Brian Peart is involved in the leadership of a Christian Mortgage Brokers Group and leads people all across the country in Bible Study each month via conference call technology. 

Check it out: 

http://seminoles.audioacrobat.com/download/ee26d5a3-0b89-0148-3569-6273cb8f96d2.mp3     

You can download it or play it. 

The Power of a Specific Vision
Warren Buffett caught a specific vision and caught it early. He was born in 1930, in the midst of the Great Depression, which stripped his dad of his job and savings. They had food to eat, but that was about all. Perhaps those bleak years built into Warren an early passion to get ahead financially. 

His financial  vision took hold of him before he was five. (1) Seriously ill at age seven, he prophetically told a nurse, “I don’t have much money now, but someday I will and I’ll have my picture in the paper.” In elementary school, he’d tell his classmates that he planned to be rich before his 35th birthday. (2)

Once he caught his vision, he could pursue it in very specific ways. 

Thanks to my friend Steve Miller for this financial tip from Enjoy Your Money.

How healthy are your finances?

Check it out here at Saving Freak.com

I personal friend of mine has written a new book that I am thoroughly enjoying titled Enjoy Your Money: How to Make It, Save It, Invest It and Give It.  It is a great book and it is written in a manner that makes learning about money fun!  Steve Miller is a great long time friend of both me and Jill and is a gifted writer and communicator.  He is a personal hero of mine and I love his family. 

I will be utilizing his book and website to post some more money tips in these coming weeks. 

Check out what Steve says about having a simple plan and catching a vision for your money management here.

Catch A Vision
Work Hard
Grow in Wisdom
Spend Wisely
Invest Wisely
Help Others

Do we go back to the way we were spending before?  God forbid.  I saw this CNN article regarding home sales surging and it made me think of what we will do when the recession does end.  I hope we will continue to move forward in managing our finances in the right way.  DEBT FREE! 

Check out this new series of blog post from a great guy named Joseph Sangl on how to save money without selling anything.  I love this guy!  I went to hear him speak in a workshop last Thursday at Unleash and he was great!  He is absolutely nuts!…..but he is passionately nuts about seeing people be debt free. 

Once you are debt free……….don’t go back!

If you want to make an impact with your life that transcends simply “making a living” and if you want to make yourself indispensable to your employer or those you are accountable to, you put into practice the Law of Compensation.  Burg and Mann, the authors of The Go-Giver, explain the Law of Compensation this way:  “Your income is determined by how many people you serve and how well you serve them.” 

How we invest our time, our skills and talents and how we invest our resources will determine our return on the investment.  The focus in distributing our resources must be on people!  We can trust that if we put our focus in the right place, our own welfare will be taken care of. 

The Apostle Paul speaks of this proper focus in a couple of his letters.

2 Corinthians 9:6 (NIV)
⁶ Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.

Galatians 6:7 (NIV)
⁷ Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.

You will receive a great return on your investment if you invest into the life of people by serving them.  We should get our minds off of making money sometimes and focus on serving people and making a difference.  Our income and personal welfare will grow in abundance based on our investment in others. 
 

You Cannot Borrow Your Way Out of Debt!
I have seen so many people attempt to borrow their way out of debt.  I have personally tried to borrow my way out of debt.  The problem is that it does not work!

Here are some ways I see people try to borrow their way out of debt:

• Debt Consolidation Loan  Roll all of the credit cards into a single loan.
• Home Equity Loan  Roll all of the credit cards and car payments into a single loan using home equity.
• Loan From The Parents  Roll all of the debt into a single loan from Mom and Dad.

I have never seen it work because these “solutions” only address symptoms!  You must address the root cause of what created the debt in the first place.

It is necessary to change spending behavior and money management behavior. 

I have seen a lot of people use the crutch of “it is medical bills” and expect to receive a free pass on the debt.  That is so frustrating because in nearly all cases, the reason the medical bills exist is because the individual or family opted out of carrying health insurance.

I have seen a lot of people use the crutch of “I lost my job” and expect a response of “Oh, that makes your debt OK.”  BUT it would have never happened if they would have made an emergency fund of three to six months of expenses their top priority instead of a house, cars, furniture, and numerous other “gotta-have-it” purchases.

You simply can not borrow your way out of debt.  It requires a written plan and a ton of focus.  You can start your journey by reading THIS SERIES and preparing your own written spending plan using the FREE TOOLS. 

Related Resource

• Joe’s Book: I Was Broke. Now I’m Not.

A friend sent this to me recently:
“The real reason that we can’t have the Ten Commandments posted in a courthouse is this — you cannot post ‘Thou Shalt Not Steal’ ‘Thou Shalt Not Commit Adultery’ and ‘Thou Shalt Not Lie’ in a building full of lawyers, judges and politicians … it creates a hostile work environment.”

Am I the only one that believes the BIGGEST BAILOUT in our country right now is the CHARACTER BAILOUT?  Along with the clogging credit flow, there has been a substantial problem with the flow of character and integrity. 

There is no doubt that the leaders in the congress, the senate and in the judicial and executive branches of our government are among the most gifted intellectually in our country and even among leaders in the world.  But it is clear that their giftedness in areas has far outpaced their character development.  The financial crisis is primarily the result of excesses in spending and our leaders continue to “trumpet” the solution as continued excess spending by the government.  Is it me…or is that a BAD EXAMPLE? 

Here is your Tuesday Tip for Stretching a dollar:

STOP SPENDING MORE THAN YOU MAKE!!!!!!!!