Quality Christian Living with David C. Friend — Walking with God Through Faith, Finances & Real Life

When we are young, seldom do we give a thought about retirement. The enemies of retirement are inflation, overspending, lack of savings and debt. Discipline, budgeting, saving, and putting God first in our finances leads to a financially successful retirement. Today we are able to establish a financial plan to retire. We can beat inflation and provide monthly income for our retirement needs. God’s...

As believers, we read about our inheritance in God's word. We can receive our earthly inheritance here on Earth. In order to receive an inheritance someone usually has to die to pass it on. Someone did give his life so we could receive our inheritance. His name is Jesus Christ. We will receive our inheritance for whatever we need in our life. I believe our inheritance will provide debt-free living...

The word discipline is often misunderstood. We tend to look at it as negative instruction and criticism. However, God's word refers to discipline in a completely different light. The Bible tells us discipline produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Discipline in our finances will open the gates of increase and lead us to debt free living.

Borrowing money is often taken far too casually. Banks and other lending institutions spend millions of dollars a year to keep us in debt. We must use caution in borrowing for a want or desire. However, borrowing for a need can be acceptable. Borrowing may be a great decision. But use caution. Allow me to show you the good and bad decisions in borrowing. Borrowing may be a great step towards debt...

Financial failure in marriage is one of the leading causes of divorce. Marriedcouples must be united as one in all things, including their finances. A couple inagreement to become debt free will attain that goal. Words like discipline, energy, budget and trust must be in operation in our financial decisions.  Married couples will be debt free if they work together.

Spiritual prosperity must always precede financial prosperity. God is our source for both spiritual and financial prosperity. We do not have to choose between a spiritual or financial blessing. God's Word tells us He wants to prosper us in all things. When we delight ourselves in the Lord, he will give us the desires of our heart. This includes being debt free.

Most of us desire financial success in life. The amount of money we have does not determine the amount of our financial success. Deal with integrity in all of our financial decisions. Avoid conflict in settling money disputes. Place our trust in God to bring financial blessings. Always avoid any form of greed. Real success is how we walk with the Lord.

Giving money to a church may not make sense to non-believers. The biblical concept of making money is to enable us to give. We can never out give our God. Proper giving requires setting up a budget. When we give, we will always receive a blessing in our life. God's words tells us to test him by giving. Try it you will love it.

Financial decisions must bring peace in our life. Where we are financially today is the sum total of all of our financial decisions. Consider the impact of a lack of peace in our financial decisions. Only lend money if you can afford to lose it. Speculative investments should be made with only excess funds. Preparing for an emergency brings peace.

Always focusing on making more money may cause us to increase our spending. Is there a shortage of income or do we have a wrong attitude towards spending? When our spending is under control and we know how much it takes to live each month based on the entire year's expenses, then and only then will be will we be on the road to debt-free living. Reading Proverbs Chapter 3 will reveal to us where to...

My experience in banking and finance has shown me that financial success depends on proper decision making. If we desire to be out of debt, we must control our spending habits. Living above our means (aka) income will never allow us to be debt free. All decisions must line up with God's word. All the decisions we have made in our life until this day are what has determined our current financial si...

Today we need faith to envision being debt free. Being free of debt is not a wish we hope may come true. It requires a change in our decision making. We must acknowledge that most debt is caused by our spending habits. We can make new habits and believe for great results. Making more money is usually not the solution to becoming debt free. When we increase our income, we must never automatically i...

There may be dozens of mini miracles in your spending where you can use those dollars to pay off debt. Overuse of your ATM to obtain cash shows a lack of discipline in spending.

The typical individual spends from $300 to $1000 per month above their income. Making more money and not controlling expenses will make us dependent upon making more money.

Seek competent counseling when you enter into any type of investing. Never invest without proper investigation and due diligence.

Some say goal setting is not proper for Christians. They believe it limits God. I disagree. My source for this lesson is found in Proverbs 16:9 “A man’s heart plans his ways but the Lord directs his steps.” We will examine how and why to set goals. We must set goals that are difficult to achieve. Because we serve a God who excels in difficult challenges. Before you listen to this episode, close yo...

President Calvin Coolidge coined these words “prosperity is only an instrument to be used, not a deity to be worshiped.” In my years of counseling thousands of those desiring to live debt-free, I discussed the following sequences vital to be successful. Pursue spiritual prosperity before seeking financial prosperity. God’s Word tells us He wants us to prosper in all things. The Lord wants us to be...

In order to live a debt-free life, we must set up a financial game plan based on God’s Word. King Solomon wrote the words. “Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty.” We must stay focused on being debt-free in order to experience it. The small things like setting up a budget will bring the greater goal of living debt-free. It will take hard work, staying...

Quality Christian living should be the goal of every believer. Live the abundant life, starting with greater faith.