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Should I Invest My Money in Experiences or Possessions? · Becoming Financially Confident

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  Ralph: You buy the thing quick, hit feels good, but then it fades absolutely fast.
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  Just more clutter.
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  But that late night laugh with someone you love.
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  That sticks for life.
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  Here's the truth, stuff doesn't satisfy.
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  Memories.
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  Do want real wealth?
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  Stop buying crap.
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  Start buying what lasts.
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  Stick with me and I'm gonna show you how to do that on today's show.
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  Hey there.
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  Welcome back to your daily, financially Confident Christian.
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  I'm Ralph, and it's great for you to be here again today and just working
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  towards answering that question, how can I become a financially confident Christian?
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  We're continuing on our series Beyond the Budget.
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  Finding financial freedom through living intentionally.
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  Now, if you missed yesterday's show, we talked about unsubscribing
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  from consumer culture.
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  So if you miss it, I'm gonna encourage you to go check it out.
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  I showed you how to break that cycle of that social culture
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  that's trying to, consumer culture's pulling you in so tight.
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  But today we're gonna change the subject and we're gonna talk about this.
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  Should I invest my money in experiences over possessions?
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  We're gonna get into it today.
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  Because here's the way it usually plays out.
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  At least it plays out this way for me.
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  You buy something that you thought was gonna bring you joy, and maybe it did.
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  It was that instant gratification.
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  Oh, I had joy for maybe about 10 seconds.
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  But that joy, it fades fast.
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  But those shared moments, those times that are just you and somebody you
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  love, or maybe you and your grandfather or or your mom or your dad, those
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  shared moments bring lasting joy.
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  See that pattern, if we really want to think about it, it reveals a true struggle
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  that a lot of us deal with, and we have to come to the realization that investing
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  in fleeting stuff instead of lasting meaning doesn't work for us anymore.
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  All it does is it leads to clutter, all kinds of stuff, crap all around
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  us, which leads to discontent and in the end just wasting a lot of money.
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  And here's the thing I want you to know and I want you to hear today.
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  I want you to hear loud and clear.
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  Possessions fade.
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  but experiences, those enrich your life.
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  I thought about it when I was preparing for today's show.
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  I can't remember most of my toys as a kid.
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  I couldn't.
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  I mean, I here and there.
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  Somebody will post something on things.
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  Oh yeah, I remember I had that.
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  I don't remember those things.
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  I do remember those tender moments I had with my mom now that she's not with us
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  anymore, and I remember those days just running around my grandfather's garden.
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  Those were experiences and see, it's those experiences that enrich our lives,
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  not the stuff, not the crap that we buy.
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  Let's look to scripture for some, God, look at the book of Matthew
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  chapter six, verses 19 to 21, and this just nails it with a hammer.
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  Do not store up treasures on earth, but store up treasures in heaven
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  for where your treasure is there.
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  Your heart will be also,
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  your heart is not going to be satisfied in stuff, but just
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  think about those relationships I mentioned a few minutes ago.
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  Those are things I think about every day.
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  Let's look at Proverbs chapter 15, verse 17.
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  Better.
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  A meal of vegetables where there is love.
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  Think about that at the time.
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  A meal of vegetables.
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  Lot people say, Rob, it's not a meal, it's just vegetables.
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  But that's better.
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  A meal of that where there is love, because here's a truth
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  bomb for today, and it took me a while to really understand this.
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  Honestly, it took me about 50 years of my life, but when I finally figured it out.
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  It was life changing and, and it's this statement, True joy, the true joy of
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  life is not found in your stuff, but it's found in people, it's found in
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  purpose, and it's found in presence.
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  And here's the biblical connection to this Truly why stewardship.
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  If we want to be why stewards of what God has given us, it values
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  relationships over that material gain.
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  So now you're saying, Ralph, great, okay, I get it.
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  But how do I make this work in my life?
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  What can I do?
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  How do I shift towards lasting richness?
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  I've got a really simple way for you to do it, and it's all about prioritizing.
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  I want you to prioritize meaningful experiences and relationship
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  building over material purchases.
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  Now that sounds easy.
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  I wanna talk to you in a couple minutes about how to make that
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  happen, but that's what it's about.
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  It's about prioritizing those meaningful experiences, those
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  times, those relationships.
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  Over that crap, that stuff that you buy that ends up on a shelf that
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  you don't even look at or ends up, you know, going to the charity.
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  So here's your one action item for today.
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  I want you to reflect on a past purchase.
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  I want you to think about something you bought recently.
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  Just think about it for something comes to mind and ask yourself this
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  really brutally honest question, did that bring you lasting joy?
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  Did it bring you lasting joy?
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  I think about the last thing I bought.
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  I bought a new car, for example.
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  Did it bring me lasting joy?
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  No.
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  It was kind of cool when I first got it.
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  It showed it around it.
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  Yeah, but it wasn't joy.
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  But now I want you to think the next question, think of a recent experience.
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  Did
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  that leave deeper joy?
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  Lemme give you some examples.
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  Let's say you purchased a trendy $50 gadget from an online ad. You're
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  scrolling through Facebook, you say, oh, this is a cool gadget.
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  I gotta have this.
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  You got it.
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  You used it one time.
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  Where's it at now?
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  It's in a drawer somewhere.
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  It's collecting dust on the shelf.
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  But think about that interaction you had with your kids, that spontaneous
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  walk and that stopping at the ice cream stand with your kids and just listening
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  to their laughter and that, and think about how much of a happy memory that is.
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  Tech Gadget used it one time that walk with your kids and stopping at
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  the ice cream stand, just watching 'em run around and maybe one of 'em
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  drop their ice cream on the ground.
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  That's a memory that you'll cherish forever.
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  Maybe you're, you're in the shoes.
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  You bought this pair of expensive shoes.
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  You, you bought it on impulse.
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  You were walking through 'em all and said, oh, those are sharp.
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  I gotta have those.
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  And they looked great.
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  Maybe they looked great on your feet.
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  Everybody's, oh, those are great shoes, Sally.
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  Now you're second guessing the cost.
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  'cause you're looking at your budget going, man, I, I was more than I
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  should have spent on a pair of shoes.
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  But then think about a comparison to that.
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  Maybe you could have spent just 10 bucks, rented a movie at home
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  with your spouse and had a deeper connection and really found relaxation.
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  I. So once you think about those things, next thing I want you to do is brainstorm
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  one value aligned experience, and I'm gonna give you some examples in a second.
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  Ask yourself what simple experience brings joy to my life and fits into my values?
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  We talked a lot a couple days ago about defining your
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  values, defining your enough.
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  Well, maybe for you, you value connection.
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  It's important that you connect with people.
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  Here's a great idea for you.
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  If you want to have a value online, that's not gonna cost you any money.
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  Invite a friend over for coffee.
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  Make it at home.
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  It's not gonna, not $10 share.
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  No.
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  Just a simple cup of coffee.
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  I don't drink coffee, but a cup of tea, whatever that is, and have a conversation.
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  Share their life.
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  Share what's going on in their life.
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  Be genuinely interested in them.
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  Maybe you value peace and rest.
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  You're not gonna get that from going to buying something.
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  So if you really wanna live in that, take a morning walk by the lake.
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  You don't have to buy anything.
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  Just listen to some worship music or listen to the show.
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  Or journal some, or think about why you're walking.
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  That's an experience.
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  Or maybe you value family.
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  So maybe for you, instead of spending money on something, have
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  the Saturday afternoon board games and pizza night with your kids.
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  Yeah, it might cost you a couple bucks for the pizza.
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  But you're gonna remember those days.
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  The rest of your life, you're gonna think back when, like me, my kids are grown now.
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  They're, they're, they're, they're al the nesta, as they say.
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  And, and I think back at it now, like I didn't take the time to invest in those
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  experiences as much as I could have.
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  So I just wanna encourage you to do that.
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  The third thing I'm gonna encourage you to do is to plan and prioritize,
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  because as I see on the show all the time, what gets measured gets done.
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  Schedule these experiences because it's not gonna feel normal at first, perhaps.
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  Then prioritize that budget for it.
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  Even if it's a small material purchase.
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  You need, like the pizzas for example, you can budget for that.
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  For example, let's say you want to do something with the family.
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  Schedule a Sunday family hike and bring along snacks.
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  Bring along snacks.
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  You don't have to worry about the kids.
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  Hey mom, what are we going to eat?
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  You got snacks right there and you don't have to worry about order
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  and takeout this week instead.
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  Or maybe plan a cozy evening at, at home with your spouse, maybe some candlelight
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  music and your favorite takeoff.
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  A good friend of mine, mark, does a podcast called Practical Prepping, and he
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  and his wife were talking about low or no cost ways to, to really enjoy date night.
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  Well, one of the things they mentioned is, you know, they set the table in the dining
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  room, they put the nice, the, the candle in the middle, and a nice tablecloth.
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  They were gonna have dinner together anyway, cost them nothing.
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  But think about the experience of that.
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  Maybe you host a potluck dinner with your friends next Friday.
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  Instead of all of you going out to dinner and spending a
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  ton of money, have a potluck.
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  Everybody brings something
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  that will be an experience that you'll remember.
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  You'll grow, you'll grow closer to people, and you'll build those relationships.
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  And all of this helps because it redirects spending to what truly matters.
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  I hope you're hearing this.
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  It's not about your stuff.
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  It's not about the crap.
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  It's the relationships because it deepens joy, it deepens those connections.
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  And when you have joy and you have strong relationships, you've got peace.
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  And in the end, it absolutely reinforces purposeful living.
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  Well, let's pray together.
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  Father God, we thank you for the joy of meaningful experiences in our lives.
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  Lord, just forgive us right now for chasing those temporary possessions,
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  those quick hits, that make us feel full for just a second Lord.
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  But then they're just gone.
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  They're wiped out.
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  And we just ask that you would help us to invest in relationships.
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  Lord, help us to invest in growth and invest in your glory.
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  And Lord, again, we ask that you would help us let our spending
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  reflect those eternal priorities.
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  And we just ask you to fill us with lasting joy, Lord,
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  and fill us with your wisdom.
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  And we ask this in confidence.
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  In Jesus' name, Amen.
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  As I said a few minutes ago, if you hear nothing else today, remember
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  this experiences enrich your life, but possessions are always gonna fade.
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  So make a decision today.
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  Make a decision to choose moments over material this week.
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  You are moving towards lasting freedom, and if today's episode
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  has helped you, I wanna encourage you to share it with somebody else
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  who needs a little, a little help.
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  A little pat on the back, a little hug, as they say.
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  You can point them right to our website.
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  That's it.
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  Financially confident christian.com.
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  And while you're there or they're there, I wanna give you a free gift.
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  It's a copy of my book.
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  It's called Mastering Your Finances.
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  Absolutely free for you.
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  It's a short read, but it is significantly impactful to help you get your
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  finances going in the right order.
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  And you can get that again by going to financially
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  confident christian.com/master.
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  Now, tomorrow we're going to take it up a notch even further as we work.
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  To be intentional, we're gonna be talking about applying mindfulness to
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  every spending choice that we make.
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  We're gonna really look at every single choice and apply mindfulness to it.
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  So I wanna encourage you not to miss it, but let's go out there
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  today and be financially confident.
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  Christians, you can do this.
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  I truly believe in you.
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  Believe in yourself.
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  Stay financially savvy.
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  God bless you, and you have a great day today.