Dave Ramsey’s Financial Wisdom From Proverbsنموونە

Day 1: God Owns It All

Consider This: God owns everything and provides for you from His abundance.

As far back as I can remember, I’ve been driven to reach goals. My parents taught me to believe in myself and to know I could do anything I set my mind to. Making money—something I was really good at—was just a means to live “the good life.” Everything was all about me and what I could do and provide.

Then in my early twenties, I met God in a radical, life-changing way. He began reshaping my selfish heart into the heart of a giver—a heart that better reflects His nature. And He’s been working on that selfish guy ever since. Along the way, God helped me understand the meaning of the word stewardship.

The term steward became popular during feudal economic times—you know, like peasants and kings and castles with moats and knights riding around on horseback. A steward didn’t own anything but managed the affairs of the lord of the realm. The lord was the one who owned it all. The steward just enjoyed nice clothes, fine food and a place to live—but it really wasn’t his. It was all provided by the lord, and he knew it.

When we realize that we’re managing the Lord’s resources, it changes the way we view our personal finances. Proverbs 3:9 mentions “firstfruits”—that was the practice of giving back to God the first part of the crops, herds, or blessings He provided in the first place. It was a way of recognizing that God was the source of everything.

Today, we often talk about the tithe as giving the first part of our income back to God. It comes “off the top,” which is the equivalent of the firstfruits. Again, it’s a recognition that God is the ultimate source of our income.

The first and most important lesson about money Sharon and I taught our kids is that their money is not theirs. We believe God owns everything, and we’re just asked to manage some of His resources for Him.

That’s a huge mindset shift. When I believe God provides a job for me to earn an income—and it’s not just me out there hustling and grinding—it gives me a new perspective on my money and my personal finances. With that mindset, it’s easy to make “Giving” the first line of my budget.

Proverbs 3:9–10 teaches that when I honor God by giving back a portion of the resources He provided in the first place, He will meet my needs. On top of that, He’ll provide even more. That’s what the “overflowing” and “brimming over” language in verse 10 is all about. But it all starts with a recognition that God owns it all and I’m just a manager of the resources He puts in my hands. That’s a game changer.

Reflection Question: If you’re not already tithing or giving part of your income, how could recognizing that God owns it all change the way you handle your personal finances?