Finances are a very key part of our lives.  Every day, we handle money in some form or fashion whether it is buying groceries, working, or going out to eat.  If we do not learn how to handle our finances from a Biblical standpoint as well as a wise practical standpoint, we will not be wise stewards.  And the Scripture has a lot to say about being a wise steward!

I have had the privilege of not only learning about finances from a very young age (seven is some of my earliest financial memories), but I now also have the privilege of teaching finances from a Biblical perspective.  When you get me talking on finances, it can be hard to get to me to stop!  I would like to share with you over the next couple of weeks my own personal testimony and what impacted my life in the area of finances, built my personal convictions, and led to me teaching Biblical finances.

Money Wallet © by 401K

Growing up, one of my earliest memories was of running to the radio to turn it on at 3:30pm in order to hear Larry Burkett’s Money Matters.  We had a stereo which had the turntable, radio, tape player, and volume moderator as well as speakers.  It was my job to turn it on and make sure it was set to the right radio station and ready to go.  I always loved to hear Larry’s warm voice come on along with his side kick, Steve Moore.  I would later have a chance to meet Steve.  I can remember how Larry would advise people on how to get out of debt, how to make wise choices, and was very practical overall.

Listening to Larry on the radio was pretty much a daily occurrence during the week helped me to learn from an early age that finances were very important.  After the radio program went off, my mom and I would discuss the topic he had covered that day and how we could practically implement it.  We also talked about how I would handle it in the future.  These conversations continued to develop as I grew older and understood more aspects of the finances.

I can still remember vividly the vacation our family took in July of 2003.  We were heading to Maggie Valley, North Carolina and stopped at a gas station in Gainesville, Georgia to get gas.  As we were heading inside to pay and use the restroom, I came to an abrupt halt by the newspaper stand.  The headlines were about Larry Burkett passing away.  I remember saying to Momma “Larry passed away!”  I was shocked and could not believe it.  He was one of my favorite radio hosts and had made quite an impact by this time in my life.  (I would have been 16 years old at that time.)  Interestingly enough, some years later when I worked for Crown Financial Ministries which had been founded by Larry, I would be in Gainesville and go by that exact gas station and be able to identify which one it was!  That’s how much an impact that event had on my life.