“Then Leah said, ‘God has presented me with a precious gift.  This time my husband will treat me with honor, because I have borne him six sons.’  So she named him Zebulun.”     Genesis 30:20 (NIV)

     Leah’s life had some challenges.  Although she was married, she did not win her husband’s heart.  He was in love with her younger sister, Rachel.  Their father would not give Jacob Rachel’s hand in marriage until Leah was married.  So, Jacob married Leah first, then married Rachel.

It’s not a competition

     It appears that Leah always felt a sense of competition between herself and Rachel for Jacob’s heart.  But her efforts failed every time.  We, too, must be careful about the levels to which we take our competitive natures.

     Working hard and seeking an accomplished life is not wrong in itself.  But when we take it to unhealthy levels, it can become damaging.  Here are a few examples.

1) Work becomes more important than our relationship with God.
2) Work consumes us and deprives our family of the time that they need with us.
3) Our work has worn us down physically.
4) We work hard in an effort to keep up with those around us.
5) Our drive for success and accomplishment leads us to act unethically.

But “this time” will be different…

     Leah was hoping that “this time” her husband would treat her differently.  She had already borne five sons for Jacob.  If things hadn’t changed after the first five sons, what was going to make son #6 any different?

     Often times, we operate under the same notions.  We think that if we just close one more deal, then we will get the raise or bonus that we had hoped for.  If we work just one more hour, then we will get a big jump on the week’s workload.  The list is neverending.

     Then, when we do get to that next point, we find the accomplishment less than satisfying, and we are looking ahead to the next milestone.

     The money is never enough.  The goals and successes we reach are never sufficient.  We will always, in our natural minds, want more.  We will always yearn for bigger and better.

     Our drive can turn into an unhealthy greed.  Jesus warns us in Luke 12:15, “Watch out!  Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” (NIV)

Whose approval are you seeking?

     In our efforts to strive toward various types of successes in life, we should be careful of another motive – seeking the approval of others.

     This motive is not always immediately obvious to us, but it can lead to trouble.  Paul warns us in Galatians 1:10, “Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God?  Or am I trying to please men?  If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.” (NIV)

     While God has no problem with us being happy and enjoying our lives here on earth, we must be careful about doing things simply to win the approval of others.  The only opinion that matters is God’s opinion.  If God approves, then everything else should fall into place.

     Knowing that simple changes to food habits can save big money, let’s look at how compound interest can affect our major purchases.  We all like new things – new gadgets, new items for the house, and new cars.  Sometimes we like them so much that we are willing to do whatever it takes to get them.  This can include paying outrageous interest rates when we don’t have the cash.

     Marketing executives, sales associates and stores that we frequent know this and often take advantage of it.  However, when we look at it in perspective, we may begin to feel differently about actually making that jump.

Store credit cards – a good or bad idea?

     For example, let’s say that we found a bedroom set that we absolutely love.  The current price for the whole room is $4,000.00.  Let’s also assume that the furniture store offered to finance our purchase over three years.  We would only have to pay $157.00 a month, and we can have the furniture delivered today.

     While $157.00 a month may not sound like a lot of damage to pay in exchange for having a new bedroom set, let’s take this example a little bit further.  Based on these numbers, the furniture store is financing us at 24% annual interest.  Now that’s ugly.  What’s worse, once we finish making our monthly payments in three years, we will have paid $8,012.00 for a $4,000.00 bedroom set.  That’s twice the original asking price!

Cash is better

     It would be much better if we are able to pay cash rather than finance the purchase.  We can create a plan to save the money over time.  Let’s look at two options:  saving for three years and saving that same monthly payment.

     There are many options that we can choose to use to save this money.  In this example, we will assume that we are saving in a vehicle that is earning 4% annual interest.  This is higher interest than a bank savings account.  If we were to put the money in the bank, the money would not grow fast enough.  We have to find another investment vehicle that we are comfortable with.

Option 1:  Save over three years

     If we wanted to save a fixed amount each month for three years, we can reach $4,000.00 by saving $105.00 each month.  This is much less than the monthly payment that the furniture store required.

Option 2:  Save the same monthly payment

     If we were comfortable with the $157.00 monthly payment offered by the furniture store, then we can save that amount each month for 2 years to reach the desired $4,000.00 goal.  This option cuts one year off of the furniture store’s payment plan.

     Neither of these options will allow us take the bedroom set home today, but we can save $4,000.00 in unnecessary interest by waiting until we can afford it.

     This concept can be applied to almost any major purchase we so desire.  Being disciplined enough to exercise patience and cut back on our need for instant gratification can save us thousands of dollars in interest.

“Then Leah said, ‘God has rewarded me for giving my maidservant to my husband.’  So she named him Isaachar.”     Genesis 30:18 (NIV)

     Leah’s statement in this verse sounds so familiar.  Not only have I heard myself saying something similar, but I have heard it from many, many people over the years.

     We often think of the circumstances in our lives as rewards and punishments for how well we stay in line with what God wants us to do.  However, that is not necessarily true.  While there are consequences for our actions (both good and bad), our lives are not a direct reflection of our “works.”

Bad things do happen to good people

     When life brings us challenges, we should not consider that a punishment for some behavior that we did not handle properly.  There is absolutely nothing that happens to us that is outside of God’s permission.

     Remember that God allowed Satan to strike Job.  Job 1:8 reads, “Then the LORD said to Satan, ‘Have you considered my servant Job?  There is no one on earth like him; he is blameless and upright, a man who fears God and shuns evil.’” (NIV)

     What is so interesting about this verse is that there is no mention of Job doing anything wrong.  So, Job’s attack was not a punishment.

     If God will allow Satan to strike a blameless and upright man who fears God and shuns evil, what would make the rest of us exempt?

Recognize the little things

     God’s blessings don’t always show up like fireworks.  There won’t always be a huge display or celebration to help us identify moments where God has stepped in.  We should still, though, learn to recognize the smaller blessings.

     For example, Satan did have limitations in his attack on Job.  God instructed him in Job 1:12, “…everything he has is in your hands, but on the man himself do not lay a finger.” (NIV)  God’s hands stayed on Job the whole time.

     If we think about the struggles in our own lives, we can all imagine ways that the problem could have been worse.  Yet, we often fail to recognize that God is still in control and that He will only allow so much.

How will we respond?

     We can all learn from Job’s response.  In Job 1:20, we see that Job fell to the ground in worship.  He recognized God as the source of everything that he had.  He recognized that he was not entitled to anything and could lose it at any moment.  He never blamed God for his losses.

     We, too, should be mindful of developing a sense of entitlement.  While it feels great to be rewarded for our hard work, God doesn’t owe us anything.

     Remember the blind man that Jesus healed in John 9:1-12.  The disciples asked Jesus whose sin caused the man to be born blind.  Jesus’ response was that sin had nothing to do with the blindness.  In John 9:3, Jesus said, “…this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.” (NIV)

     God also wants to use our lives to display His work.  He wants us to be lights for those who are still trapped in the darkness of this world.  Will we hold fast and praise God through our trials so that others can come to know Him?

     I completely understand what it feels like to work all day and not want to go home and cook.  But fast food is not the answer.  Not only is it a nutritional no-no, but it also leads us into a financial hole that could ultimately impact our credit score.  Let’s look at this more thoroughly.

Fast food

     To keep it simple, let’s assume that we went to our favorite fast food spot and purchased meals for the whole family.  Whether an adult meal or a kid’s meal, we will assume that they cost $5.00 each.  With five family members, we are talking about spending $25.00.

     If we did this once a week, that would add up to $100.00 a month.  If that $100.00 were to earn 10% interest annually, it would turn into $20,145 after 10 years.

Restaurants

     This can look even worse if we go to a restaurant as opposed to eating fast food.  Restaurant meals are usually much more expensive than fast food.  For example, if the restaurant has an average meal price of $15.00 per person, the bill for a family of five would run around $75.00.  Doing this once a week would have a monthly cost of $300.00.

     If we saved $300.00 every month for 10 years at 10% interest, we would have over $60,000 saved.

     I know that this situation is not very realistic.  We can’t just give up all eating out.  So, let’s just try eating out twice a month.  That brings our monthly expense down to $150.00.  Saving the money from the other two weeks would give us about $30,000 at 10% interest over 10 years.

Rushing can cost us

     I have also been known to rush to get myself and my daughter out of the door on weekday mornings, not having enough time to eat breakfast or to pack a lunch.  But buying coffee and donuts on the go or buying fast food on lunch breaks can get dangerous for our wallets.

     Many of us enjoy Starbucks, or some other gourmet coffee, on a regular basis.  These coffee beverages can easily run about $5.00 each.  As a regular donut eater, I know that donuts are usually somewhere between 75 cents to $1.00.  I usually buy them two at a time.

     If we were to buy coffee and a donut every day on the way to work, that would add up to $6.00 a day, $30.00 a week, and $120.00 a month.

     Buying lunch adds up, too.  It would not be hard to spend $10.00 on lunch.  Doing that every day would also add up to $200.00 a month.  If there are two spouses doing that, the cost doubles.  Children buying snacks out of vending machines and school cafeterias could add another $100.00 a month to the bill.

     Let’s put this all together.  When we add up all of the areas where we tend to eat out during the week, it is easy to see why our money runs out so quickly.

     These miscellaneous food expenditures can easily add up to several hundreds of dollars a month.  When we add that to the regular grocery bill, we can find ourselves spending $1,000.00 or more each month on food.

Making better choices

     Our money stretches much further at the grocery store than at any convenience food location – and we are able to feed our families much healthier meals and snacks.

     If we work on eating breakfast at home, buying lunch and snacks during our grocery store trips, and cutting back on our fast food and restaurant meals, we will have much more money available to save toward our children’s future education expenses, our own retirement, or any of a number of other dreams that we may want to reach.

     We've talked about budgeting our income to include setting something aside for emergencies.  We shuld also make sure that we do not overextend ourselves when it comes to paying our creditors.  Our credit score is basically the bureau’s idea of our ability to repay our debt obligations.  It is highly affected by several factors.

Credit history

     Our credit history is the biggest determinant.  If we have a poor track record of paying bills or paying them on time, a new creditor is less likely to want to take that chance with us.

Debt to credit ratio

     Our debt to credit ratio is also a big factor.  If we are close to our credit limits with most or all of our accounts, a new creditor will not want to get involved.  When we max out our credit cards, we are showing creditors that we are poor money managers.  We buy more than we can afford.  A new credit line will only make it easier for us to get into worse debt.

     Also, when we are close to our limits on our cards, our required payments may get high.  A new credit line will only be an additional bill, and a creditor may not want to take a chance that we cannot afford to pay the new bill.

Length of history

     The length of time that our credit has been established gives a creditor a track record.  If we don’t have a long history, a creditor may not be able to get a good idea of our ability and willingness to pay.

Number of open accounts

     Opening lots of credit lines can have a negative impact on our report and our credit score.  This is especially true if the accounts are recently opened.  Creditors will wonder why we are so desperately seeking so much capital.  Too much credit can lead to trouble.  They don’t want to compete for our payment.  They want to feel comfortable in knowing that they will receive their payments as expected.

Scores are important

     Each bureau uses a different scoring system, but the bottom line is the same.  Any score under 600 shows a creditor that we are a high-risk borrower.  A score in the 600s is average.  A score over 700 is preferred.

     Let’s look at the difference a score makes.  Although mortgage interest rates fluctuate over time, there is a difference in 30-year fixed mortgage interest rates between borrowers with different scores.  For example, if a borrower with a score in the low 500s wanted to purchase a home, the mortgage interest rate could be 9.29%.  A score in the high 700s could drop the rate to 6.23%.

     Since a credit score can affect our interest rate by as much as 3%, our mortgage payment can end up being hundreds of dollars a month higher.  Let’s look at this from another perspective.  Considering principal and 6.23% interest over 30 years, a house could cost about $552,000.  The same house at 9.29% interest would cost about $743,000.  That difference in interest changes the price on the house by almost $200,000.  Imagine what other things we could do with that money!

     We should be extremely careful as we make our purchasing decisions.  Irrational choices now can end up costing us more than it’s worth later.