Is Money Your Master or Your Servant?

So read the title of the current March 2009 Awake! magazine. Wow! What an eye opener. Being the "Denver Frugal Living Examiner" one would think that I was in perfect control of my finances, but, after reading this article I realized what a slave I actually have been. Who wants to admit that to the world? Not me. Quoting "Money Sickness Syndrome", by Dr. Roger Henderson the article continues...

Money may be your master if...

• You avoid discussing finances because of the anxiety it causes
• Money is often the subject of family squabbles
• You spend compulsively
• You worry constantly about bills
• You are not sure how much you earn
• You are not sure how much you spend
• You are not sure how much you owe
• Your bills are often bigger than what you expect
• You often pay your bills late
• You are able to make only the minimum payment on credit card bills
• You pay your bills with money earmarked for other things
• You take on extra work just to pay bills
• You have taken out new loans to pay off old ones
• You use savings to pay routine bills
• You find it nearly impossible to get to the end of the month without running out of money
• You feel pressure to accumulate large sums of money
• You suffer physical and or psychological symptoms resulting from money-related stress

We need money to survive in this world but how we control it is the key. So to summarize the article quoted above, the advice was:

Know what your income is, and spend less than you earn

• Save. Make saving a priority
• Budget. This is the only practical way to monitor, control, or reduce you spending. Know what you income is and spend less than you earn.

Learn the difference between needs and wants

• Plan. Carefully consider your future needs.
• Learn. Invest in yourself by acquiring skills and taking care of your physical and emotional health. These are investments that will pay you back.
• Balance. Keep money in its place. Survey after survey shows that those who care more about people than they do about money are happier. Beyond food, clothing, and shelter, how much does a person really need? "Having sustenance and covering, we shall be content with these things." (1 Tim. 6:8) Cultivating contentment prevents us from developing the love of money and all the problems that come along with it.

Then the article goes on to say that when money is managed properly, it can provide you with the freedom to pursue the more important things in life, such as a close bond with family, friends, and God.

It then gave the following advice to parents on teaching children to manage money:

• Be a good example.
• Set spending limits.
• Allow them to manage money.
• Teach them to share.

"Once above the poverty line," noted a thoughtful observer, "increases in income have surprisingly little relation to personal happiness." Early in the last century, a reporter had that lesson impressed upon him when interviewing Andrew Carnegie, a pioneer of the steel industry, who was then one of the richest men in the world. "I am not to be envied," Carnegie told him. "How can my wealth help me? I am sixty years old, and I cannot digest my food. I would give all my millions if I could have youth and health."

Another multimillionaire, oil magnate J. Paul Getty, later said in agreement: "Money doesn't necessarily have any connection with happiness. Maybe with unhappiness."

Perhaps these words of wisdom will sink in and help us to simplify our life now, so we won't have the regrets that these men had. Family happiness and peace of mind just simply cannot be overemphasized. Maybe it's not too late.