Gleaning Financial Wisdom
With the internet at our fingertips, knowledge is easy. We can garner information from a plethora of resources at any time. Wisdom refers to the ability to discern and utilize knowledge in an insightful manner for the benefit of ourselves and betterment of the whole.
Proverbs 13:20 tells us ‘He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion to fools suffers harm.
George Bernard Shaw admonished “Beware of false knowledge; it is more dangerous than ignorance.”
Are you up to the challenge to pursue and expand your knowledge base, then contemplate and convert it into wisdom to benefit those you care about and for your own personal growth?
April is Financial Literacy Month. You can brush it off – “I know about money”. But do you? Our financial opportunities and challenges change exponentially. The more I study, the more I know I don’t know – it is endless! What pecuniary proficiency would you like to build on? Where would you like to expand, question, or reshape the knowledge you currently have and make thoughtful, practical applications in your life?
How do we combine knowledge with wisdom in the area of our finances?
The Bible and John Kennedy both caution “To those whom much is given, much is expected”. As wealth increases, increased knowledge is pragmatic and discerning wisdom is paramount. How do you prepare heirs for what will be theirs someday? If you love your children equally, how do you treat them uniquely? How do you structure your business, or title assets to best accomplish the legacy that is important to you? How do you create a giving plan that reflects your intentions and leverages your giving in the most prudent ways?
It may be in area of understanding our current economic environment: How do rising interest rates affect my portfolio? Are bonds as safe as I thought they were? What investments may perform better in the economic season we are headed into? How do I learn about investing in companies that reflect my values?
It may be very basic: I need to get a grasp on how much I am paying in interest on my credit cards and come up with a plan to knock it out. I need to clarify the picture of what is important to me and put strategies in place to keep my trajectory moving forward. I need to understand what my options are to taking Social Security distributions in order to maximize my income stream during retirement.
Your quest for growth may be exploring your money mindsets. What are my attitudes around money and how does it affect my behaviors? How can I have better communication about financial matters with those I care about?
Determine what area of your financial life you want to address and set to task.
One upcoming opportunity for the ladies is the ‘Women’s Financial Empowerment Series’ sponsored by Response and underwritten by the Embry Family Foundation. Open to women of all economic, marital and age genres, we will be spending two hours a night April 7, 14, 18 and May 5th working together to increase our acumen around finances. With three components each night – introspection, education and inspiration, you will be equipped to make the changes you want as you receive, give, grow, protect and spend your financial resources. You will gain knowledge, and grow in wisdom. Call RESPONSE at 920-5357 or visit www.responsehelps.org for more information and to register for the class. All proceeds benefit Response.
Money profoundly affects every area of your life – mental, physical, spiritual, and relational. It is an essential component that weaves its’ way through our minds and our spirits. Make it an ongoing practice to be intentional gleaning financial wisdom!
