Why Do I Feel My Income is Never Enough for My Needs?

How much money do you need to make you finally feel comfortable? It's a great question, isn't it? But are we asking the wrong question? Because here's a controversial truth I've got to share today.It's not about how much you make, it's about how much you think you need. See, culture has lied to us. They've told us this lie. And today I'm going to flip this conversation upside down. It's going to be a great show today.This is Financially Confident Christian, your daily dose of gospel, grounded insight and faith driven tips to help you break the cycle of financial shame with confidence. Welcome back to Financially Confident Christian.I'm Ralph and I'm so happy you've chosen to join me today as we continue in our series Breaking that Financial shame and Breaking those chains that are holding us back. And yesterday we talked about the stress of taxes. I mentioned there are two certainties in life.We covered one the other day, we covered the other yesterday. That's death and taxes.So if you missed either of those shows, you can check out all of our shows@financiallyconfidentchristian.com but today we're going to dig a little deeper. We're going to go into that income dilemma. So many people say to me, Ralph, it seems like no matter what I do, I can't make enough money.So today we're going to talk about income, we're going to talk about work. But more importantly than all those things, we're going to talk about purpose. Because I really think that's the piece that we're missing.So today on the show, I want to answer this vital question. Why do I feel my income is never enough for my needs? I'm gonna share a personal story right now.I remember when I first started working at the credit union, I was right out of college. I had left working for my family accounting practice. I wanted to venture out on my own and I got this job at the credit union.I started as the accountant. Never forget this job because they put me in a room without a window. Man, I thought I was dying in there. I'm one of these guys that need sunlight.Well, anyway, Fast forward about 12 months and I got offered a promotion. And I was like, you know what? This is going to be great. I'm finally able to meet my bills. I'm not going to stress about money anymore.It came with a big raise and I thought, hey, this is going to finally be enough income. And maybe as you're listening right now you're thinking, ralph, I've been there. You're speaking to the choir, dude.But like, almost everybody, even though your paycheck's higher, it's always gone too soon. And for so many of us, we make more than we made last year, but it's still not enough. And it leaves us in this state of feeling trapped.It leads us in a state of feeling anxious. And for many of us, and this is me included, it always feels like we're one step behind. So here's my hard question.This is where I really want to spend a couple moments and really dive into today. I want to really talk about, is it really the numbers? See, so many people think it's the numbers. It's the amount of income that's coming in the door.It's how many hours you're getting at work. It's that big raise you've got. But is it really the numbers? Or is it more importantly the definition of enough?Because I think that's really where the secret is. See, these financial gurus all around town are going to tell you to earn more. Go get more income. Get that side hustle.Go find that thing that's going to subsidize your income. Just work harder. Put your head to the stone, as they say.But in my experience, and I bet you're listening right now, you're thinking the exact same thing. More money doesn't always fix it. And I can prove it right now. Think about how many billionaires you see. They're always chasing that next thing.Listen, I don't know any billionaires, but I know a few millionaires in my practice. And I'm going to tell you right now, some of those millionaires are some of the most miserable people I have ever met.And I hate to say that because most of us are sitting and listen, I'm not a billionaire, not a millionaire either. But most of us are sitting there thinking, you know what, Ralph? If I had that kind of money, man, I would be happy. I would be content.I wouldn't be worrying about chasing that next dollar. But the problem is, it's not about the money, because money doesn't fix it. Let's get right into the word of God today.I want to get right to the book of Luke, chapter 12. And this is Jesus talking. He said, watch out. Listen, when Jesus says, watch out, guess what? You better watch out.Be on your guard against all kinds of greed. And then he ends with this. And this is what I really think we need to ground ourselves in scripture today.Life does not consist in abundance of possessions and I just want to park there for a second. Jesus himself's warning us. He's warning us about what? Greed, making more money and getting more stuff.And he's given us the answer to the question, see, so many times, I think culture lies to us. It tells us, well, if you just get more stuff, you're going to be content. But that's not what the Bible is. That's not what scripture says.If you want to have an abundant life, it's not in an abundance of possession. So we got to start there. Let's move right on to Paul speaking. This is in the book of Philippians, chapter 4, verse 12.And I've used this on the show a few times because this one is really a great verse to really ponder on when you're feeling like, is it enough? I can't, Ralph. I don't feel like I'm ever getting ahead again. Philippians 4:12. This is Paul speaking.I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I've learned the secret. All right, let's hear the secret, Paul. I've learned the secret of being content in any and every situation.And here's my big takeaway for today. This simple phrase, contentment is learned, it's not earned. That is really the secret to our special discussion today.Contentment is learned and not earned. Because if you feel like you're never enough, if it feels like your income is never enough, the problem's not your income.It's your definition of what enough is. So every day on the show, I want to give you an action step.I want to give you some action items to help turn this upside down and make your financial life better. So I want to encourage you right now, stop asking this question. Stop asking, how do I get more money?That is not the question that you need to answer. You need to start asking the question, what has God already given me? You see what I did there just flipped the script completely.Stop asking, how do I get more money? That's not the answer. It's not about the money. And start asking, what has God already given me?See, not enough is spiritual before it's ever financial. And until you break that chain, until you break away from that mentality of money and possessions and abundance, I don't care what raise you get.I don't care what hustle you make. I don't care what windfall you could win the lottery. It's never going to feel like enough. So here's your one action step today.It's Really a challenge. I want you to do this. I want you to write down your true needs. Now listen, this is going to be a soul searching exercise. Write down your true needs.I'm talking about food, I'm talking about shelter, I'm talking about utilities, and I'm talking about transportation. Those are your true needs. Listen, if you don't have those, you can't make it. Once you do that, list some extras, maybe for you that's a vacation.Or those streaming services that everybody's got to have. Maybe it's eating out or hey, maybe it's a new car. It's not wrong to want these things.A lot of financial gurus say, oh, you know, you just got to stick to your needs. No, that's ridiculous. It's okay to have once. It's okay to have a desire to have these things. It's not wrong. But those are not needs, those are wants.And here's the challenge for today is start to draw that line, because that's really the answer. Define where enough begins and where enough ends. And I'm going to encourage you to do this. Pray for contentment.It's not more, it's not a little extra. It's time to start praying for a heart that trusts God. As we talk about that. Let's pray together right now.Father God, we confess that we believe a lie, that more money will fix our worries. That's the cultural lie, Lord, and we've bought into it hook, line and sinker, as my grandfather used to say.So teach us to see the difference between needs and wants, Lord. Help us to steward faithfully when you've already provided.Give us the peace of Paul, Lord, as he says, I found peace in all things to be content in all circumstances. And Lord, we just ask that you would allow us to trust in your perfect provision. And we ask this in confidence.And the only name that matters in Jesus name, amen. Friends, your income is a tool and you need to hear that. You need to hear it loud and clear. It's just a tool. It's not your security.Income will never make you secure. I don't care how much you get. It's all about your mindset. It's all about defining what is enough for you.And here's the best part of this whole thing. God is your provider. He's not your paycheck. You got to realize God is providing everything you need, not just your paycheck.So it's time to redefine enough in his terms and break that chain of never enough. And While we're talking about chains, I would love for you to share this show with somebody else.There are a lot of people who are struggling right now with their finances. They're in that same cycle of financial shame. They're just holding them down.They think if they make more money, they think if they get that side hustle, they think if they get that stuff, they're going to finally find contentment. But you know as well as I do that the culture is telling them a lie. So I just encourage you share this show with them.You can send them a text, you can send them an email, put them right to our website. That's financially confident Christian.com and while you're there, I want to give you a free gift. I just finished pending my third book.It was really a labor of love for me and it's called how to Become a Financially Confident Christian. And I'm going to give it to everyone for free. You just got to go right to this website. That's financiallyconfidentchristian.com/becoming.You can download the book right there. I'm going to give it to you one more time.That's financiallyconfidentchristian.com/becoming and start to break those cycle of financial shame and do it with confidence. Now tomorrow on the show, we're going to continue our talk about income.We're going to talk about what happens when income jumps around and you can't play. In my head, I'm thinking that jump around song.But tomorrow is going to be a show you don't want to miss because so many people in the gig economy, so many people who are in the sales economy have income that just fluctuates month to month. And culture tells you to handle it one way. Well, I'm going to tell you right now, I'm going to flip the script tomorrow completely.I'm going to upend that so that just show you don't want to miss. And as I close today, remember this. Enough isn't a number. Enough is a person. And that person is Jesus Christ.So I want to encourage you, you can do this. I have confidence in you. Have confidence in yourself. Stay financially savvy out there today. God bless you.