What God says about your money

Once you've figured out what Christianity, Judaism or Islam preach about making and spending money, teach your kids early and often.
By Abby Ellin

Faiths usually offer parents very clear direction on child-rearing. Premarital sex, for instance? That's pretty much a no-no, no matter what deity you worship. Dietary rules can also be pretty straightforward -- no pork for Muslims and Jews, no beef for Hindus.

But when it comes to money, the picture is cloudier. What does the Bible or the Koran actually say about money? Does God want us to own a fleet of yachts? Or does he (or she) think suffering and hardship is noble?
Video: Does God want your kid to be rich?

Happily, the consensus among most religious leaders seems to be that the Almighty does not want you to live off food stamps and is quite happy for you to drive a Porsche. But Scriptures say that a portion of your earnings should be returned through gifts to charity and offerings to the church -- what some denominations call tithing.

Cantor Erik L. Contzius, of Temple Israel in New Rochelle, N.Y., is trying to instill these lessons in his 6-year-old son. Whenever the boy goes to Hebrew school, Contzius hands him a dollar to put in the tzedakah box for charity.
Video: Thou shalt not hoard your money

"If we teach it at a very young age to give, hopefully it will stick," Contzius says.

Carolyn Castleberry, a writer in Virginia Beach, Va., talks about this idea in her series of financial-empowerment books for women, based on Biblical principles.

"Proverbs 31 has been held up as a standard," says Castleberry, a mother of two who also writes a newsletter called "The Proverbs 31 Investor." The Old Testament passage -- which describes a virtuous woman as having a price "above rubies" -- is "about a woman who is a businessperson, a wife, she has a family, but she became an investor," Castleberry explains.
Video: What the Bible teaches

"She knew how to create passive income, she was a real-estate investor -- so she was providing for her family and also for generations, so she's a role model."

According to Castleberry, the Bible addresses the topic of money more than any other issue -- more than 2,000 passages discuss it. The No. 1 rule? "To tithe or give back," she says, quoting Malachi 3:10: "Bring to me the first of your possessions and I'll open up the skies of heaven."

The Bible also admonishes us to be good stewards of money (although here Christianity and Judaism differ from Islam, which forbids interest accrual).

A parable from Matthew discusses a boss who gave his three employees a certain amount of money.

Two of them invested it, while the third took his portion and buried it. When the boss returned, he was dismayed by the third man's actions.

"It wasn't enough," says Castleberry. "It's the whole 'use it or lose it' philosophy. So we need to learn to make money on our money."

But even if we've figured out what our God wants from us, how do we teach our kids?
Video: 9-year-old's money tips

"The Bible teaches us to train a child early, and when they are older they won't forget," Castleberry says. "I try to get kids focused on creating goals early, which comes from Proverbs 4:26: 'Know where you're headed and you'll sit on solid ground.'"

Steve Maxwell, 45, a commercial-real-estate investor, business owner and "financial fluency" teacher in Windsor, Colo., feels the same.

Maxwell's 15-year-daughter, Natalie, recently asked her father, a self-made millionaire and devout Christian, to teach a course on business and financial fluency for her and her friends. The group meets weekly and Maxwell gives them assignments: to start working on their financial statements, say, or to read a book on money and then teach the rest of the class.

He has encouraged each of his three kids to acquire a major asset, such as a business or property, while they are still in their teens. He, too, emphasizes the importance of giving back, mentioning a tenet from Proverbs 11:25: "A generous man will prosper, and he who refreshes others will himself be refreshed."

"My belief of that is that's not just talking about money -- you can be generous in lots of ways -- but it also does apply to money," Maxwell says.

Islam offers a slightly different perspective on finances, says Sohaib Sultan, 27, the Muslim chaplain at both Wesleyan University and Trinity College in Connecticut.

In addition to the prohibition on accumulating interest, he says, "the key teaching in Islam about money and finances is the idea of moderation -- the idea of balance, of maintaining a good livelihood for yourself but at the same time not being exuberant."

Sultan works with young children at the Muslim community center in Berlin, Conn., where he tries to teach them the importance of budgeting every month. "I want them to be very conscious of how they're spending their wealth," he says. "We try to instill the idea that we'll be held accountable to God for how we spend every penny."

Judaism sees spending as a way to share with others, says Allan M. Gonsher, an ordained rabbi in Kansas City.

"If you simply talk about money as dollars and quarters, then you really limit what money means in Judaism," says Gonsher, who devotes a chapter of his book -- "Allowance is Not a Bribe (And Other Helpful Hints for Raising Responsible Jewish Children)" -- to teaching children about money.

He recalls his grandmother always setting an extra plate at the dinner table so that there was room for a guest. "Money for us means bringing people into the family, helping people who don't have," he says. "That's a phenomenal concept that's related to money: Add another chicken to the chicken soup. Set up another plate. Pick up your clothes and take them to the Salvation Army."

[Source: MSN]

What Does "I Am A Christian" Mean?

By E. Raymond Rock

When we say that we are a Christian, or Buddhist, Jew, Muslim, or Hindu, what does that mean? When I was a faith-based Christian, it meant that I believed. I believed in God, Jesus, the Church, and I believed in Catholicism. I was proud of being a Catholic. It didn't matter whether my beliefs had any logical or scientific support, I simply believed, and that was good enough for me. After all, how could humankind's puny science or logic ever stand up to God's word? As a matter of fact, I believed so strongly that when my belief was challenged, I was ready to defended it with my life. I believed, because my mother, and the Church trained me to believe, and as the training took affect, I developed an emotional attachment to the religion, and to God and Jesus as well.

When we say that we are Green Bay Packer fans, that doesn't necessarily mean we play football. We are usually only fans; armchair quarterbacks at best. While real football players are risking their lives and sweating it out on the field, we are more than likely eating popcorn in front of our big screen TVs. If someone makes a sarcastic remark about the Green Bay packers, odds are we will become downright belligerent.

Therefore, although I was Catholic, I didn't necessarily think that I had to "be" Catholic, that is; keep the commandments so religiously that I would have nothing to say in the confessional - except maybe talk about the weather! Merely believing, along with some occasional good works, would do the trick, I believed, and place me smack dab in heaven seated at the right hand of God.

Identifying with a football team, or a religion, is a natural thing. It goes back to the early days when we lived in tribes, huddling together to provide mutual security. Wherever we found ourselves, that's the tribe we instinctively supported. Presently, if we are born in Iraq, we huddle with Muslims, in India, with Hindus, in America, Christians, in Southeast Asia, Buddhists, and in Israel, Jews. It is a natural thing, All of us will defend our particular religions just as we defend our favorite football teams.

This attachment to our particular brand of religion, the religion that we identify with, causes problems amongst the religions, no different from the friendly competition amongst football fans. We can argue which football team is best, but only a game will prove who is right. The problem with religion is that there are no friendly games, only religious wars. The Muslims, Christians, and Jews are warming up for another doozy in the Middle East, or so it seems, and although there have been countless wars in the past; nothing has been solved. Of course, the coming conflict might be nuclear, which may very well end our worries about future wars, and humankind as well.

This is what religion has come down to in many cases, a spectator sport, so to speak, with no one playing the game seriously. Just as football fans talk endlessly about football statistics and players yet never pick up a ball, we religious people love to talk about our religions and what they mean to us, mentioning our faith in every other word that we speak, but seldom do we do any heavy spiritual lifting.

Actually, the most successful religions, based on numbers, are the ones that require the least inconvenience to their followers. Even the Catholic Church has made adjustments. Who hears of "Meatless Fridays" anymore? If a religious organization's requirements become too demanding, or inconvenient or not very entertaining, attendance drops. "What's in this for me in the short-run" is written on all our foreheads.

I mean, what the heck, if we can get to heaven the easy way, why not, especially if our religion doesn't get in the way of our enjoying ourselves and making money, after all, the important thing is that our religion doesn't interfere with our economic development! Asceticism and discipline went out with Christ and the Buddha, a long time ago. Lucky us! This is the feeling today in many organizations, and although they might say otherwise, the proof is in their activities. Why should religion get in the way of our lives, shouldn't it enrich our lives by giving us something to brag about?

We can boast that statistically, people who practice their religion in this fashion die the happiest; content and confident that they will be taken care of in the hereafter. Whether Buddhist, Christian, or any of the other 4,000 religions on this planet, they will be okay. It is a win-win situation. Yay.

But that brings up a serious question: Which way was it with Christ and the Buddha - were they simply stupid, or were they very smart? Maybe they were stupid, because all they would have had to do was kick back and enjoy life as we do. Or were they smart, knowing that a life of ease not only would never get them far in the after-life, but would never make them happy on earth?
That's a good question, because if we think that they were stupid in praying and working so hard, then we are following stupid people! If, on the other hand, they knew something that we have conveniently forgotten or never knew, we might be in trouble!

There are hints throughout religious literature that sincere effort must be made, tremendous effort actually, in order to insure our destinies. We can rationalize as much as we wish, and die psychologically content and happy if we choose to, but what actually happens after death remains a mystery. If we truly believe in an afterlife, and that what we do on earth will affect the quality of that afterlife, and also that the eternal afterlife, compared to the fraction of a millisecond we spend on this earth, is all that we should be concerned with, how can we whistle in the dark as we do, continuing to view our religion as some kind of a football game?

When will we seriously begin practicing? Religious practice, and the benefits of religious practice, if understood, would replace many present nonsensical activities. The Christ and The Buddha understood this, that's why they pretty much turned their backs on the world in order to go deeper. They tried to show us how to do the same. They didn't save us so that we don't have to do anything, in my opinion - they saved us by showing us the way to save ourselves.

As usual, it is strictly up to us. We have to get up from the couch, turn off the big-screen, pick up the ball and start playing . . .or praying. Who knows, searching within might open up a completely new world for us, since this present world is becoming nothing great to write home about! Or are you still amused?

If enough of us began playing, or praying and meditating, maybe the world would be something great again, filled with compassion, decency, love and understanding. It's a question of becoming disciplined once more, which serious football, or prayer and meditation, requires.

Wouldn't that be radical?
E. Raymond Rock of Fort Myers, Florida is cofounder and principal teacher at the Southwest Florida Insight Center, http://www.SouthwestFloridaInsightCenter.com His twenty-eight years of meditation experience has taken him across four continents, including two stopovers in Thailand where he practiced in the remote northeast forests as an ordained Theravada Buddhist monk. His book, A Year to Enlightenment (Career Press/New Page Books) is now available at major bookstores and online retailers. Visit http://www.AYearToEnlightenment.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=E._Raymond_Rock

Christian Lacroix - Man of Style

By James Philips

A man who has made his mark in the world of fashion, Christian Lacroix was born in the year 1951 in Arles, France. The favorite son in a family of engineers, Lacroix studied Art History and wanted to be a museum curator. Blessed with a fashionable father and grandmother, his taste for fashion was tuned from his childhood though it manifested into his design skills at a much later stage.

It was his wife who slowly lured him into sketching designs for dresses. In the year 1980, he joined a firm that designed clothes and his rise to stardom started from this point. This was a time when people had formed an opinion that the haute couture was a declining field with little hope for a good future.

Lacroix survived and soon made a mark in the year 1986, when he was awarded the ‘De d’or prize by the Paris officials. The next year he won the Oscar for Best Foreign Designer, an award he received from the Council of Fashion Designers of America. The same year saw him launching his own salon in 1987. He also got involved in other accessories like footwear, hats, handbags, eyewear, jewelry, belts etc.

It didn’t take much time for him to get noticed. He ventured into even military uniforms and flight attendant uniforms. He became the favorite for the rich and the famous. He designed a red satin for Princess Diana on her visit to Paris once.

Christian Lacroix has a very unique style. He uses bright color combinations very often. It is said that the sun he used to see in his native province influenced him to use his trademark bright colours so often.

For now, Christian Lacroix has ventured deep into amalgamation of Information Technology into the world of fashion. He also won the coveted Legion of Honor from the French Government for his contributions in this field.

He has been credited with a number of different projects. He has been contacted to design aircrew uniforms for Air France, interior decoration of French National Railway high speed cars etc: With the rate at which he is progressing now, there is little doubt that there is nothing stopping this man of style.

Find Christian Lacroix perfume and colognes on sale at Perfume Center. Read more about Christian Lacroix perfumes

God's Provision For The Christian Business

By Ola Aroyehun

You might be one of the many Christians who need to find finance for your business proposition. While some people are able to pray and believe God till the finances come through, others are comfortable asking for a loan or asking their friends and families for assistance. It depends on your level of faith.

However, when we are in need of financial provision, our starting point should be to ask the Lord. When we ask, He has promised to answer and provide but we need to be prepared for Him to do it in any number of ways. He delights to bless and provide for his people. We need to ask for His guidance before we move. Having asked, we must expect Him to provide.

We must realise that the Christian who is seeking financial provision from Him should also be walking according to His ways. Below are some of the ways that God uses to provide for us.

Ask those in authority
God could direct us to those who are in authority with the means to be a financial blessing. When we are led this way, we can be assured of God’s favour. This is what happened to Nehemiah. The King asked him what he needed when he wanted to go and repair the wall of Jerusalem. We read “And the king granted them to me according to the good hand of my God upon me” (Nehemiah. 1:8). When we are being led to receive this way, it is important that we make a detailed assessment of all that we need and make the request accordingly.

From covenant people
It is not unusual for people to contribute financially to the vision that God has given you. When God told Moses to build a tabernacle, each person gave a freewill offering towards the financing of the project. The idea of brethren helping each other is common in the New Testament where interdependence is strongly encouraged. “Therefore, as we have the opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those of the household of faith” (Gal. 6:10). Make sure that you are also looking for the opportunity to be a blessing to your brothers and sisters.

Through a financial deliverer
God could send people to assist you financially, especially when things are not going well with your business. God sent a prophet to the widow whose husband had died and left her in debt. Boaz also acted as a financial deliverer to Ruth and Naomi.

Financial deliverers do not demand anything in return but have been sent to bring glory to the name of the Lord through their obedience. May God cause us to recognise the financial deliverer that He has sent into our lives.

Through generational blessing
Sometimes God will provide through wealth that has been passed down through our forefathers. We need to recognise the importance of the blessing that has been passed down to us, so that we are able to use the resources to fulfil His purposes and extend His kingdom. Everything that God places in our hands has a purpose. David was able to provide the resources for the building of the temple and Solomon had the wisdom to build it.
God wants to multiply and increase what is already in our hands for His glory.

Through our faithfulness
One of the keys to increase is the ability to be faithful in another man’s business. As we serve others faithfully, God will increase us and we will be able to fulfil the plan that He has for us. This principle is clearly demonstrated in the parable of the unjust steward. After Jesus narrates the parable, He instructs them by saying “And if you have not been faithful in another man’s business, who will give you what is your own”. Examine your faithfulness in other people’s businesses and where necessary repent so that God can provide for you.

Through circumstances
God can provide through circumstances, especially the ones that seem adverse. When Joseph was sold into slavery, it hardly seemed the avenue through which God could provide for him. Even in the midst of a famine he prospered a hundredfold. This is God in action. His ways are clearly above our ways. You need to be open to the Lord’s provision even when the situation appears adverse.

Through unusual exploits God can cause you to be at the right place at the right time and do unusual exploits that will bring about a financial reward. This happened to David when he fought Goliath. In 1 Samuel 17:26, David asked what would be done for the man who kills Goliath. The reply: “The king will enrich him with great riches, give him his daughter, and give his father’s house exemption from taxes in Israel”. Be prepared for God to provide for you and your family.

Through gifting
God endowed Solomon with wisdom. He exercised that gift and his fame spread far and wide. When the Queen of Sheba heard about it, she came to Israel to find out for herself.
However, she did not come empty handed. She brought gifts for Solomon that obviously added to his wealth. Expect your gift to make provision for you.

Through plundering the enemy Sometimes, we need to command the enemy to give up what belongs to us as children of God. God might instruct us to plunder the enemy as He instructed the children of Israel when they left Egypt. In fact, they were able to give towards the building of the tabernacle out of the abundance that God had provided for them. As we desire to help build the kingdom through the financial success of our businesses, the enemy will try to stop us, for we do not wrestle against flesh and blood (Eph. 6:12). We need to enter the enemy’s camp and take back all that belongs to us through spiritual warfare. We are destined to win and succeed.

God has promised to provide when we ask Him. Expect Him to do so and have a wonderful adventure as He does it.

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Ola Aroyehun is the editor of The Christian Business Magazine, a magazine dedicated to applying biblical principles to business.