Tag: saving money

Posted on in Finding Grace Weekly Recap, Miscellaneous

Finding Grace #462

You may have seen the acronym GRACE as God’s Riches At Christ’s Expense. Grace is also God’s unmerited favor, or God doing for us what we cannot.

I find grace overflowing with God’s love, joy, peace, blessings, mercy, power, provision, protection, and wisdom. Thank You, Jesus!

Free winter snow nature illustration

Where did I find God’s love and favor—His abundant grace—this week?!

This was a good week with lots of interesting things! I have noticed it staying a little lighter each night. I read something recently that said we’ve gained almost an hour of daylight at this latitude since the winter solstice!

I had about a dozen prayer requests for friends, family, and coworkers this week. I am grateful we can trust God with these heavy burdens. He is faithful and true!

On Tuesday, I celebrated my 17th wedding anniversary. Marrying Dave is still one of the best decisions I have ever made! We were a really good team. I miss him, but I am so grateful for our time together.

Work went well with no major surprises! My coworkers officially had the day off for President Jimmy Carter’s funeral, but three of us opted to work and cover the load. I already had several patients scheduled, and we were told not to reschedule unless the Veteran requested it. I was happy to come in and got extra pay as a result. The pace was constant, but I had nice patients who were grateful we were there!

On Friday, after work, I went to the local bookstore for a cup of coffee while working on some edits for the church project I was asked to help with. I enjoyed the atmosphere, and it reminded me of all the spent there writing and editing my book!

While we received some light snow today, we’ve had a fairly mild winter thus far. I have heard some songbirds, and this week, I used my Merlin Bird ID app to identify a black-capped chickadee’s song. It was sweet and cheerful. I did not see the little bird, but they are cute and made my day!

Today, I read a book, made some calls, did a few chores, and got my oil changed. I updated my budget and am enjoying spending less overall while we use up some of our storage items (a.k.a. shopping our shelves). Of course, I have seen many tempting online ads, so I removed a couple of apps from my phone. Additionally, it would be fun to see if we can avoid going to the grocery store for a full month, but I am not putting pressure on us to do that. We’ll see how it goes!

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These are only a few examples, but God’s grace never runs out!

There’s grace in every situation—we just need to look for it. God promises if we seek Him, we will find Him (see Jeremiah 29:13)!

Posted on in Books and Movies I Like, Fruit, Life is Short, Miscellaneous, Parenting, Wisdom

Sweet Savings

We were walking into a store on Sunday when Lydia said excitedly, “Mom! When I grow up, I want a motorcycle and a truck!” Then, she added, “And, maybe a car.”

I don’t know what made her say that, but it made me smile. “Well, you’re going to have to work hard and save up for all those vehicles, though your dad would be proud!”

A few weeks ago, we had a conversation about finances in the car as we left the grocery store. I told her I’d have to update my budget when we got home, which prompted the topics of giving, saving, and spending.

Lydia told me all about how a savings account works. She seemed pretty confident and what she said made sense. I asked, “Oh, did you learn about that from school?”

“No,” Lydia replied. “From Little Critter.”

Trying to keep a straight face, I asked, “Oh, really? Which book was that?”

Lydia reminded me of when Little Critter (the character by Mercer Mayer) did extra chores to save up money for something he wanted. At the end of the story, he sees how much money he has and decides to aim a little higher and get something better.

I didn’t want Lydia to think I was laughing at her, so I tried to control my reaction. But, I was thinking, “Well, either I’m doing something really right… or really wrong!”

Then, a few days later, Lydia brought home a book from school about a little girl turning in the money from her piggy bank. I knew it was time for us to do the same.

Instead of an allowance, I give Lydia small tickets which are a creative way for me to avoid always having to have cash on hand. It has been fun because it is somewhat random.

Lydia doesn’t know what will earn her a ticket, so it is always a surprise. It is a very flexible system; some weeks she gets no tickets because we forget! 🙂

I usually only offer one or two tickets for doing extra chores (if any), but I gave Lydia 15 tickets when she got her braces. She was so brave!

I tend to reward quality work without complaining and other traits I want to cultivate. These include obedience, patience, kindness, gentleness, service/volunteering, and self-control. 

I’m sure we’ll adjust our system over time, but for now, it works well!

Lydia proudly combined the cash and coins from her piggy bank with her 92 tickets, which she earned since last summer. This is our first go-around, so we decided each one was worth a quarter. Whew! I owed her $23 and added it to her stash.

We opened the account together and have continued our conversations about money. For example, Lydia and I have been discussing wants versus needs. 

Lydia doesn’t know much about my budget, but she has been turning the tables and questioning whether or not I need something. It’s been a little convicting at times!

These are all good reminders that God cares about our money. He always provides well for us, but we are stewards of the blessings He gives us. Are we being faithful?

 It is okay to have nice things, but are we using our money wisely? Are we tithing to our church? Are we only meeting our needs or looking for ways to help others?

It matters how we use or resources, and it is important to have these conversations with our children. Thankfully, Lydia is learning valuable lessons early on.

It was good to put Lydia’s money in the bank for safe keeping. It wasn’t a lot of money, but it will grow over time.

God not only bought us back from death but He continues to invest in us. Sometimes growth is quick and easy, but often, it takes a lot of hard work and discipline.

It is okay to start small, but don’t delay. Both a handful of coins and our little efforts add up. We will see the benefits, however, if we do not give up (see Galatians 6:9).

Trust God wherever you are with whatever you have right now. He is faithful!

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Heavenly Father, thanks for Your faithfulness and provision. Help us to have the right attitude about money. Help us to use our resources wisely. In Jesus’ Name, Amen

Questions: Are you more of a spender or saver? Do you have a budget and set financial goals? How do you honor God with your finances?

Tasks: Take a moment to review your budget. Praise God for His provision and pray about any changes you need to make.