Living Within Your Means

Are you living within your means?

Your financial journey is easier when you adopt healthy money habits. The most important one can be summed up this way: live within your means. It’s more than just an idea to live by. You can begin by putting four practices in place.

1. First, track your finances on a regular basis.

2. Next, make saving a regular part of your budget. Start where you can – no matter how small. Ask God to help you increase the amount over time.

3. Third, practice self-control. By limiting your spending, there will be months where you can actually save or give more than the amounts in your budget. You are using a budget, right?

4. And finally, find contentment in what you have. With God’s help, you can live contrary to what culture tells you and find true contentment with whatever God provides.

Recognizing that He is your Provider eliminates the need to fear. We can trust Him to meet our needs. Seeing God as the owner of everything releases us from the need to be possessive or greedy. We simply manage what is already His. Sure, we’ll encounter temptations, doubts, and turbulence in life, over and over again. Thankfully, we can stand on this promise: “And my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of His glory.” That’s Philippians 4:19. So here are a few ideas to get you motivated: Start a gratitude journal. Have a zero-spend week and commit to regularly pray with your spouse for contentment and joy.

If you continue struggling to make ends meet, check out Crown’s budget coaching program. It can put you on the road to financial freedom. Go to crown.org. Click the “Get Help Now” tab. You can start today at crown.org.