Have you ever seen a Rich Victim?

Jay Peroni, author of The Faith-Based Millionaire asks if any of the following excuses sound familiar?

• I was late because of traffic.
• I have been so busy that I haven’t been eating right or exercising so that is why I put on a few pounds.
• My company isn’t paying me enough, so I cannot save for retirement.

When you consistently point fingers at others, you look at yourself as a victim. Have you ever seen a rich victim? They are not very common. Poor victims are people who are poor and blame others. They blame their lack of financial freedom on circumstances and people around them.

Blaming the world limits your choices. You can either take responsibility or continue playing the blame game. By taking responsibility, you admit your part in creating the problem. There is always a cause-and-effect relationship. So if you concentrate on what you could do differently, you can begin to create new opportunities. You can make progress, but you first have to start taking responsibility for your actions.

In order to make financial progress, you need to identify areas in your financial life that you would like to change and commit to finding solutions. If you need some help, ask Pastor Steve about "The Christian's Guide to Financial Freedom"

Who are the most generous givers?

An article in McClatchy Newspapers looks at the various income brackets in the U.S. and their average giving percentages. It turns out that the poor are the most generous in terms of percentage of income given.

The 2 most common reasons why the poor gave:

An understanding of sowing and reaping

"I believe that the more I give, the more I receive, and that God loves a cheerful giver," Davis said. "Plus I’ve been in their position, and someday I might be again."

Less fear about money than the rich

Herbert Smith, 31, a Seventh-day Adventist who said he tithed his $1,010 monthly disability check — giving away 10 percent of it — thought that poor people give more because, in some ways, they worry less about their money.

"We’re not scared of poverty the way rich people are," he said.

Pastor Coletta Jones, who ministers to a largely low-income tithing congregation in southeast Washington thinks that poor people give more because they ask for less for themselves.

"When you have just a little, you're thankful for what you have," Jones said, "but with every step you take up the ladder of success, the money clouds your mind and gets you into a state of never being satisfied."

What Jesus had to say about it…

As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. "I tell you the truth," he said, "this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on." Luke 21:1-4

Tips from Lynn...

Peppers...

Peppers with 3 bumps on the bottom are sweeter and better for eating.
Peppers with 4 bumps on the bottom are firmer and better for cooking.

Frying Ground Beef...
Add a teaspoon of water when frying ground beef.
It will help pull the grease away from the meat while cooking.

Scrambled Eggs or Omelets...
To really make scrambled eggs or omelets rich add a couple of spoonfuls of sour cream, cream cheese, or heavy cream in and then beat them up.

Love and prayers,
Lynn

No Longer Silent about Poverty

No Longer Silent about Poverty (emotional – spiritual – physical) is the focus of a high school Global Leadership in Action program at The Jaffray Centre for Global Initiatives at Ambrose University College.

Come support a great cause at their silent auction and dessert event June 26^th 2009 at 6:54pm at the new Ambrose campus and listen to guest speaker Sean Campbell, alumni and previous Executive Director of Samaritan’s Purse who has seen and responded to poverty in almost every corner of the world.

Are Church Folks nicer?

Yes they are, according to David Campbell and Robert Putnam. Here is from their presentation hosted by the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life.

The scholars say their studies found that religious people are three to four times more likely to be involved in their community. They are more apt than nonreligious Americans to work on community projects, belong to voluntary associations, attend public meetings, vote in local elections, attend protest demonstrations and political rallies, and donate time and money to causes — including secular ones.

At the same time, Putnam and Campbell say their data show that religious people are just “nicer”: they carry packages for people, don’t mind folks cutting ahead in line and give money to panhandlers.

The scholars say the link between religion and civic activism is causal, since they observed that people who hadn’t attended church became more engaged after they did. “These are huge effects,” Putnam said.

How Rich are You?

Here is a verse from 1 Timothy that is very timely these days:

"Tell those who have the riches of this world not to be arrogant and not to place their confidence in anything as uncertain as riches. Instead, they should place their confidence in God who richly provides us with everything to enjoy." 1 Timothy 6:17 (GOD'S WORD Translation)

Whether you realize it or not, you are probably one of those that Paul was referring to as having "the riches of this world". The truth is that if you make $28,000/year, you are part of the top 10% of the wealthiest people in the world. Check for yourself at http://globalrichlist.com/

No matter how you define “rich” it is probably tough to argue that Paul isn’t referring to someone like you. Since many of us haven’t known anything else, it has been easy to place our confidence in our ”riches”. The recent economic downturn may just be a warning that it would be wise to heed the instruction of this verse, and place our confidence in God.