The Balancing Act: Saving
Theme / Financial Planning
Read Time / 3 Minutes
Cereal was the key, or so I thought.
Since I was a young teenager, keeping a constant healthy weight was anything but easy. The first time I thought, “I’m heavy” I was eleven years old. In order to drop a few (more like 20) pounds, I knew I needed a calorie deficit. I also knew my favorite bowl of cereal, Honey Bunches of Oates, was a measly 270 calories. Now, I’m no rocket scientist, but the math was obvious. If I ate three meals a day at 270 calories (plus the varied calories from the non-fat milk we kept in the fridge) per meal, I’d be a skinny young man in no time.
As I set out to accomplish my new goal, my instinct told me to use the easiest way to get my desired result — my favorite cereal. In life, regardless of age, education, and background, it seems like we are constantly wrestling with an inclination to settle for the quick fix (i.e. the cereal diet). While there are many reasons we may resort to this path, the root tends to be a lack of Kingdom perspective. What do I mean? Well, one day, we will stand before God and give an account for our life. The decisions we make today aren’t only building towards our immediate future, but eternity. Eating a balanced, healthy diet acknowledges, “I, Ryan De Amicis, as a child of God am valuable and my future is bright.” This is a work God is continuing to do in me by challenging why I eat what I eat. When I’m not valuing the things I put in my temple, it’s often because I am not feeling valuable.
Just as our body needs essential nutrients from quality food to function well, our finances are no different. Our ability to save is an essential nutrient in our financial behavior. For the purpose of this blog, savings will carry three main forms: planning for anticipated expenses, paying off debt, and investing.
A step in this journey is learning how to plan for anticipated expenses. In order for us to get out of debt and stay out of debt, we must learn how to prepare and save for expenses we can easily anticipate. This would be saving for an emergency, car, vacation, insurance premiums, and anything else you could expect to happen over the next couple of years.
If we can learn to prepare for upcoming expenses, we can confidently tackle our debt knowing once we are out of bondage, we aren’t going back. Too often I’ll talk with a couple who works hard to get out of debt only to find themselves burdened by debt again only years later. Why? A lack of preparation and commitment to a plan.
Having learned how to prepare for expenses and get out of debt, investing is the next natural step, and it’s the fun one. This is where you get to see your money actually work for you instead of against you. This is where you start building and planning for your long term future instead of robbing it. Investing can take many forms: Real Estate, Stocks, Bond, Mutual Fund, etc. At Christian Wealth Management, we mostly focus on mutual funds and put a priority on investing Biblically Responsible.
All three of these activities are essential in continuing to build toward a healthy relationship with money. Scripture tells us in Luke 14:28, “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it?” The tower you are building in your family’s life is going to be unique, but it will include moving toward financial independence. Financial independence is the ability to have passive income greater than your expenses. It’s a lifestyle where you are able to make decisions without money being our motivator or hindrance.
After a year of eating cereal as my primary meal, I reached my goal weight. The problem I experienced is the process I implemented was not sustainable. As a result, a few years later, I gained the weight back, and then, I lost it again. This cycle continued. Proverbs 13:11 says, “Wealth gained hastily will dwindle, but whoever gathers little by little will increase it.” Little by little, one step at a time, with keeping Heaven’s perspective in mind. As I’ve aimed to master food, my desire for my body now is not solely about what it look likes but how it feels. Similarly to how I’m preparing my finances, I want to be in a position to go where God calls me – without extra weight (financial or physical). When we are wise with our finances and our bodies, the call of God is no longer stressful but joyful.
Ryan De Amicis
Wealth Advisor
408.758.6413
ryan@christianwm.com
