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The 10 The 10- 10 10- 80 Principle 80 Principle of Money Management of Money Management Have you ever heard of the 10-10-80 principle of money management? If you’ve been struggling with financial control in your life, this may be the most important principle that you can know. You see, your checkbook reveals more about your priorities, your lifestyle & what is on the throne of your heart than probably anything else. Jesus said, “Wherever your treasure is, that’s where your heart is also”. (Mt. 6:21) Jesus also warns us, “That we cannot serve both God & Money. (Mt. 6:24) Think of the rich young ruler who came to Jesus wanting to know what he must do to have eternal life. Jesus challenged him on the one thing in his life to which he was a slave, his money. Jesus said, “if you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions & give to the poor & you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me”. (Mt. 19:21) But the young man went away sad. He wanted to obey Jesus. He wanted eternal life, but he was so enslaved to his money that he couldn’t make the break! Now, just think about what happened to this rich young ruler, unless he changed his mind at some later point in his life. He was no doubt, physically comfortable for the rest of his life with all the power & prestige of wealth around him. But eventually he died, & now faces an eternity without Christ. I wonder what that young man would say to us now if he were here. Don’t you imagine that eternity has changed his perspective tremendously? Do you think he’d be willing to sell all his possessions now if he could have another chance? Our greatest challenge as believers is to keep an eternal perspective on everything in life, & that certainly includes our money. Remember that in eternity how much money you make, how much you’ve saved, how prosperous you have been, how many things you own will count for absolutely nothing. They will be worthless in eternity, unless you’ve used what God has entrusted to you for eternal purposes. In Luke chapter 12 Jesus warns us again about being possessed by our possessions: He says, “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed: a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” (Lk. 12:15) Friend, if you are living as though life does not consist in the abundance of things, you’re going to live very differently from people around you. As Christians, our attitude toward money should be different, which means we will be quite unusual. However, there’s no question that we have to deal with money issues every day of our lives. So not only do we need a biblical attitude toward money, we also need some practical tools to help us become wise stewards of the money God gives us. I want to pass along to you a principle that is both practical & biblical. It’s called the 10-10-80 principle. How Can I Become A Wise How Can I Become A Wise Steward Of My Money? Steward Of My Money? A good goal for any Christian is to allocate your money in a 10-10-80 ratio: that is, 10 percent for giving, 10 percent for savings, & the remaining 80 percent to live on. If we all followed this principle, I believe that we’d find ourselves to be better stewards of the money that we have. Keep in mind that these are just starting points, bare minimums when it comes to saving & giving. But if you aren’t doing that much yet, then it provides a very good place to start. “GIVE TEN PERCENT” – As Christians, giving to the Lord is absolutely essential. First, because we are told to do so in the Bible. Now the rule of law in the Old Testament was a tithe, ten percent. No, we are not bound by that law as New Testament Christians; but grace would seem to demand that we do more! The 10 percent should simply be a good starting place for us. Giving our money according to biblical principles is very important to us becoming wise stewards of the money God gives us. I know it sounds strange, but giving breaks the power that money holds over us quicker than anything else. I don’t know about you, but giving money away is an unnatural act for me. Honestly, it did not come easily for me. But when I started to give, I began to see how it crushed the power of money over me & even my thinking changed. Giving frees you up because you know that money is not your master, it is your servant. & when you do what is an unnatural act in giving, you know that you’ve made progress toward becoming free from its power & the joy starts bubbling up inside of you! When Paul warned young Timothy about the allure & power of money, he said to him, “But you, man of God flee all this, & pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance & gentleness.” (I Tim. 6:11) Does this mean that in order to be godly, everyone must get rid of all their money? I don’t think so. But the litmus test is whether money is your servant or your master. & the very real fact is that not many people are successful at making money a servant. The spiritual power of money is a strong allurement that most of us don’t resist very well. Giving at least 10 percent is an essential element in becoming a wise steward of the money God gives us. “START SAVING” – The second part of this 10-10-80 principle is to save 10 percent. Do you regularly & systematically save some of your money for future needs? Even if you can’t start with 10 percent, start with something – no matter how small. Impose this discipline in your life with the goal of making
