nnual Income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery. Mr. Micawber could tell young David what the solution to his problem was, but he didn't have the backbone to adopt it. Dickens didn't dream up the "Micawber principle" as he wrote the classic David Copperfield; he had learned it as he grew up in the miserable poverty by which his father proved out that principle. Can you relate to Mr. Micawber? Are you miserable because you can't live on what you make?
My wife and I tried to "wing it" without a budget when we were first married. We quickly discovered that we had to either come up with a plan or send her back to Mama. I couldn't go back, because Uncle Sam took a dim view of his soldiers doing that. We worked out a budget.
Christian, you can't go back either. Husband, if you fail to provide for your family, consider Paul's instruction to Timothy: But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those of his household, he has denied the faith, and is worse than an unbeliever (I Tim. 5:8). If providing for your household's needs is an element of a blameless life, isn't that worth planning for?
Responsible budgeting is simply this: Anticipate your expenses -- weekly, monthly and yearly -- and don't spend money on anything that you don't anticipate. The key word is anticipate: categorize expenditures, and decide whether to spend money on items in each category long before the time comes to purchase. Itemize and add up your anticipated expenses -- all of them; list and add up your income -- all of it. Then go through life making sure that the first number is never larger than the second number, just like Mr. Micawber said, remember?.
So what if the first number is larger than the second number for next month? Aha! Now we are at the crux of the matter. Prioritization is a key word here, and a great many Christian couples misunderstand that word. They think it means deciding what is the most important use of their money. Not so; it means assigning a rank order to all of the uses of your money. It means judging the need for each expenditure, assigning the item a place in that rank order, assigning your income to the anticipated expenses strictly from the top down, and not spending money on things for which no income was assigned. Budgeting and prioritization are useless if you are undisciplined.
You see, without the self-control (Gal. 5:22) that we discussed in the last issue, nothing else you do will help, and you likely have other problems that make your financial problems pale into insignificance. If you are not bearing that fruit of the Spirit, perhaps you are unable because there is no Spirit within you. That should be your first concern. After the self-control problem is in line and only after that, you can start looking for ways to "cut corners" or economize. Remember, reducing the cost of self-indulgence is not economizing. You'll find little help with self-control from the non-Christian world and lots of help on how to cut costs sinfully. Much of the world's help is very good, but be careful about swallowing the world's justification for it, because most of it is couched in a carefully camouflaged context of selfishness and religious materialism.
Read books with in-depth, detailed budget help, written by someone who is worthy of your attention. We highly recommend Managing Your Money, by Larry Burkett, a perceptive, authoritative Christian financial counselor who, as best we can tell, has his own life right with God, and who is using his talent with Christian motives.
Much of your budget goes to consumer goods. Learn how to buy them. Learn the principles of purchasing. We regularly look over consumer magazines such as Consumer Reports, which provides sensible guides for evaluating many kinds of consumer goods, and which publishes an annual summary of comparisons of those goods. Don't buy the magazine; use your local library.
One of the most striking defects in the budgets of today's young couples is the priority given to entertainment. This is the world's priority, and it is held high even by banks and financial counselors who are being paid to help families out of financial difficulty. "Don't forget to include a budget item for entertainment," we are told. "You must be realistic, because you need that element in your life." Really? Says who? Must money be the only means of attaining gratification? Is there no way to be entertained without spending money? More importantly, is entertainment a priority above paying your creditors? Is it above your child's education or clothing, or saving for future needs?
Whatever you do, Keep track of what you spend. Write it down. Review it, with your spouse if you are married, at least once a month. Pray together about it. Compare your expenditures with your budget. Did you do what you planned to do? Are you saving for emergencies, or still going into debt for such things as auto overhauls, a leaking roof, or impacted wisdom teeth? Are you exercising self-control? Are you learning anything from this financial exercise?
Learn to budget as a pattern in life. Budgeting should eventually become second nature, like driving a car. You will have set your habits to allocate resources according to proper priorities. You will have developed a sense of consistent, balanced, appropriate spending habits (Luke 14: 28-30). Your budget is indispensable. Don't leave home without it.
