Money, money, money….Whether you love it and enjoy welcoming more of it into your life daily, or are uncomfortable with it and wish it would just go away at times, there is no denying that money is an important part of a business. From paying ourselves, to hiring employees, to growing our marketing, to purchasing the products and services that we need to run our businesses, money is at the center of all we do.
Add to that the importance of learning how to manage our money in Scripture (it’s mentioned a LOT in both the old and new testaments!), and there can be a lot of different thoughts, emotions, and stories around how to manage money well as a believer in business.
In this series of articles, we are going to break down the role that money should have in our businesses and how to steward it well as believers. We are going to address not only how to manage it better, but why it is so important to get a firm handle around this issue if we are going to fully thrive as business owners and co-creators with the Lord.
What is Financial Freedom as a Believer in Business?
To start off our 4-part series on Freedom in Finances, we are going to start with getting clear on what the definition of financial freedom is as a believer in business. My own personal definition of financial freedom is
“The freedom to make decisions from a place without limitations based on any lack of financial resources.”
True financial freedom is having the time, resources, and mental capacity to choose how to live a life that honors the Lord and serves his people best. While that calling will look different for each individual, I believe that we are each designed to make a big difference in the world, and the Devil loves to use the burden of financial struggle to keep us from achieving our full purpose.
How to Identify Places You’re Trapped
A simplified definition of financial freedom is simply more money coming in than going out in any given day in all areas of your life and business. This simplified definition sounds really appealing, but it can be challenging to understand the areas that are keeping us from seeing that true freedom.
This is where the “Trapped List” comes in to play. I’ve found for a lot of people it’s easier to identify where we’re currently “stuck” or trapped, in order to understand the true value of freedom in that area. Below is a list of 6 areas that financial servant-hood is often found and in the upcoming articles we’ll dig deeper into why it’s so important to overcome these trappings and how to create true financial freedom for ourselves.
6 Financial Traps Keeping You From True Financial Freedom:
#1) Debt: “The borrower is slave to the lender.” This powerful reminder in Proverbs 22:7 cuts no corners in showing us our position when it comes to taking on debt. While there are times when debt cannot and sometimes even should not be avoided in business, for the majority of the time, debt is an issue that is keeping us from experiencing true financial freedom and should be avoided when at all possible.
#2) Seeking Money over Creating Value: “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.” This famous scripture from Timothy 6:10 reminds us that the Lord searches our hearts for the true reason behind our actions. Notice it does not say that making money is the root of all kinds or evil, or even desiring to have money is the root of all kinds of evil, but rather the LOVE of money is the root of all kinds of evil.
We are called to glorify the Lord and to love HIS PEOPLE. When we keep loving and serving his people above all else, including money, then we are free to earn as much as we are able. It’s when we put the quest for money first that we are trapped in the world’s way of doing business.
#3) Financial Blindness or Chosen Ignorance: Proverbs 12:15 The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise. In today’s day and age there is very little excuse for remaining ignorant about the handling of money. Even if you were raised without a strong financial education, as many are, there are books, videos, and incredible low-cost or free resources that teach the basics of money management. In addition to learning it yourself, as a business owner, one of your responsibilities is either managing your books or hiring a bookkeeper or accountant to manage them for you.
#4) Lack Mindset: “But I do not need the bulls from your barns or the goats from your pens. For all the animals of the forest are mine, and I own the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird on the mountains, and all the animals of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for all the world is mine and everything in it.” These verses from Psalm 50 are a great reminder of the abundance of the Lord and his resources. As his children, we have access to ALL we need to fulfill our roles on this Earth as a way to bring him glory.
When we choose to fall for the lie of the illusion of lack, we are putting limitations on an unlimitless God. If you struggle with believing that you lack anything, ask the Lord to reveal his sovereignty and boundless resources to you in a very real way and be willing to be made aware of any places in your life where you look towards external sources instead of turning to the Spirit of God who lives in you.
#5) Procrastination: “Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.” Ephesians 5:15 How many opportunities have we all missed because we put off for tomorrow what we could have and should have done today? When it comes to becoming financially free, everyday that we spend living and waiting for tomorrow is a day longer that we are living trapped and less than our full potential.
Time waits for no one and we would be wise to do today what we can in order to take action towards creating true financial freedom for ourselves and our families.
#6) Fear: “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and love and a sound mind.” While many of us have memorized this powerful verse found in second Timothy verse 1:7, few of us truly put it to use when it comes to creating wealth and freedom for ourselves. I know I have personally struggled with the fear of the responsibility that comes with greater wealth as well as fearing what it would take to truly make it a reality in my own life. It wasn’t until I got serious about truly identifying the fears, giving them a name, and speaking the truth of scripture over them that I finally started to step into the abundance that the Lord intended for me, and I pray the same for you!
Moving Forward into Financial Freedom
As we wrap up this first article on creating financial freedom as a believer in business, I encourage you to take some time to dig deeper into any of the traps that may be keeping you stuck and turn them over to the Lord. Journaling is a powerful tool for this practice and can uncover some hidden blocks that you might not have even been aware of.
In the next 3 articles we will be covering why financial freedom is so essential and mapping out some practical strategies to start building that firm foundation for ourselves and our businesses. I encourage you to complete the entire series and if you would like to go deeper, you may listen to this series on the CWBB Podcast HERE and join our free FB group for the 4-Part Video series HERE.
Until we meet again,
Blessings on you and your business.
~Cassie Kitzmiller
Your Business Multiplication Coach
