Day 8 - Stewardship

Yea, the Lord shall give that which is good; and our land shall yield her INCREASE.— Psalm 85:12

Another extremely significant avenue of increase is the avenue of good stewardship.

Don’t Overspend

A steward is a financial manager or treasurer of a household or estate. Being a good steward of your finances means that you have more money coming in than you have going out. You make sure you spend less than the total amount of your income. If you make two hundred dollars per week, but you have more money coming in than you actually spend, then you are exercising good stewardship. If you apply this principle of stewardship to whatever income you have, you will be much better off than someone who earns sixty thousand dollars a year but overspends. Just because a person has a larger paycheck doesn’t mean he is being faithful with what he has.

It is a sad thought, but too many are unfaithful and violate good stewardship with their finances. They get impatient, charge things they can’t afford on their credit card, and then end up paying more in the long run.  But most of the time the Lord wants us to wait more and pay less. He utterly does not want us to overspend. Therefore, there are some things that need to be considered in the area of stewardship.

Important Points of Stewardship

First, we need to be faithful with what we have. Even though our possessions may not amount to much in terms of material value, we still must take care of them. For example, the U.S. Army spends extra time conducting preventative maintenance checks and services so that equipment will last longer. This means fewer dollars spent on purchasing new equipment and more money to spend on other things in the long run. The same principle holds true for our personal possessions. We need to treat our belongings with respect and not allow other people to misuse them. As we conduct proper maintenance on the material things we already have, not only will our possessions last longer, but God will be able to bless us with more.

Another aspect of stewardship is keeping well-informed on the state of our finances. For example, a cattleman should be attentive to know the condition of his flocks. A farmer should know the state of his crops. An investor needs to stay updated on the status of his stocks, bonds, and mutual funds. Regarding our own personal finances, we should always be aware of how much money we have coming in and going out. We need to know how much interest we are paying on our home, car, and other loans. We should be observant enough to know at any given time the pay-off amount on any loan. In other words, we have to take responsibility and stay

informed about the state of our finances.

Next, we need to cut out all waste. Do you remember the story about Jesus feeding five thousand people? He instructed His disciples to pick up the leftovers — twelve baskets full (Luke 9:17)! Was this because Jesus had a poverty mentality? No! He was teaching us something about stewardship. He doesn’t want us to waste the provisions He has supplied to us. Many people say that the desire to cut out waste comes from a spirit of poverty. But the truth is, it’s just practical wisdom. For instance, right before the recession of the ’70s hit, one president of an extremely large ministry was led by the Lord to let many employees go. This was a wise decision based on stewardship. Because he made the wise choice to cut out any unnecessary employees, he sailed through that recession without a financial struggle.

We may not always like the solutions God gives us to help us out of financial difficulties, but the Lord will be truthful with us in order to get us back on track. For instance, Jesus was truthful with the Syrophoenician woman whose daughter was demon-possessed. But even though He referred to the woman as a “dog,” using the Jewish term for Gentiles, she just humbly responded, “Truth, Lord”:

MATTHEW 15:25-28 -Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. 26 But he answered and said, It is not good to take the children’s bread, and to throw it to the little dogs. 27 And she said, TRUTH, LORD: yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.

28 Then Jesus answered and said unto her, “O woman, great is your faith: let it be to you as you desire. And her daughter was made healed from that very hour.

If we were wise, we would respond to God’s correction, reproof, and instruction with the same humility the Syrophoenician woman did and say, “Truth, Lord.” I know of a preacher whom the Lord once told to return his car to the car dealer after he had already made several payments on it. It was one of those difficult solutions the Lord sometimes gives to help one of His children get his finances in order. You see, the minister had wanted the car so badly that he had purchased it on credit without making sure the Lord wanted him to do it.

So with great remorse, the preacher obeyed God and returned the car. He didn’t want to do it, but instead of being rebellious and hardhearted, he submitted himself to God and did it anyway. That man’s obedience put him in a position to resist the devil. And in response to his obedience, the Lord caused great financial increase to come into his life in the months and years ahead.

The Lord may say something similar to us one day: “I told you not to purchase that thing, but you disobeyed.” He may tell us to return a coveted possession or sell a cherished piece of equipment that “we just had to buy.” If He does, we should respond just as the Syrophoenician woman did: “Truth, Lord.”

If you’re struggling with a burden of debt and can’t make some of your payments on time, don’t be irresponsible. Talk over the situation with your creditors. Do whatever you can

to work with them so you don’t end up with a bad credit rating. You need to humble yourself and make any adjustments God deems necessary to get you out of your financial troubles. Be mature enough to learn from your mistakes, start over responsibly, and apply that part of stewardship people often forget about: cut out all waste.