It Is Written

Investing In Eternity

Three Angels Broadcasting Network

Program transcript

Participants: John Bradshaw (Host), Ed Reid

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Series Code: IIW

Program Code: IIW001229


00:07 It has stood the test of time.
00:12 God4s book, the Bible.
00:16 Still relevant in today4s complex world ......
00:22 It Is Written, sharing hope around the globe.
00:36 Thanks for joining me today.
00:38 If there4s one subject the Bible speaks about more than
00:41 any other, what do you think it is?
00:45 Alright.
00:45 I'll tell you.
00:47 The Bible speaks about money, about finances more than it
00:52 does about any other single subject, which ought to
00:55 suggest to us that the subject of finance and money
00:59 and money management is important and is important in
01:03 the sight of God.
01:04 Today I am in Eastern Tennessee and my guest is Ed
01:08 Reid, who has written the book about money management.
01:11 Ed, thanks for joining me today.
01:13 ER: Well, it's a pleasure to be with you, John.
01:15 JB: Let's start by asking you why you think there's not a
01:17 lot of time left for planet earth.
01:20 Why are these the last days?
01:20 ER: Well the Bible gives two ways for us to know.
01:22 The first one is the great prophetic timeline and we see
01:25 the time is running out and the other one are signs that
01:29 Jesus gave us and we would see near the end and they're
01:30 in abundance today.
01:32 JB: Such as?
01:33 ER: Well, earthquakes, for example.
01:35 Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, especially Matthew, Mark and
01:38 Luke talk about the synoptic gospels, earthquakes in
01:41 different places near the end as an indication of end-time.
01:44 JB: Okay, now, Devil's advocate.
01:46 There have always been earthquakes.
01:47 They had them back in Bible times.
01:49 Why should we be concerned when another earthquake
01:51 strikes today?
01:52 ER: Five of the largest earthquakes ever to occur on
01:55 the earth have happened in the last 50 years, over a 6
01:58 thousand year history.
01:59 JB: Jesus in Matthew 24 said these signs would be like
02:02 birth pains, didn't he?
02:02 ER: Yes.
02:04 JB: Which indicates that they would become more frequent
02:05 and more intense.
02:06 ER: Indeed.
02:07 JB: Do you think we are seeing that?
02:08 ER: I do, indeed.
02:09 Yes.
02:10 JB: Okay.
02:11 Now if you think that we are getting close to the end of
02:13 time.
02:14 I believe that.
02:14 I believe that and many, many people watching today are
02:16 totally convinced of that.
02:17 The Bible talks an awful lot about money and finance.
02:22 Clearly a very important subject, and very important
02:24 God.
02:25 It's important to all of us.
02:26 If we don't have it, life becomes a difficult
02:28 proposition.
02:30 How, then, should people of faith who are convinced that
02:34 Jesus is returning some time soon, and I know that word
02:39 soon is a relative word, how should people be approaching
02:42 their finances keeping in mind the end might be near.
02:46 ER: Well I think the first thing to do is to put God
02:48 first in your life.
02:48 I could give you a long time recitation of things to do,
02:55 you know, budgeting, and all that.
02:57 But I think - the Book of Proverbs, the third chapter,
03:01 talks about honor the Lord with your possessions and
03:03 with the first part of all your increase and your barns
03:06 will be filled with plenty and your vats with new wine
03:08 and so on.
03:09 Those are written to farmer people but they apply to us
03:11 in the same way.
03:12 And it says "don't be wise in your own eyes.
03:14 Fear the Lord and depart from evil" and so on, so I think
03:17 putting God first.
03:19 JB: Okay now, let me ask you a question.
03:21 Right there in Proverbs 3, Honor the Lord with your
03:23 substance.
03:24 What does that mean?
03:25 ER: Well, I use the New King James version, and it says
03:28 "your possessions", "your stuff", we would say.
03:30 Honor the Lord with your stuff.
03:32 And this means, well, you mentioned that the Bible
03:35 talks more about money than about any other subject - any
03:37 other single subject - and more than two thousand verses
03:40 talk about it.
03:41 Somebody asked me, well, what is your favorite one?
03:43 Well, it's not even a many one, but Genesis 1:1 says "In
03:46 the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth."
03:48 So if God is the Creator, I'm a creature.
03:50 If he's the Creator He's the Owner, I'm just a manager.
03:53 So the way I manage God's money is a very, very
03:55 important situation.
03:58 I believe that we are saved by faith alone.
04:00 The great Prostestant tradition.
04:02 But the fact is we're not saved by our money management
04:04 but we can manage away from God.
04:08 Do you get what I'm saying by that?
04:09 We could move away in our management.
04:11 JB: Certainly.
04:11 ER: Thinking in terms of selfishness and so on.
04:12 In fact, one of the signs of the end is in 2 Timothy, the
04:16 third chapter, where it says "in the last days perilous
04:18 times will come and men will be lovers of themselves
04:22 [they're selfish] and lovers of money".
04:25 That's an amazing one.
04:26 And then also, the 5th chapter of James, in the
04:28 first five verses says "The rich will heap up treasures
04:31 for the last days.
04:33 It's all going to get burned up.
04:35 That's the amazing thing.
04:36 But the interesting thing is they are doing it.
04:37 Let me give you an illustration of last day
04:39 stuff.
04:40 JB: Sure.
04:41 ER: If I am a professional person with advanced degrees
04:43 and I could earn about a hundred thousand a year, in
04:46 my entire lifetime - and this is amazing - of 40 years of
04:51 working, I will make four million dollars.
04:55 Recently, even during the economic downturn, some of
04:59 the Wall Street bankers got bonuses of 40 million dollars
05:03 which is 10 times more than a professional person will make
05:07 in his entire lifetime of hard work.
05:10 Now this is incredible.
05:11 Do you understand?
05:12 The rich are saving up for the last days.
05:14 JB: Sure ER: There could not be a better example of that,
05:16 in my opinion.
05:18 JB: So now, we are honoring the Lord with our substance,
05:20 with our possessions, our stuff.
05:23 ER: Yes.
05:24 JB: Planning for the last days of earth's history.
05:26 Now, I don't expect that you are going to be an extremist
05:28 on this.
05:29 I don't think you're going to be a radical on this.
05:31 How do we go about that?
05:32 What should we be thinking?
05:33 ER: The very first thing I am telling people now is ...
05:35 people say, well, is it time to get back into the market?
05:37 Should we start investing again?
05:39 And I tell people, if you have any debts at all,
05:41 investing in your own debt is the best thing you can do.
05:44 Guaranteed returns, better interest rate that you can
05:48 get, even if your money is in there.
05:50 Better than the stock market where you could lose it --
05:51 many people have, as you may know.
05:53 And the amazing thing about it is that people, even on
05:55 credit card debt, the average year now, 915 billion dollars
06:01 a month is not paid off on credit cards that are carried
06:05 over from month to month.
06:06 Minimum 10% and probably many of those up to 27%.
06:09 People are praying on those kinds of balances and not
06:11 paying off those credit cards.
06:13 So I would say, after putting God first in your life, which
06:15 is managing from God's perspective, and that would
06:18 include the tithe and so on, but then the very best thing
06:21 you can - practical management - do your very
06:24 best to get out of debt.
06:24 JB: Okay.
06:25 You mentioned credit card debt.
06:27 What other debts are people carrying?
06:29 ER: Well, I'll just give you, for example, automobiles.
06:32 Almost everybody who is making time payments on a car
06:34 actually owes more on it than it's worth.
06:37 So I'm suggesting, and I practice this myself, to
06:40 drive your car at least 10 years and then you get twice
06:42 its value out of it.
06:44 Take care of it.
06:45 Manage it.
06:46 You know, instead of having to have a new one.
06:47 Many new cars are sold on looks, as you know, somebody
06:50 on TV you see them driving down the neighborhood and
06:52 somebody runs up to the porch to see somebody's new car.
06:54 It doesn't tell you what kind of mileage it gets, how long
06:56 it will last, or anything.
06:57 It's just well, we need a new car.
06:59 The bottom line is take care of your car and drive it a
07:01 long time then you're not upside down on the mortgage.
07:03 JB: Now, now you're suggesting now, you're
07:05 suggesting ...
07:08 I want that new car, man ...
07:09 You're suggesting how I might be ordering my priorities and
07:15 and and yeah, I might want that.
07:18 I really want that new car, Ed.
07:20 ER: You told me not to be radical but I am going to be
07:22 radical in one thing.
07:23 In an ideal world, people would pay cash for their
07:26 cars.
07:27 So, once you get your car paid off if you save up the
07:30 equivalent of a car payment until you have enough to pay
07:32 cash - by the way, if you pay cash, you are really going to
07:35 think twice about "do I really want to spend $30,000
07:38 of my money on this car?
07:41 Do you see what I'm saying?
07:41 JB: Yeah.
07:42 Whereas if you're putting down a down payment and
07:43 paying it off over 10 years, it doesn't seem quite so
07:45 painful and the actual fact is it's way more payments.
07:47 ER: Yes, it's actually 50% more by doing that over time.
07:49 JB: Okay.
07:51 We looked at a couple of things right now.
07:53 One of them - getting out of debt.
07:55 Looking after yourself by paying down your debt and
07:58 being free from debt.
07:59 We talked about cars.
08:01 I'm sure we are going to talk about more things in a
08:02 moment.
08:03 Money management, stewardship as the approach of Jesus is
08:06 near.
08:08 Thanks for joining me today.
08:09 Don't go away.
08:10 I'll be back in just a moment.
08:13 In Matthew 4:4 the Word of God says "It is written 'Man
08:17 shall not live by bread alone but by every word that
08:21 proceeds out of the mouth of God'."
08:23 Every Word is a one minute Bible-based daily devotional
08:26 presented by Pastor John Bradshaw and designed
08:29 especially for busy people like you.
08:31 Look for Every Word on selected networks or watch it
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08:36 Receive a daily spiritual boost.
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08:46 It Is Written is dedicated to sharing the gospel around the
08:49 world.
08:50 To discover more about It is Written, I invite you to
08:52 visit our website itiswritten.com and browse
08:56 the dozens of pages that describe what we do and how
08:58 we do it.
08:59 Let's get to know each other a little better.
09:01 Visit our website itiswritten.com today.
09:06 Thanks for being with me today.
09:08 I am joined today by Ed Reid who has literally written the
09:10 book on money management and on Bible prophecy.
09:14 And today we are looking at how a person should plan
09:18 financially keeping in mind that Jesus' return is near.
09:23 JB:A moment ago, Ed, we were talking about how important
09:25 it is that a person should want to get out of debt.
09:27 We looked at some of those debts might be.
09:31 You mentioned clearing car payments.
09:32 ER: Credit cards.
09:33 JB: What are some other....
09:34 and credit cards, thanks.
09:35 What are some other areas that people typically carry
09:38 debt on that they might and perhaps even relatively
09:40 easily, clear those debts and get out of debt?
09:43 ER: Well, a lot of people don't think about this but I
09:44 actually encourage people to prepay the principal on their
09:47 home mortgage.
09:51 Houses cost so much today because there is credit
09:53 available so we almost always have to get a loan.
09:55 Very few people have the cash to do it so I encourage
09:58 people to get an amortization schedule and prepay
10:03 principle, like when you make a regular payment make
10:04 another payment's principal, if you can, each month if you
10:06 can, and pay your house off in half the time.
10:08 JB: Okay.
10:09 Explain that a little more slowly.
10:13 ER: Alright.
10:14 If you have an amortization schedule, it has like 5
10:15 columns in it and one of them is the number of the payment
10:17 like 1-360, and then it's how much the payment itself is,
10:20 how much goes to the bank for interest, how much of that is
10:21 principle and what your balance is.
10:23 And every time you make one regular payment, which you
10:28 have to do every month, add next month's principal
10:31 payment, which is a much smaller sum (for some people
10:34 it will be like $150).
10:36 When you do that, you've paid two payments in one and the
10:40 next time the third payment.
10:42 So you can pay it off in half the time.
10:44 That's incredible.
10:45 I've done that two times in my life.
10:47 JB: So you can pay it off in half the time without paying
10:48 out twice as much money.
10:49 ER: Oh yes.
10:50 That's incredible.
10:51 It's amazing, really.
10:52 You save thousands, literally thousands.
10:55 JB: Okay, someone is writing a note furiously to
10:58 themselves.
10:58 They are trying to remember what you said.
11:00 Let's make it easy for people.
11:01 If someone wants to review this, that information you
11:04 gave, how can they find that information real quick?
11:06 ER: Well you can just look at an amortization schedule.
11:09 You can find the amortization schedule for your loan
11:12 on-line, for example, print it off and then you can
11:14 easily see what I've just said.
11:15 JB: Are banks happy when people choose to do this?
11:17 ER: I don't think so.
11:18 JB: But that's not really the point here, is it?
11:19 ER: No.
11:20 As long as there is no prepayment penalty and most
11:22 loans today don't have one and you can do that very
11:24 easily.
11:25 JB: Okay, talking about getting out of debt, because
11:28 I don't think that it would be wise to be carrying a
11:29 whole bunch of debt into troublesome times that are
11:31 coming.
11:31 ER: Yes.
11:32 JB: How is a person supposed to get out of debt ...
11:34 if, say they are wanting to buy a house.
11:37 Like you said, not everybody can go and pay cash for a
11:38 house.
11:40 You pretty well have got to borrow money to buy a house.
11:43 What is the right approach?
11:43 ER: I would suggest a couple of things.
11:46 One of them is to make sure you put 20% down so you don't
11:48 have private mortgage insurance to pay.
11:51 That is something that just guarantees your loan to the
11:53 bank.
11:54 It does not benefit you in any way.
11:55 So have a 20% down payment minimum.
11:58 In addition to that, every time you prepay a payment, it
12:02 builds your own net worth.
12:04 If the economy were to turn really bad, most people that
12:07 don't prepay are upside down on their mortgage, which
12:09 means they owe more on it than it's worth.
12:11 But if you have prepaid, that should not be a bother to
12:13 you.
12:14 So, it's better to do that in my opinion.
12:18 And I will just tell you that right now, today, aside from
12:20 end-times, we are having 10 thousand Americans retire
12:25 every day of the week, starting this year, and this
12:28 will last for 10 years in a row.
12:31 This is the baby boomer generation.
12:33 And people know they are ready to retire when they
12:35 have their debts paid off, including their home
12:37 mortgage, when they have a reasonable income stream, and
12:40 they have health insurance.
12:41 So, just to prepare for end times would be the same
12:44 thing, in my opinion.
12:46 Try to be debt-free so that no matter what comes in the
12:48 future, it does not adversely affect you.
12:50 JB: Okay.
12:52 Give me some more.
12:53 What are the principles of money management?
12:55 Why is financial planning stewardship?
12:57 Should people be entertaining when they are thinking Jesus
13:00 is coming back soon?
13:01 Because I've heard people say "The Lord is coming back and
13:03 it doesn't matter.
13:04 Let's rack up debt.
13:05 Let's do - just go nuts because the Lord is coming
13:08 back and we don't have to worry about it.
13:10 That's irresponsible.
13:10 ER: I've heard that as well.
13:11 But I really believe that the Bible says in Psalms 37:21
13:15 "The wicked borrow and do not repay."
13:18 It is not a Christian perspective to rack up debts
13:20 and walk off from them.
13:21 In addition to that, before God's people are taken to
13:24 heaven, we are going to have a time of trouble such as
13:26 never was since there was a nation and the people that
13:29 are in debt are going to have the worse time of it.
13:30 Essentially, losing everything.
13:32 So I think we need to have a focus away from this earth
13:34 and toward our Kingdom.
13:36 I would suggest very sincerely that the more we
13:40 can we should support ministries like It Is Written
13:42 and others with any available cash, it's not going to be
13:45 good in sometime in the future and all the stuff we
13:47 have is going to get burned up some day.
13:50 JB: It's true, isn't it?
13:51 Now we have an opportunity to do something with our funds
13:54 that one day we are simply not going to be able to use.
13:56 ER: Yes.
13:57 Think of all the money that was lost in the downturn in
13:59 the economic markets from 2008 and 2009.
14:02 If that money alone that people lost had been put into
14:04 ministries, we would have more money than we knew what
14:06 to do with.
14:07 We are talking millions, even billions of dollars lost in
14:10 the portfolios of many Americans.
14:11 JB: Okay.
14:13 Financial stewardship.
14:14 Looking toward to the return of Jesus.
14:16 Take us a step further with this.
14:18 ER: Right now we have very high unemployment.
14:22 We need to be employed so that we can help support our
14:25 families and do the work of God.
14:27 So I would suggest do all you can to stay employed.
14:30 In other words, be a diligent worker.
14:33 And it's interesting.
14:35 Proverbs 22 talks about "Show me a man who is diligent in
14:39 his work and he will stand before kings, not mere men."
14:42 Be the best employee that you can be - that's important.
14:45 And if you don't have a job, I would suggest that you take
14:48 any job that you can that does not violate your
14:51 conscience.
14:51 You would not want to be a "go-go dancer" or a bar
14:53 tender or something, but most any job would be of value to
14:56 you if you didn't have a job.
14:58 JB:It is important, isn't it, that people put themselves in
15:01 a position - and I say this kindly because I know some
15:03 people are out of work and would do anything they could
15:05 to change that.
15:07 It's important to make yourself as employable as
15:09 possible.
15:10 ER: Oh yes.
15:12 JB: What are some simple things, just very simple
15:13 things somebody can do to enhance their employability?
15:16 ER: Well, you can find out, for example, what kind of
15:17 jobs are available.
15:18 For example, health care in the economy right now.
15:21 For example, go to a hospital parking lot and you can
15:24 hardly find a place to park.
15:25 Very few healthcare workers have lost their jobs.
15:27 There is not very much unemployment in that area.
15:29 Train yourself for some level of health care.
15:32 You know, nursing, inhalation therapy, whatever it might
15:35 be, lab tech, whatever.
15:36 Those are things that are important.
15:37 Computers are still important.
15:39 Everybody gets their stuff on their cell phones and their
15:40 computers and so on.
15:41 Computer guys are staying busy and they are making good
15:44 incomes, much more than preachers, as you may know.
15:47 JB: Yeah, yeah.
15:48 Moving right along, what other advice can we give
15:51 people that are thinking about the end of time and
15:53 wondering what to do, how to manage their finances wisely.
15:55 ER: I would say, live within your means.
15:59 Make a budget.
16:00 This is kind of like going on a diet and most people don't'
16:02 want to do that.
16:03 Make a simple budget.
16:04 Here's what my income is.
16:05 Here's what my expenses are each month.
16:07 Live within your means.
16:08 Let me give you a simple illustration.
16:10 Because of the bombardment of advertising today, most
16:14 people think they need more stuff but most of us can get
16:17 along just fine with the stuff we already have.
16:18 In fact, I ask people, how many of you think you have
16:21 stuff you will never use as long as you live?
16:23 And most people raise their hands.
16:24 Have a yard sale.
16:25 Sell off stuff.
16:26 Put that money on your debts and so on.
16:28 But if you don't think that you can live within your
16:30 means or too poor to save, visit a third world country
16:33 like Haiti or Central India, or some of those places, and
16:37 you will realize that you are very rich.
16:40 If you have a car, in any condition, you are in the top
16:43 5% of people in the whole world.
16:46 So, let's just learn to live within our means and that is
16:48 going to be a very helpful thing near the end-time.
16:49 You can't afford to get further in debt.
16:52 This is kind of a tail onto the one of getting out of
16:53 debt, but certainly don't go further in debt.
16:56 JB: A simple idea.
16:57 Live within your means.
16:58 Yet, so many people find it very, very difficult to do
17:01 that.
17:02 We are talking today about financial management,
17:04 stewardship, money management, keeping in mind
17:08 that Jesus is coming back soon.
17:10 I'll have more with Ed Reid in just a moment.
17:13 There's a rising sense of anxiety in our world and
17:17 people are wondering where we are headed.
17:20 If you're looking for answers, you won't want to
17:22 miss Revelation Today, a dynamic satellite event with
17:25 John Bradshaw, beginning January 20, 2012.
17:28 Discover what the future holds and learn to understand
17:30 Bible prophecy.
17:32 Revelation Today will be broadcast live from Las
17:35 Vegas.
17:36 Plan now to attend this powerful event via television
17:37 or watch it online.
17:39 For more information visit: itiswritten.com JB: Thanks
17:45 for joining me today on It Is Written.
17:46 My guest today is Ed Reid, an accomplished speaker and
17:50 author and - you may not want me using this word, Ed, but
17:53 an "expert" in the fields of financial management and
17:56 Bible prophecy.
17:57 We are talking today about how believers in Jesus should
18:00 approach finances keeping in mind that Jesus is returning
18:04 - we believe - soon!
18:06 Now, the last thing we spoke about you know, really, this
18:09 is the sort of thing we can talk about all day, how
18:11 important it is for a person to live within their means
18:14 ER: Yes.
18:15 JB: If you have $10 don't spend $11.
18:17 Which means that if I have an income of X and I want to buy
18:21 an automobile that really belongs to someone who has an
18:26 income of Y or X times 3, I might want to scale back my
18:30 expectations a little bit, right?
18:32 ER: I think so.
18:33 Yes.
18:34 And let me just suggest also that it is a good idea to
18:36 have a little savings, even if you have a smaller income
18:39 than you would like, I would suggest saving something out
18:42 of every paycheck and this not for retirement.
18:44 What I am talking about here is doing something for
18:47 emergency's sake.' JB: Okay.
18:48 Now someone, she is sitting here watching our program.
18:50 She is at home raising her two and a half kids, and dad
18:54 has a job, it's not a high paying job and she's saying
18:58 "this guy is saying save?
18:59 I can't even get the groceries paid for each
19:02 week".
19:03 ER: I would budget savings just like groceries or
19:05 utilities.
19:06 It could be a small amount, like $50 every paycheck or
19:08 something.
19:10 But when you can build that up, many financial counselors
19:13 suggest having at least a $1,000 for emergency and try
19:16 to have ..
19:18 the general savings is three to six months equivalent of
19:20 living expenses in an emergency savings fund that
19:24 you can draw upon should you have transmission problems
19:27 with your car, your refrigerator goes out, you
19:29 have a health emergency that your insurance doesn't cover.
19:32 JB: This isn't for a trip to Disneyland?
19:33 ER: No, no, no.
19:34 And the real interesting thing I would tell you is,
19:37 even eating out is kind of incredible.
19:40 I would suggest that if you eat out once a day, it
19:43 doubles your family's food budget for the month.
19:46 So eating out should be a special occasion, you know,
19:49 for a special thing, birthdays, anniversaries,
19:52 that kind of thing.
19:53 And the most amazing thing to show you that Americans need
19:55 that, go to any well-known restaurant and you have to
19:57 wait to get in, even though there is a downturn in the
20:01 economy, people are still eating out.
20:03 JB: I have wondered.
20:04 I have marveled, as a matter of fact, many times that the
20:05 economy is apparently in such bad shape that the
20:07 restaurants are full.
20:08 ER: Yes, isn't that incredible?
20:09 JB: Yes.
20:10 That's not something you have to do-eat out.
20:11 But it is something you could, perhaps, you could
20:13 work that another way, couldn't you?
20:15 ER: Lack of savings is the biggest reason people go in
20:18 debt.
20:19 They don't intend to go in debt but something happens to
20:21 their car, or you know something like that.
20:24 They have to go then and put it on a credit card and then
20:27 they pay for it two or three times over.
20:29 JB: Now what about investing?
20:30 I know we gotta be careful here.
20:32 We can't tell people what to invest in and what not to
20:34 invest in.
20:35 ER: Yes.
20:36 JB: How should a person approach investing?
20:38 ER: Well this is a very good question because obviously,
20:40 wise and prudent people don't spend everything they make.
20:42 As I said before, live within your income.
20:45 But you would have to think in terms of the future.
20:47 When you can't work as gainfully as you used to, or
20:49 should you lose your job or whatever.
20:51 So I would suggest, first of all, invest in your own
20:54 debts.
20:55 That's the very best investment anyone can make.
20:57 Guaranteed return.
20:58 For example, if you have money in a CD, you might be
21:02 getting 1% or 2% but if you are paying off your credit
21:05 cards, you're making 10% or 27% so that's an investment
21:08 that I would recommend.
21:10 But another thing is, in these unusual times - and by
21:14 the way, your question is so good that I want to insert
21:16 this - BEWARE of get rich quick schemes.
21:19 There are hawksters out there that want to get your money.
21:22 And so I would suggest that people always counsel with
21:26 someone else before investing somewhere.
21:27 This great thing comes along - by the way, most get rich
21:30 quick schemes are introduced to people by their friends
21:33 who sincerely believe they are doing their friends a
21:35 favor.
21:36 But you have to really look at it.
21:38 Something you don't understand, you have to
21:40 invest quickly, you know it's gonna promise high returns,
21:42 all of that.
21:43 And I'm just going to tell you - AVOID those at all
21:45 cost.
21:47 Even if it makes you so you are not friends with that
21:50 person because you are going to end up not being friends
21:52 anyway.
21:54 JB: Typically with investing, isn't it true, if something
21:55 seems too good to be true, it usually is.
21:57 ER: Oh Yes.
21:58 It almost al ways is.
21:59 And the real interesting thing about investments, I
22:01 would say, even though the government is trillions of
22:04 dollars in debt, probably the safest investments are
22:08 government-backed securities.
22:09 Because the government has the unique ability to print
22:11 money if they need to.
22:13 But you know, it's kind of the standard.
22:15 So I would suggest, if you have to put money away that
22:18 you're not investing in your debts, put it in a secure
22:20 position.
22:21 Because if you could make more in the stock market, the
22:24 higher the level of income offered, the greater risk it
22:26 is.
22:27 That's always true whether the people telling you
22:29 believe it or not, whether you believe it or not,
22:31 whether it seems possible even.
22:33 The higher the interest promised, the greater the
22:35 risk.
22:37 It's always true.
22:38 JB: Now if Jesus is coming back soon, if the end is
22:39 near, and I don't' say that - in fact, I don't say that as
22:41 a doom merchant, I say that full of hope.
22:44 ER: Aren't we all excited?
22:45 JB: How important is it that a person really keeps an eye
22:47 on the future?
22:49 ER: Well I will just tell you this.
22:52 Christian Bible believers have inside information.
22:54 Now in the investing world, that's not a good idea of
22:57 having, as you know.
22:58 But we have inside information and it's in 2
23:00 Peter 3:10, that when the Lord returns, the earth will
23:04 get burned up and all the works of men and as I tell
23:07 people, that will reduce its value considerably.
23:09 All the stuff gets burned up.
23:10 So I would say as a Christian, you know, get rid
23:13 of the stuff that you don't need.
23:16 A lot of the us have things we've carried around for
23:18 years that we really don't need.
23:19 Divest yourself of the stuff you don't need.
23:22 Sell it at yard sales.
23:23 Now here's the real story.
23:24 Christians are going to work together for the greatest
23:26 event ever and that's to work together to finish the work
23:28 of God on this earth.
23:30 It is not going to be free.
23:31 God is going to ask us to utilize stuff he has given
23:34 us.
23:34 Remember, "honor the Lord with your possessions", your
23:36 stuff and that's the way we help him do it, helping Him
23:39 to finish the work of God.
23:40 So I think another thing.
23:42 This earth is not our final home.
23:45 We have dual citizenship as Christians, citizens here of
23:47 whatever country we are in and citizenship in heaven
23:49 when we accept Christ.
23:51 So we are moving from one to the other and we want to move
23:53 our assets from here to the new earth so that we can be
23:58 blessed and to bless others at the same time.
24:01 JB: Okay.
24:02 Let's go to the Bible.
24:04 A couple of verses, a couple of Bible verses that you
24:06 believe are especially helpful, especially pertinent
24:08 to people as they are wanting to honor the Lord with what
24:10 they have, keeping in mind that the time is short.
24:13 ER: Well, I would think of first John.
24:15 That's a very interesting one.
24:17 Chapter two.
24:18 I believe I have it marked here in my Bible so I can
24:20 find it quickly and verses 15 to 17 says something similar
24:24 to 2 Peter that I just mentioned.
24:27 Don't love the world or the things in the world.
24:29 If you do, the love of the Father is not in you because
24:32 all that is in the world, the lust of the eyes and so on,
24:34 is not of the Father but is of the world.
24:36 And that's just giving this point.
24:39 The world is passing away and the lust of it.
24:42 But he that does the will of God abides forever.
24:44 1 John 2:17.
24:46 So what that says to me is it's not going to pass away,
24:49 it is in the process of passing away.
24:54 With all of the natural disasters and things, the
24:56 world is waxing old like a garment, is what it says in
24:59 the Bible.
25:00 And we have to understand.
25:01 I believe in ecology.
25:02 I believe in separating my trash and all that kind of
25:04 stuff.
25:05 But we are not going to save the planet.
25:06 The Bible is clear that it is passing away and the lust of
25:09 it but he that does the will of God abides forever.
25:12 So I would say that as you read through the Scripture,
25:13 look for the will of God, put that part in your life.
25:16 JB: How about if we pray together because a lot of
25:18 people are taking on board what you have said today and
25:20 they are saying, Lord, some things have got to change
25:22 around here.
25:23 I've got to get it right now and it's not going to happen
25:25 unless people are praying their way through this.
25:27 Let's pray together, shall we?
25:28 ER: Okay.
25:29 JB: Our Father, we thank you in the name of Jesus that you
25:31 are willing to guide us in some of the most practical
25:36 and important areas of our lives.
25:38 There are a few things more practical than our daily
25:40 finances.
25:42 We are all confronted with the importance of them and
25:44 sometimes confounded by them.
25:46 As we have talked today, Ed and I, I pray that you would
25:48 guide us all as we seek to honor you with our stuff, and
25:52 our possessions and our finances, as we seek to plan
25:56 prudently with the return of Jesus so imminent.
26:01 I pray your Holy Spirit will guide us and keep us.
26:04 Let your will be done.
26:05 Please be first in our lives and let us face the future
26:08 with confidence, confidence that comes from knowing we
26:11 are honoring you.
26:12 In Jesus' name we pray, Amen.
26:13 ER: Amen.
26:30 Today we have been talking about crucial financial
26:32 issues that affect all of us.
26:34 Our goal at It Is Written is to help you live a more
26:36 satisfying and God-centered life.
26:38 So this week, our free offer is a helpful book on finance
26:41 called God will provide.
26:44 It is a practical discussion on how God has promised to
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26:51 a special section prepared by Ed Reid, whom you met on
26:54 today's program Managing Finances in Difficult Times.
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Revised 2015-02-06