Therefore, we must establish our values in these areas. Ask yourself the following questions:

1. WHAT DO I BELIEVE ABOUT GOD? Ask yourself:

• Do I trust Him enough to follow His plan?
  
• Is He important enough in my life to put Him first?
  
• Is His Word pertinent in our current culture?
  
• What do we believe God says about money and are we walking in obedience?

The truth is, God wants us to have more than enough. Poverty and lack are not reflections of serving and trusting God. We are to live in His abundance. Ecclesiastes 5:18.19 tells us the good life is our portion, "Behold that which I have seen: it is good and comely for one to eat and drink, and to enjoy the good of all his labor that he taketh under the sun all the days of his life, which God giveth him, for it is his portion. Every man also to whom God has given riches and wealth, and hath given him power to eat thereof, and to take his portion, and to rejoice in his labor, this is the gift of God."

Our mind rages a battle that says we can't even grasp having enough, little own more than enough, we must change our thinking. It is His gift but we must fight for it. He offers it freely but we must go after it. He gave Israel the Promised Land, yet for them it did not come easily and they had to wage a battle to get there.

God has given each believer the promise to get wealth why to establish his covenant that He swore unto thy fathers, as it is in this day. Establish here means founded and grounded financially so that we are unmoved by good or bad times and regardless of what goes on in the world the church will remain unmoved. We would be a force to be reckoned with instead of a group of tired poor people who have no will or say anymore because we are in such terrible financial positions.

John 10:10 says, "I am come that they may life and that they may have it more abundantly." The only one that will keep you from this promise is the enemy and you must make the decision to put him in his place. Romans 16:20 "And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet."

There are lies that work against us. Satan has worked hard to defraud, humiliate, divide and rob us. He has ripped us off of the abundance of money, peace, joy that should be ours. Some of those lies are:

• You can have it all
  
• You can have it now
  
• The future will take care of my present mistakes
  
• I deserve to indulge myself
  
• I have plenty of time to worry about a financial plan

God says that by His spirit we can overcome the lies. We can out power the traps that Satan sets out for us to cause us to fail. Through God's spirit He will empower us to be successful. Zechariah 4:6, "Not by might nor by power, but by my spirit says the Lord."

God brings hope into our lives. Those who truly love and know Him know He will ultimately work all things together for their good! (see Jeremiah 29:11 and Romans 8:28).

2. WHAT DO WE BELIEVE ABOUT OURSELVES Ask yourself

Do I believe God has a plan for success for my obedience?

Am I willing to apply knowledge and discipline to God's plan?

What is my reason for my answer to the above question?

• Many people suffer from a spiritual disease caused by a breakdown in communication between God and themselves.  Secret sin, anger, bitterness and sin in our lives stop the spiritual energy flow and block the path of communication. Isaiah 59:2 says, "But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that He will not hear." We tend to turn away from God rather than turn to Him. We may spend more time trying to prove He doesn't exist than see the obvious signs proving He does! Our doubt causes us to hesitate to taste of His goodness and experience His blessings.

God is so willing to love, protect and lead us to His promises. He is the ultimate friend, teacher, parent and counselor. He has a plan and a hope for us! Yet each of us must determine what we truly believe about God and that belief will form our foundation from which our choices will be made. Understanding and accepting the true nature of God will cause us to rise up and say

• I can turn my financial trials into a testimony of victory
  
• Satan may have brought this situation to destroy me but God is renewing and restoring my financial life and plans
  
• God has blessings for me and for my children and grandchildren
  
• God will bring me wisdom and endurance
  
• With God all things in my life are possible I can do all things through Him

We must believe that God understands where we hurt and has promised to stick with us and work with us through our journey. We can be confident that He who has begun a good work in us will carry it on to completion until the day of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:6). This promise will help us to desire change and accept responsibility toward getting to know God better. He welcomes us with open arms even with all of our weaknesses. His love is unchanging. There's nothing we can do to make him love us less nor is there anything we can do to make Him love us more. His love is constant and sure. We are free to fellowship with Him at any time. He wants the very best for us and has given us unique gifts and talents and will provide opportunity for us to use these. Wow what a great foundation of truth! (See passages John 3:16, Romans 5:8, Psalm 103 and Hebrews 4:14-16).

Understanding His love for us will help us to set goals and use our energy to make good things happen in our lives. Financial goals that we base from this premise will be different than operating from a victim, loser or poverty mentality.

Emotions and money:

Having a mindset that is stayed on God helps when emotions try and take over. Many of us can trace back a poor money decision because emotionally we were felt mad, sad, upset, angry or even elated. Decisions based on emotional up and downs can be a source of impulse buying and over spending a short-term solution to a bigger problem.

• I am feeling bad; this will make things better
  
• I feel hurt; this will heal the wound
  
• I have been wronged; this will make things right
  
• I deserve this; I work like a dog for all these unthankful people
  
• What's another $25 on my card?

Emotional decisions are not always based on reality. Proverbs 14:8, "The wise man looks ahead. The fool attempts to fool himself and won't face the facts." Beware of simply living according to feelings for the Word says in Jeremiah 17:9,"The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?" Without God we are full of self- deception and live under an umbrella of false security. God sees right through us, "I the Lord search the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve." (Jeremiah 17:10) We must base our future on the firm foundation that God offers.

It is a balancing act Larry Burkett, a noted author on the issues of money says, "Money problems are normally not the real problem, but instead are only the symptoms of a personal shortfall" Personal finance is who you are. Your spiritual, emotional and physical even philosophical beliefs will be reflected in your use of money. Jesus said, "For where your treasure is there will your heart be also." MATT 6:21

Ron Blue said in Master Your Money, "Money is not only a tool, but also a test." What we do with our money and how we handle it tells a lot about our inner heart condition.

You cannot always spot wealthy people.

In fact most wealthy people don't live the typical free spending lifestyle we tend to associate with being wealthy. At some point these wise people have determined and made up their mind to live a life of saving, investing and budgeting rather than spending. As they live within their means they do not have the biggest homes or the expensive toys parked in the driveways. In fact, they manage their money so that often their own kids are unaware of the fact their parents are wealthy! This is unlike the mindset that lives from paycheck to paycheck, pushing the envelope of spending with each bonus or new credit card. Becoming truly wealthy and financial stable begins with a mindset that thinks of saving rather than spending!

Taking personal responsibility to become good managers of our money consists of owning the task, quit blaming others for our financial condition, determining a plan and being consistent to follow the plan. Emotions can be misleading and painful emotions scream to be consoled. Filling the empty void with things, followed by debt, is a double slam.

3. WHAT VALUE DO WE PLACE ON OTHERS

Are the needs of others important? Do you think about ways to invest in the lives of others? These questions will also determine how much time, energy and money we will spend on others. Our natural bent is to only give when there is some benefit coming back to us at the giver!

An Eye Witness Account from New York City, on a cold day in December, witnessed the kind of thing that happens frequently, everywhere... A little boy about 10 years old was standing before a shoe store on Broadway, barefooted, peering through the window, and shivering with cold. A lady approached the boy and said, "My little fellow, why are you looking so earnestly in that window?" "I was asking God to give me a pair of shoes," was the boy's reply. The lady took him by the hand and went into the store, and asked the clerk to get half a dozen pairs of socks for the boy. She then asked if he could give her a basin of water and a towel he quickly brought them to her. She took the little fellow to the back part of the store and, removing her gloves, knelt down, washed his little feet and dried them with a towel. By this time the clerk had returned with the socks. Placing a pair upon the boy's feet, she purchased him a pair of shoes, and tying up the remaining pairs of socks, gave them to him.  She patted him on the head and said, "No doubt, my little fellow, you feel more comfortable now?" As she turned to go, the astonished lad caught her by the hand, and looking up in her face, with tears in his eyes, answered the question with these words... "Are you God's Wife?

Ask yourself:

• Do I honestly have a desire to give to encourage others?
  
• Do I truly see a need to reroute my finances from debt to God's work?
  
• Do my priorities for my family honestly overshadow my need for instant gratification?
  
• What prompts me to give - obedience to God, peer pressure, guilt?
  
• Do I really care about others enough to give my money, time and energy?