Churches use Bible to preach money tips
Published 12:01 am Sunday, February 20, 2011
The Bible is full of verses to guide us in financial matters.
“While we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, and especially to those who are of the household of the faith,” from Galatians.
“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, but store up for yourselves treasu
res in heaven. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also,” from Matthew.
This last one jumps out for the Rev. Paul Strawn, senior pastor at North Creek Presbyterian Church in Mill Creek.
His congregation long has been offering counseling to parishioners in financial trouble. Demand for personal finance classes skyrocketed all over the country in the past couple of years, and Christian organizations also are trying to provide more resources from a Biblical perspective.
“With the downturn in the economy, we have seen a bigger need for these services,” Strawn said.
In addition to in-house counseling from deacons and people from the congregation, his church is offering a course from the Financial Peace University, a personal finance class popular with congregations nationwide.
The program is a business and participants pay a fee. About a dozen churches in Snohomish County are offering this course just in the next few weeks.
As part of the course, participants each week come forward with credit cards and put them through a shredder, said Strawn, who has taken the class himself.
Participants are asked to set aside money in a special fund and to use it to pay for necessities. They are encouraged to make purchases only in cash so they don’t end up buying things they can’t pay for. Strawn said he tripled his car payments by sticking to this advice.
This and other faith-based finance classes are rooted in Biblical principles, the pastor said.
“It’s not self-centered. It’s God centered,” he said. “The goal is not amassing wealth just for the purpose of amassing wealth.”
The goal, in the end, is sharing your wealth with others.
For Christians, it’s really important in financial planning to be giving something away, said Corey Schlosser-Hall, executive presbyter at the North Puget Sound Presbytery.
“Giving of financial resources is a core part of spiritual life,” he said.
People should be wise in their giving, too, to have the maximum impact on those around them.
Christian financial service organizations, like Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, have this in mind. It’s a faith-based nonprofit that provides insurance to its members and operates for the benefit of the public.
Betty Bauer is part of the North Snohomish County Chapter of Thrivent Financial. She is a lifetime member of the organization, where her parents bought insurance for her when she was born.
Thrivent has various programs supporting church fundraisers and matching donations, Bauer said.
“They put the money back into the community,” she said.
The same principles apply to business owners, said DJ Rabe, pastor of The House church in Lake Stevens. He used to hold workshops and networking groups for Christian business professionals in King and Snohomish counties.
Rabe plans to offer his training again this year. The goal is for businesses to keep each other accountable and ethical, and to be a resource for the community.
“A lot of people use Jesus to lift up business. But what we should be doing is use our business to lift up Jesus,” he said.
Katya Yefimova: 425-339-3452; kyefimova@heraldnet.com.
