Do You Want to Develop a Biblical Stewardship of Money?

Do you want to develop a biblical stewardship of money? I've got the book (and workbook) for you! Read or listen to the introduction to Your Finances God’s Way to learn about financial stewardship in the Bible. Table of ContentsGoing Into Full-Time Ministry without Being Paid MuchSome Credibility and EncouragementLiving on a Single-Income with Modest SalariesWhen People Don’t Have a Biblical Stewardship of MoneyThe Devastating Nature of Financial Problems“Are You Going to Help Me Become Rich?”How Wealthy Are Americans?What About the Cost of Living in the United States?Biblical Stewardship of Money Requires WisdomWisdom’s Greater ValueThe Approach to a Biblical Stewardship of MoneyA Committed Heart Is Needed for Biblical Stewardship of MoneyThe Your Finances God’s Way WorkbookOur Relationship With Money Reflects Our Relationship With Christ I was driving home feeling discouraged. I don’t think it would be too much to say this was one of the lowest points of my life. I had to tell my wife, Katie, who was pregnant with our first child, that I had just been laid off. With the loss of my job as an elementary school teacher also came the loss of our medical insurance. About two years earlier, I learned of a teaching position available on a local naval base that would give me credit for my military service. This resulted in a considerable raise, but the one drawback was losing my secure, tenured position at the district where I taught. The Great Recession hit, and schools began cutting new teachers. So even though I’d been teaching for almost ten years, I was included in the terminations. I knew it would be challenging to find a position anywhere because every district faced the same financial crunch. You might be thinking, So, a book about finances God’s way. Did you feel that God would somehow provide you with a job? I did! Years earlier, I became a Christian in my early twenties during my first year of teaching elementary school. Soon after, my passion for ministry increased. So you can probably imagine my excitement when a local church, Grace Baptist in Lemoore, California, sought a part-time youth pastor. I applied, they hired me, and my elementary school schedule—which granted me summers and holidays off—worked wonderfully with my church position. Going Into Full-Time Ministry without Being Paid Much After losing the teaching position on the naval base, I was still a part-time youth pastor, but the pay wasn’t enough to support my family. I told my senior pastor I would have to look for a teaching position elsewhere, which would likely mean no longer serving as their youth pastor. Grace Baptist’s leadership team stepped out in faith and hired me full-time. I knew this was a tremendous financial strain on the church, but I gratefully accepted the job because I felt called to ministry and trusted God to provide. Within a few months, as I transitioned to full-time youth pastor, my income dropped by nearly two-thirds. My medical insurance and retirement were gone as well. I had to support my growing family on a fraction of my earlier salary. Believe it or not, we didn’t feel the financial pinch. We had already been living frugally, so we didn’t have to make any lifestyle changes. The significant difference was that we couldn’t put as much extra money toward our mortgage. This book is the genesis of how we, regardless of our financial situation, can use what God has provided even when we have less to spend because of commitments, payments, a crisis, or job change. I’ll give you Tip One right now: Live off less money than you make, and you’ll be prepared if you ever really must live off less money than you make! In the pages ahead, I’ll share more tips to put in your financial planning pocket. But first, I’d like to share why God’s way of finances matters so much to me and why I want it to count for you, too. Some Credibility and Encouragement There are many finance books already available, so why another one? What makes this one different? Is there any reason you should trust what I have to say? Most importantly, I’m not asking you to trust me but God. This book is not a collection of my opinions about money, but God’s words revealed in Scripture. You’ll see in the following chapters that I do my best to unpack the Bible’s critical money-related verses. God is the One “who gives you power to get wealth” (Deuteronomy 8:18), and He “makes poor and makes rich” (1 Samuel 2:7). That means God knows what you should and shouldn’t do with your finances, and He has provided you with the needed instructions in His Word. I desire to present these instructions in a clear, engaging, and biblical manner. I’ve taught extensively on money to the church I serve. The most common type of counseling I provide is for marriages, with many sessions focusing on finances. The time I’ve spent with people in counseling—couples and individuals—has made me familiar with the most common problems in marriage, many of which relate to finances. I have seen people struggle, and the time I’ve spent studying the Bible has equipped me to help them find solutions. I’ve been blessed to watch the truths of God’s Word resolve their problems, restore their relationships, and strengthen their financial situations. Your Finances God’s Way is the culmination of hundreds of hours of Bible study and counseling. I wrote this book because I am passionate about this area of Scripture and life. As a pastor and counselor, I have witnessed the blessings of obeying God and the negative consequences of disobedience. I have experienced these blessings and consequences firsthand as a husband and father. As of 2025, our oldest child of eleven, Rhea Grace, is 17. Perhaps God will bless us with more. We have always been a single-income family. I was a schoolteacher when Katie and I married, and then I became a full-time youth pastor. In 2010, I moved from that role to become the senior pastor at Woodland Christian Church in Woodland, Washington. Living on a Single-Income with Modest Salaries We have never lived off anything more than modest salaries, but God still enabled us to pay off all our debt, including our mortgage. In some months, we put a few hundred dollars toward debt; in others, we allocated a few thousand. When Katie inherited $10,000, we didn’t think twice about putting it toward the mortgage, and every tax return went toward it—the year I worked part-time as a youth pastor and full-time as an elementary schoolteacher was the year we made the most money. More than half of each paycheck went toward the mortgage. I share my story for three reasons. First, I want to give you confidence in the biblical principles presented in this book. Second, I don’t want you to wonder, Has Scott “walked the talk,” or is he a hypocrite? When discussing debt, I want you to know we have none. When I talk about paying off a mortgage, I want you to know that’s what we’ve done. Third, I don’t want you to think, That’s easy for you to say, Scott; you’ve probably made more than I make. Whether you make much money or a little, you’re in the prime of your career or just starting, or you already have a family or are looking to start one, these principles work because they’re rooted in God’s Word. In the following chapters, I’ll talk more about how my family handles finances without causing us to feel like we are going without, and how a biblical stewardship of money brings freedom, not lack. For now, I’ll share that our financial situation reminds me of what Jesus did with the fish and loaves (Matthew 14:13-21) and what Elisha did with the widow’s oil (2 Kings 4:1-7). Not much was available in both accounts—a few fish, loaves, and vessels—but God stretched the resources dramatically. He can do the same with our money if we seek to honor Him. The opposite is also true: If we do not honor the Lord with our finances, He can keep considerable wealth from stretching very far. As God says, “Those who honor Me I will honor, and those who despise Me shall be lightly esteemed” (1 Samuel 2:30). When People Don’t Have a Biblical Stewardship of Money I was at the gym years ago, and a man approached me about his financial problems. Although we hardly knew each other, he was experiencing so much anxiety that he felt compelled to talk to someone, and I happened to be the one. When he walked away, I could tell he was as stressed as when we started talking. Who knows how long he kept feeling that way, but I hope he sought help, because financial problems don’t go away on their own. That he would speak with someone he hardly knew reveals how heavily financial burdens can weigh on us. Aside from health issues and rebellious children, few things cause as much anxiety as finances. When people lie awake at night agonizing over something, it’s often related to money: Why did I buy that? We should’ve started saving earlier. What are we going to do about this bill? Even secular research reveals the prevalence of financial worry. According to a study released by the American Psychological Association, almost three out of four Americans experience anxiety from finances part of the time, and nearly one out of four Americans experience extreme financial anxiety. In a poll conducted by the Harvard School of Public Health, more than half of the people who experienced a great deal of stress in the last month identified financial problems as a factor. If statistics are any indication, you’re probably in the first category and maybe even in the second. The Devastating Nature of Financial Problems Financial problems are devastating because they negatively affect other areas of our lives, such as our marriages, friends, jobs, and churches. Sixty-one percent of couples admit that financial discussions turn into arguments. Money problems are the number one cause of divorce in America. When people are in danger of losing their jobs, homes, cars, savings,