Money-Saving Monday

Each Monday, we'll offer a "Money-Saving" Tip to help you and your family. This week it's something practical that we've all heard of. We believe this Money-Saving Tip will be the basis of all your other Money-Saving Ideas.

We also want to encourage you to pray about this before you put it to action. Ask God how much you should budget for different areas in your finances. I dare ya! It may be hard to submit, but I promise it will be worth it. He sees the "big picture" of our finances, where we can only see "today's picture".

The Budget
An important money-saving tip that we'd like to share with you is a budget. It's important to give each dollar of your income a job & reduce impulsive spending.

Find your Cash Flow
Look at trends from your previous months of spending to see your cash flow in certain areas. How much have you been spending on gas? How about groceries? Add each of your bills to your budget as well as your other expenses & discretionary money. Discretionary money is the leftover money that you choose how it it spent whether it be for haircuts, retail shopping, travel, etc.

Make it Work for You
Give each dollar a job, and stick to it. Make it your goal to spend LESS than what you've budgeted. Set financial goals like buying a new vehicle and start budgeting for that car note now while your car is still running smoothly and paid-off. Imagine how awesome it would feel to pay cash for your new car once you've saved enough and be able to give your other car away and bless someone big!

Give Yourself a "Buffer" or "Cushion"
Another idea for a budget I learned at a Financial Stewardship Class is to keep the same budget, even after your income increases. Better yet, budget for only one income, and save the rest. With this, you'll have a "buffer" or "cushion" of money in your account. Build your "buffer" or "cushion" amount up to a week's worth of salary, a month's worth, two month's worth, a year, etc.

The Goal of a Budget
Your goal is to be able to pay for things on a cash basis in full and not ever owing anyone anything. You won't be in debt or behind on a payment. And when you have your "buffer" or "cushion", you'll also be able to give abundantly to your family, missionaries, and those in need. You'll be able to give offerings above your tithe and be richly blessed in return, without ever having to worry about your monthly bills & expenses. 
What an incredible feeling to really be financially free!?!

So I personally think these are all great ideas to think about when considering a budget.
To put it simply, you'll be saving money by limiting your spending in every area of your family or personal budget!

Do you have a tip for Money-Saving Monday? Let us know at sistersandsavings@gmail.com!