Good News of Jesus Christ.

I’ve been reading a lot about this lately, and the Spirit burns with anger inside of me because of the false teaching these people are spreading throughout the world. They would do well to remember the warning Jesus gave the scribes and Pharisees about devouring widows’ houses! I pray that in my anger I do not sin, but I want to look at some of the claims of the greed gospel and show what God’s Word has to say in response.

Claim #1: God Wants to Bless You with Abundant Material Wealth

One of the primary claims of the greed gospel is that God wants to bless all Christians with abundant material wealth. This teaching is found nowhere in Scripture – it’s a false teaching made up by men. Let’s look at what the Bible really says instead. First, let’s think about the Lord’s Prayer. Do you remember the part about “give us this day our daily bread”? What was Jesus referring to when he said “our daily bread”? We find the answer in Proverbs 30:8-9:

⁸ Remove far from me falsehood and lies. Give me neither poverty nor riches. Feed me with the food that is needful for me; ⁹ lest I be full, deny you, and say, ‘Who is Yahweh?’ or lest I be poor, and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.

Proverbs 30:8-9 (WEB)

The food that is needful for me is my daily bread. It is no more and no less than what I need to survive the day with health. Jesus is teaching us here not to pray for riches but to pray for just enough. If Jesus had wanted us to pray for abundant wealth, He would have chosen a different phrase than “our daily bread”. In fact, Jesus taught strongly that our life does not depend on the abundance of our possessions (our wealth).

He said to them, “Beware! Keep yourselves from covetousness, for a man’s life doesn’t consist of the abundance of the things which he possesses.”

Luke 12:15 (WEB)

The Amplified Bible explains this verse by saying that our life “does not consist in and is not derived from possessing overflowing abundance or that which is over and above our needs”. Jesus makes it clear that the quality of our life does not depend on our having wealth or lacking it – He points to a deeper meaning, purpose, and value for our lives. Jesus wants to give our lives more meaning than material wealth, but the greed gospel insinuates that we get more meaning and happiness by getting more wealth. The Gospel of Christ contains no such teaching.

Throughout the New Testament, we see a doctrine completely opposed to the greed gospel. Instead of prosperity in Christ, we see contentment in Christ. Paul teaches extensively on this subject.

⁸ But having food and clothing, we will be content with that. ⁹ But those who are determined to be rich fall into a temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful lusts, such as drown men in ruin and destruction. ¹⁰ For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some have been led astray from the faith in their greed, and have pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

1 Timothy 6:8-10 (WEB)

Note that Paul doesn’t say “But having overflowing wealth, we will be content with that.” The requirements for contentment in Christ are merely food and clothing, because our happiness and worth come from Christ and His strength – not our wealth. Those who seek after God and Christ because they want material blessings and wealth will only pierce themselves with many sorrows. Paul teaches that regardless of our situation on earth we can be content in Christ.

¹¹ Not that I speak in respect to lack, for I have learned in whatever state I am, to be content in it. ¹² I know how to be humbled, and I know also how to abound. In everything and in all things I have learned the secret both to be filled and to be hungry, both to abound and to be in need. ¹³ I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.

Philippians 4:11-13 (WEB)

Instead of seeking Christ to find wealth and blessing (material), Paul alludes to seeking Christ to find contentment – the kind of contentment that nothing on earth can offer. No amount of money can make you content in every situation. It may help alleviate your needs if you are poor, but what will it do for you when people betray you and curse you? Only the strength of Christ will see you through all situations. Therefore, we come to Christ not for blessings and prosperity but for His strength and the contentment He offers us.

Does This Mean God Doesn’t Want to Bless Me at All?

God obviously does not want bad things for His children, but that does not mean all of His children will be rich and wealthy in this life. God does want to bless us, but there will always be lack and want in this life because of the nature of this world. God blessed us through His Son, Jesus Christ, that we might have eternal life with Him and we’ll never lack a thing any more. It’s that gift that allows us to deal with any situation on earth, and it’s that gift that has abundantly blessed us in this life. We have the abundant riches of eternal life that come from Jesus – riches that will never fail us and bring contentment and joy that the world’s money cannot. Poverty is not a sign of God’s disfavor or our lack of faith. In fact, Jesus blessed the poor and warned the rich. Poverty is but a temporary and outwardly state. As Christians we have spiritual riches that no man can truly see or understand unless he is of the Father. In the same way, riches are not a sign of God’s favor or our righteousness. We need only look at all the unrighteous wealthy people in the world to see the truth in this.

Other Claims of the Greed Gospel

I’m going to stop here today before I exhaust you by going through the other three claims I want to examine. We’ll look at those in separate posts, and I’ll add them here after they’re finished. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below. May God open your eyes to see the truth of His Word and give you His Spirit to discern what is true and what is false.

In Prosperity

New Covenant Giving: Give Yourself to God First

Corey — August 5, 2009

In the Old Testament, the Israelites gave through their mandatory tithes and through their freewill offerings. But in Christ’s teaching and the New Testament, we see a much better example of giving that comes through grace, generosity, love, thankfulness, and the leading of the Holy Spirit. God no longer mandates an exact amount we should give, but He instead asks us to seek His will and follow His Spirit to decide how much we should give.

The motivations for giving in the New Testament come purely from love for God, love for others, the grace God has given us, and our contentment and thankfulness in Christ. Tithing was an obligation for the Israelites as part of the Law. But Christ has fulfilled all the requirements and obligations of the Law for us – our salvation and righteousness no longer relies on our ability to keep the Law. Instead, we place all of our hope of salvation and holiness in the death and resurrection of Christ. This grace which God has afforded us calls for a lifestyle dominated not by the Old Testament Laws but by the Law of the Spirit of Grace. Just as Jesus taught the full intent and spirit of the Law, we no longer focus on the letter of the Law but on the intent and spirit of the law. It is in giving ourselves fully to God and the guidance of His Spirit that we will be able to reflect His nature to others.

Give Yourself to God First

When Paul describes the generous giving of the church at Macedonia, he tells the Corinthians that they gave more than expected because they gave themselves to God first.

¹ Moreover, brothers, we make known to you the grace of God which has been given in the assemblies of Macedonia; ² how that in much proof of affliction the abundance of their joy and their deep poverty abounded to the riches of their liberality. ³ For according to their power, I testify, yes and beyond their power, they gave of their own accord, ⁴ begging us with much entreaty to receive this grace and the fellowship in the service to the saints. ⁵ This was not as we had hoped, but first they gave their own selves to the Lord, and to us through the will of God.

2 Corinthians 8:1-5 (WEB)

The Macedonian Christians gave generously, even though they were in deep poverty themselves, to help our those in Jerusalem who were suffering from a famine. Why would they do this? They were in need themselves, but they saw the excessive needs of others as more important than their own. This is not something humans would naturally do. Many people give out of their abundance, but few non-Christians give generously and joyously while they are themselves in poverty. It doesn’t make sense by worldly standards. This is not to say that God requires poor Christians to give when they can hardly meet their own needs – it just testifies to the power of God’s Holy Spirit that poor Christians can give generously and joyously despite their own needs.

The believers at Macedonia were only able to give with such generosity and joy because they gave themselves to God first. They fully subjected their will to His will. They gave out of their love for God, love for others, and their contentment in Christ. Because their fulfillment came from Christ, they saw no affliction in their own poverty. The joy and love of Jesus compelled them to give even beyond what they were able – beyond what anyone could have expected of them. And they did it with pure joy and a strong, driven spirit.

This type of generous giving can only come from God. When we find contentment in Christ, we no longer count material things as important. We can be satisfied with much less in this life so we can fully follow Jesus’ teaching of giving generously. We understand that what we have and own in this life have absolutely no value in eternity. We look at the example of Christ’s generous gift and are compelled by the Spirit to give in response. We submit ourselves to God’s will and give to meet the needs of others. This generous giving is a clear, outward sign of our love for God and dedication to His ways. And it’s a shining example of the extravagantly merciful and overflowing giving nature of God.

Apart from God, we can only see our own needs and wants. We desire our own well-being first and foremost, and then we might give if we have some extra and feel guilty because of our relative wealth compared to those in need. We are primarily selfish creatures, and we are especially so when we find ourselves in need or want of something. Only when we come to God and give ourselves to Him can we put aside our selfishness and look to the needs of others instead. Apart from this submission to God’s love and will, we cannot duplicate the generosity of His true children who value Him above all else.

The only way we can have this continually generous giving nature is to first give ourselves fully to God. Our lives cannot be governed by grace and mercy until we accept the gift of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Once we do that, we can begin to find our contentment in Him, develop and strengthen our love for God, and begin to give generously in response to Christ’s love and gift – no matter what our situation is…rich or poor. We won’t give grudgingly or out of compulsion by some requirement imposed by man. We’ll give out of pure joy and happiness in the Lord.

If you want to learn more about New Covenant Giving – giving that is completely freewill, generous, joyful, and sacrificial – continue to check back here at Provident Planning. Or better yet, click here to get free updates in your email or favorite feed reader!

In Giving

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