Having the right attitudes to money and a stewardship mindset is important for financial success.  The Bible contains a lot of wisdom related to this.  Recently it was reported in Time (Moneyland) that the Charles Schwab 2011 Teens & Money Survey (Please download survey PDF report) suggested, if only in some small way, the recession may have changed attitudes and knowledge about money management in young people who experienced recession in one way or another. Attitudes are more positive and constructive than it was prior to the Recession.

Highlights from the data, from the online survey of 1,132 American teens between ages of 16-18:

• “93% say their family was impacted by the recession
• “64% say they are more grateful now for what they have.”
• “58% say they are less likely to ask for things they want.”
• “73% say it’s important to have enough emergency savings in case times get tough.”
• “77% describe themselves as “super savers,” and only 23% say they’re “big spenders.”

Psalm 119[67]  Before I was afflicted I went astray: but now have I kept thy word.

There are consequences for doing things our way, this includes entering cycles of loss and ultimately the demise of all hope as crashes produce anger and more rebellion – even while grace still cries out that there is a way back.   We can still find our path back to God, the Owner, who is ever seeking good stewards.  A few more words to reiterate on stewardship.

1.God supplies our needs and will not have us hungry.  He does not supply our carnal wants or wasteful excesses.

2.Covetousness is trying to be someone God has not gifted us to be and without the grace and abilities.  This produces bitterness and anguish of spirit and much zeal without knowledge.

3.Remember, we do not own the gifts and wealth but we can have power with God to make wealth.  God does not seek our permission to give or take that which belongs to Him.  There are direct unfortunate consequences for seeking independence from God in managing His resources rather than depending on Him.

I will have you attempt solving the following puzzle.  Three frogs were lounging on a fence facing a pond. Then suddenly there appeared a big fat insect. As the three frogs watched it strut towards the pond, one of them decided to jump down and go after it. Now, how many frogs were left on the fence?

Was your answer 2, 3, 1r 2, 3, 1
English: King James Version (1611) - KJV
3 And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God?  

WP-Bible plugin or none? The correct answer is three.  There were three left. One only decided to jump but he did not. It is not enough for you to decide to be blessed you need to act.

It is our doing and obedience that saves us and not our decisions. Doing is always costly and often painful. Perhaps the lessons from this Recession will lead to more than decisions.

Count yourself blessed O stricken and afflicted.  I have encountered few who justified continued sin in their lives even with scriptures (as is common today) until mercifully struck down with financial or moral crisis and they found grace to cry and return to God for help.  It was easier to appreciate the gravity of misdeeds before God and seek repentance. Today, they have corrected many ethical situations that previously plagued their finances, marriage and life in general. Crisis (though not the preferred instructor we wish God to appoint) also teaches vital disciplines of prayer, humility and obedience that are not as well assimilated in today’s user-driven word environment.  Perhaps if we surveyed this aspect of the impact of the Recession, we may be able to establish improvements in our devotional life and like David also say…

Psalm 119 [71]  It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes.

The Recession that did the most good was the affliction of our Lord Jesus Christ on the Cross at Calvary that we might be saved and receive eternal life… Surrender your life to Him.

Now you are better armed to manage the windfall soon coming your way.

(Originally published in The Christian Post)