If there is a phrase that characterizes my closer family, parents and siblings, is: “Money must not be squandered.” My parents used to remind this to me while growing up. I can say that my family cannot be considered spenders at all. It did not matter how well or not our finances were, my parents always encouraged me to put some money into the bank. Not surprisingly, they did not hesitate to open saving accounts for me and my siblings. In this respect, the message I received from them was that money can help someone or cause damage. Such an idea shaped my perspective on finance significantly.
I still remember that during my first year of college, I used to visit the bank before arriving on campus. The bank was located downtown, and it was near the bus stop I usually took. One day, I tried to deposit a couple of dollars in a portable saving account—it was my college university ID, which at the same time served as a portable money account to pay for buying food. The teller could not believe I was indeed making a deposit of such a small amount. After having a brief argument with the teller, he recognized I was serious and wanted indeed to make that small deposit.
As I reflect about this story, I came to the idea that when we try to save money, most people start with small amounts of money. However, in our fast-driven society, such a fact is not always given any worth.
While my parents valued saving money, they also taught me about giving money to the church and non-profit organizations. They both encouraged me to give approximately 20% of all my income. Definitely, it was a hard decision for a university student!
Later I realized that my parents were right in their idea about money and donations. If there’s something both of them explicitly taught me, it was never to let money dominate my life or what I think about other people. As part of a middle-class family, my parents’ advice shaped my thinking significantly. Of course, the most affluent members of the larger family did not like this. Their secular worldview of money led them into trouble with having significant expenses. Many times they told us that money was a means of reaching power and status in society. Several years later, most of these people lost their money on bad investments, on futile things, and on vanity.
In this respect, my family’s focus on money was shaped by their notion that with money we also glorify God. We can use money for good or for bad. The way we use money is part of three areas which reflect who we are: power, sexuality, and money. Interestingly, these three areas are related to the relationship between us and our neighbors. If we glorify God in these three areas, we will be able to flourish in life. This has been the no.1 principle I have lived by.The second principle is about making plans about how I’m going to use the financial resources God has given to me, focusing not only on myself—private use of money, for instance, but also on the people surrounding me-—a communal sense. I believe that God blesses us not to keep all blessings for ourselves, but he blesses us in order that we can bless others as well. This second principle is perhaps the most misunderstood by many.
Throughout the years I heard some friends defending the wrong idea that everything we earn belongs solely to us. I understand that this is not true at all considering a Christian understanding of money. God is the owner of all riches and money. We are simply administrators. The rampant individualistic approach to money, even in the church, causes a lot of damage. The more I think about this, the more thankful I am for the communal sense of my parents’ view on money. It has kept me in perspective!
In short, saving and spending are not the only things we should focus on when we discuss money; there is also a spiritual dynamic at play, which focuses on the idea that we save money not just for ourselves, but to help others. In this respect, the theological concept of stewardship emerges: Stewardship is based on the idea that we are more than money holders, but caretakers of God’s gifts and possessions.