Why Do Taxes Always Feel So Confusing and Stressful?

Speaker A00:00:00

They say in life there are two certainties, that's death and taxes. And for so many people, tax season is a dread. It's stress, it's frustration. And trust me, I met some people that truly fear tax season.The forms, the receipts, the deadlines. And for so many of us, it feels like the government's in your back pocket. But what if tax time didn't have to be so painful?I've got some great tips on today's show to help you break the stress of tax time and do it a little bit at a time so it doesn't have to be this big thing at the end of the year.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. I'm Ralph. Thank you for joining me on today's Financially Confident Christian.This is the show where I work hard every day to help you become a more financially confident Christian. And if you missed yesterday's show, we talked about saving money on utilities and not having to walk around in a parka to make sure that you're warm.If you missed yesterday's show, I'm going to encourage you.You can check out all of our shows@financiallyconfidentchristian.com it was a great show yesterday and I gave you some great ideas of how to save money, but more importantly how to not waste, which is being a good steward of what God has given you. So I'm going to encourage you again. Check that out@financiallyconfidentchristian. Now today we're going to talk about taxes.Yeah, I said earlier, death and taxes. People don't like to talk about taxes. Kind of what I do for a living.But, but today I want to share with you some beautiful things and it's how to make tax time less taxing. Does this sound like a good idea to you? Well, let's get to it. And here's the thing, my big takeaway for today. This is my honest to goodness truth.Most people get stressed about taxes because they're not prepared for taxes. It's really that simple. It's not about paying taxes. It's not about doing the taxes that they're not prepared for it.And for most people, they've got this pile of papers. People tell me all the time they ralph, I don't like coming in here.Coming in to see you is like going to the dentist, but they've got this pile of papers and for so many people it's just this last minute panic. It's a oh, I got to get this and I got to get this and I got to get this.When you're panicking, when you're scurrying, when you're not prepared, that truly can feel overwhelming. I know about you, but when I am not ready for something every day when I record this show, I prepare a couple days in advance.I think, what am I going to talk about on today's show? What is my goal? What are my key takeaways? What are the things that my listeners need to hear?Well, taxes are the same thing because you're going to face them once a year. Hey, you're going to have taxes. Like I said, death and taxes, two certainties in life.But see, being a true steward of what God is giving you means that you have to have what I'm going to call a year round mindset when it comes to taxes. Because if you wait to the last minute, that's when you're going to panic.That's when you're going to feel overwhelmed and that's when you're going to have that stress because you're not prepared. Well, guess what? I've got a Bible verse that speaks directly to this. It's from the book of Luke 16:10.And it says this, whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much. And whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much. Now you're thinking, Ralph, what does that have to do with taxes?It's all about preparation. It's all about being ready for tax time.And if you want to be faithful, it comes to being faithful with your receipts, it comes to being faithful with your records, faithful with your details.Because when you're prepared, when you're faithful in those things, you're going to build peace and you're going to build trust and you're going to reduce that stress. So here is your action step for today. And this one is super simple. And I'm going to tell you right now, this is a game changer.You're going to want to share this episode with others. I'll talk a little bit later how to do that. But this one is, is going to change the dynamic of taxes for you.Here's the big takeaway and it's really simple. I want you to create a simple tax folder. It's really that easy. If you're a digital person, create a digital tax folder on your computer.If you're a person that likes paper, fantastic. Go get yourself an envelope. Go get yourself a Folder, whatever that is, and write on there 20, 25 tax time.If you're listening to this in the future, whatever tax year you're planning for, but, but just start there. And once you've got that folder, here's the other super easy part. Drop your receipts in there as you get tax documents throughout the year.Put them in there.If you've got medical bills or any of those things that you're, you know what, Ralph's going to need this at tax time, or I'm going to need this when I go to prepare my taxes, make notes all year long, just put those right in the envelope. Because guess what's easy. If you do it as you go, you won't feel that stress. And if you make one small system today, just think about that.If you start to build this momentum today, it's going to bring you big relief tomorrow and bring big relief when you get to tax time. Because you're like, Ralph, I got it all here in order. And this works because that organization, because what did I say at the beginning?It's about not being prepared. It's about not being organized. Well, if you can get your affairs in order, especially your tax affairs, it's going to reduce your stress.Because when you're organized, there's less stress. You already know what you've got going on and you. And it turns that April panic as so many people panic.Listen, as we speak right now, as I record this episode, we're not far away from the September business tax filing deadline and right after that is the October tax filing deadline. You're thinking, wait a minute, Ralph, taxes were due back in April.Well, that's true for most people, but unfortunately a lot of people are procrastinators. They file that extension and guess what that is? It's like a six month, hey, you don't have to file on April 15th. You've got till October 15th.And unfortunately for, for most people, it's set it and forget it. And then I'll hear from them the beginning of October, like, Ralph, we gotta get these taxes done. I got 15 days. I'm like, yeah, guess what?You had all of last year to prepare. You've had all nearly 10 months, 10 and a half months this year to prepare, and you're still not organized.And that leads to stress, it leads to panic. And maybe not for April, but now we got panic in October. And trust me, it will also free you from that focus on when worrying about taxes.It'll allow you to give, it'll allow you to Save and it'll be absolutely. Allow you to live a more peaceful life. Because, hey, taxes are less taxing when you handle them on a weekly or monthly basis.That's really the key to this whole thing. Well, how about we pray together now, Father, we just thank you for blessing us with resources and also giving us responsibilities, Lord.And we ask you right now because we sometimes slide on this, Lord, help us to be faithful in the details. It's so easy to get mired down in the details, but help us to be faithful in them and help us to keep our affairs in order, Lord.Help us to face tax season with peace instead of panic. It's so easy to find ourselves, Lord, in a state of panic, Lord. But help us to be diligent.Help us to prepare for this so that we can live in a state of peace, Lord, and remind us that stewardship is an act of worship. And I want to really say that right now, Lord. I want you to help me act in a way of worship by helping me to steward my resources for you, Lord.And I ask this in confidence in the name of Jesus. You want to have tax time? Feel less taxing? Get organized. Now. You can start today.You can go get that envelope, go create that digital folder on your computer, whatever that looks like for you, and start putting those things aside. Because one folder today leads to peace tomorrow. Remember what I said earlier. This is a show that everyone can benefit from. So I want to encourage.I want to super encourage you if there's such a thing. I want to super encourage you today, share this show with everybody.You know, I'm really trying to grow our audience because, listen, there are a lot of people out there right now who are suffering in a financial situation, a cycle of financial shame. Part of that is taxes. Part of that is disorganization. And I want you to get to a place of peace and I want you to get to a place of confidence.Just about 10 minutes a day can be impactful to that. If you're listening today, you know that impact. So share the wealth with somebody else. Send them right to our website.That's financiallyconfidentchristian.com and hey, while they're there, I've got a great free giveaway for you. You can get a free copy of my book. It's called Becoming a Financially Confident Christian. It's yours absolutely free, no questions asked.Just give me your name, give me your email address, and bang, you can download a copy. You can even send it to your friends. I've got no issue with that send them right to this website. It's financiallyconfidentchristian.com/becoming.I'm gonna give you that one more time so you know it. And that is financiallyconfidentchristian.com/becoming. And download your free copy of my book, because, listen, it is super impactful.I've got a lot of personal stories in there. I've got stories where I've helped clients in all kinds of issues to really become financially confident Christians.Now, tomorrow, we're going to talk about something that everybody I know talks about sometimes. Ralph. I never seem to have enough money. I never seem to have enough income. How do I change that dynamic? Well, guess what? I've got an answer.But you got to tune in tomorrow to find out the answer. So today I want to challenge you to go be a financially confident Christian. Go live out the ideals we talked about on today's show.I have confidence in you. Have confidence in yourself. Stay financially savvy. God bless you. And you have a great day today.And don't forget, go start that tax folder and do it right now. Have a great day today.