Jay Peroni offers the following royalty-free article for you to publish online or in print. Feel free to use this article in your newsletter, website, ezine, blog, or forum. ----------- PUBLICATION GUIDELINES - You have permission to publish this article for free providing the "About the Author" box is included in its entirety. - Do not post/reprint this article in any site or publication that contains hate, violence, porn, warez, or supports illegal activity. - Do not use this article in violation of the US CAN-SPAM Act. If sent by email, this article must be delivered to opt-in subscribers only. - If you publish this article in a format that supports linking, please ensure that all URLs and email addresses are active links. - Please send a copy of the publication, or an email indicating the URL to [email protected] - Article Marketer (www.ArticleMarketer.com) has distributed this article on behalf of the author. Article Marketer does not own this article, please respect the author's copyright and publication guidelines. If you do not agree to these terms, please do not use this article. ----------- Article Title: Stewardship: Just Another Buzzword? Author: Jay Peroni Category: Personal Finance, Christianity Word Count: 852 Keywords: financial planning, certified financial planner, wealth creation, investments, savings Author's Email Address: [email protected] Article Source: http://www.articlemarketer.com ------------------ ARTICLE START ------------------
The term stewardship is tossed around like a buzzword. Because it is used so often, the word's true meaning has lost a lot of its relevance. Let's look at Merriam Webster's definition of stewardship: 1. The office, duties, and obligations of a steward 2. The conducting, supervising, or managing of something; especially: the careful and responsible management of something entrusted to one's care. Stewardship is one of the most common themes in the Bible. I refer to stewardship as being a faithful manager of the time, skills, and financial resources that God has provided you. How you manage these three elements of your life affects every other area. When you apply God's principles regarding stewardship, you will begin to enjoy freedom and fulfillment that can be found nowhere other than in Christ. God owns it all? What we possess is not ours. The Bible tells us God created everything between heaven and earth. He owns everything. We are responsible for managing our lives, our money, and our possessions on God's behalf. Because everything we possess is ultimately His, we are essentially God's managers. Many believe that only the first 10 percent belongs to God (a tithe), but in reality, He owns the other 90 percent as well. He graciously loans us resources based on our ability to manage. Will you become a faithful manager? The parable of the talents (see Matthew 25:14-30) illustrates the power of being a faithful manager. With each level of responsibility, the amounts given to the servants differed, but each was entrusted with something. The rewards were not based on the amounts given, but rather on the increase that resulted from the amount given. God gives you responsibility based on what you can handle. You have been given something that is important to God; you can please Him through being faithful with what He has provided and called you to do. Being a faithful manager encompasses more than money. It involves management of every single area of our daily lives. Do you believe you or God is the owner of everything? Your belief is illustrated each time you make a decision. Are you in control or is God? Either we attempt to take God out of the picture (the reason for the fall of Adam in the garden), or we seek to move closer to God (the triumph of Jesus). The Beliefs of a Faithful Manager The Faith-Based Investor is based on four core beliefs a faithful person must hold in order to manage money wisely for God: 1. God Created Everything This means you believe it all starts and ends with God just as stated in Genesis 1:1: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" (niv). If you believe God created everything-from the earth and the other planets to plant and animal life to humans to, more specifically, you-then this should be the foundation of your faith. Who is in control of everything? 2. God Owns Everything Psalm 24:1 tells us, "The earth is the Lord's, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it" (niv). Your faith is your greatest asset in this world. As your faith continues to grow, your reliance on God should increase as well. Believing God owns everything will motivate you to a whole new level. This also leads to an important question: To whom does your money really belong? 3. We Are God's Trustees First Timothy 6:17-18 exhorts,"Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share" (niv). Being entrusted with wealth carries great responsibility. If you believe God owns everything, isn't your money really His money? He has entrusted the things of this earth to you, and He allows you usage during your lifetime, but He is still in control and the ultimate Owner. How, then, should you manage His money? 4. Managing Money Involves an Emphasis on Honoring God The core of this belief is to look at how God would want His money invested. This involves an understanding of what God would support or condone. You may believe that issues or causes are not just black or white, that there are gray areas. Do you think God sees in gray? There is right and there is wrong. Man uses gray to justify his lifestyle. Rather than be convicted of wrongdoing, man often changes what God intended to suit his needs rather than God's desires. How should God's money be invested? Just as the parable of the talents illustrates, as a faithful manager, you are responsible for the administration of the affairs and possessions of God. His money must be invested to reap the greatest reward. One day we all will have to account for how we spent our time, used our spiritual gifts, and the way we used or abused the resources we were given. This accountability should be our motivation, driving our desires and, most of all, our behavior. Jay Peroni, CFP, and author of The Faith-Based Millionaire and The Faith-Based Investor. Jay is also the founder of http://www.FaithBasedInvestor.com, a faith-based investing newsletter and the founder of http://www.ValuesFirstAdvisors.com a firm dedicated to faith-based financial planning. ------------------ ARTICLE END ------------------ [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
