God Owns Everything

What we have, our possessions, our money, our time, our skills, even our relationships - all of it belongs to God. He is the creator of all things. And, in the end, we are called to give an account for how we treated His things. He gives and He takes away. We are not God that we can predict the future. Instead, we ask Him for wisdom and trust that He will guide our path.

Psalm 24:1, Haggai 2:8, Hebrews 3:4, 1 Corinthians 10:26, 1 Chronicles 29:12

Wise Stewardship and Planning Honors God

In line with the fact that God owns everything is the fact that we aren’t called to sit around doing nothing with what He has given us. We are called to steward all we have to His glory, doing our best to do good with our money in order to glorify our God. In order to steward anything well, careful planning is required. That doesn’t mean that things will always go as planned. It just means that we are intentional about how we spend our money. At Acts 10, budgeting, investing, studying, saving, and giving are all terms that fall under this broader idea of stewardship.

Budgeting and Contentment: 1 Timothy 6:6-7, Hebrews 13:5, Matthew 6:33, Matthew 6:25-26, Psalms 37:3-5, 1 Corinthians 7:17, Philippians 4:12-13, Luke 12:15, Habakkuk 3:17-19, 1 Timothy 6:10-11, Proverbs 28:6, Ecclesiastes 3:13, Proverbs 15:16

Saving: Proverbs 21:20, Proverbs 13:22, Proverbs 6:6-8, Proverbs 27:12

Generosity: Acts 20:35, 2 Corinthians 9:7, Ecclesiastes 11:2, Luke 6:38, Proverbs 19:17, Proverbs 21:26

We are All Called to Work

We believe that there is strong biblical evidence that humans are all called to work hard with the skills, time, and resources that we have been given. We aren’t called to be free-loaders or to fall into “get rich quick” schemes. Instead, our work is part of our testimony. It’s a way of worshiping God with all that we are and making our bodies a living sacrifice to Him.

1 Timothy 5:8, Proverbs 6:6-8, Matthew 25:14-30, Ephesians 4:28, 2 Corinthians 9:6, Proverbs 21:5, Proverbs 27:23, Proverbs 27:12, Proverbs 14:23, Colossians 3:23

Whenever Possible, Avoid Debt

The Bible does allow room for debt in the form of slavery and loans. However, it also encourages us to get out of debt whenever we find that opportunity. We see it as wise to avoid debt whenever possible by prayerfully discerning career options, planning for emergencies, and seeking wise counsel from church leaders with good financial track records. Should one find themselves in debt, we believe that they should continue to work as hard as they did before, not falling into despair but trusting that this part of their journey will also be used by God for good.

Proverbs 22:7, Proverbs 22:26–27, Proverbs 17:18, Romans 13:7–8, Deuteronomy 28:12, Exodus 22:25

We Cannot Serve Both God and Money

Money should be a servant to us, a tool that we steward, not a master over us. There is a clear difference in heart posture between serving God and serving money. Serving money leads to fear, greed, and mistreatment of your fellow man. Serving God casts out all fear, leads to peace, generosity, and humbly serving your fellow man. It isn’t bad to accumulate wealth - what is bad is when we accumulate wealth to feel more secure, gain friends/status, or simply to get stuff. Instead, we must remember that all that we have is God’s, embrace the journey of stewardship, and focus on His two main commands to us of loving Him and loving our neighbor. We believe that it is wise to pray the prayer, "I ask two things from you, Lord. Don't refuse me before I die. Keep me from lying and being dishonest. And don't make me either rich or poor; just give me enough food for each day. If I have too much, I might reject you and say, 'I don't know the Lord.' If I am poor, I might steal and disgrace the name of my God.” (Proverbs 30:7-9)

Proverbs 3:9, Luke 16:10-13, Matthew 6:21, Ecclesiastes 5:10, Romans 13:8, Proverbs 13:11, Hebrews 13:5, Luke 3:14, 1 Timothy 6:10, 1 Timothy 6:17-19, Mark 12:41-44, Proverbs 10:4, Luke 16:13-15, 1 Samuel 2:7, Proverbs 3:9