I love Dave Ramsey. He has changed my life because he changed how I think about money. Another man who was instrumental in changing my life because he changed how I think about money is my friend Casey Graham. These are two of the wisest men I know when it comes to personal finances. The amazing thing to me is how much they sound like the wisest and richest man who ever lived… Solomon.

Solomon put pen to paper and wrote over 3,000 proverbs, many of which are recorded in the book of Proverbs in the Bible. Many of these proverbs have to do with money! Dave, Casey, and many others have embraced the financial wisdom passed on to us from Solomon and have put it to good use. You can too!

We are in week five of a six week journey through the book of Proverbs in which we are highlighting some of the best practices outlined by Solomon. If you’ve missed the previous posts you can catch them here: part 1, part 2, part 3, and part 4.

Today we’re going to cover the top five lessons learned in chapters 21-25 of Proverbs! Ready? Here we go!

#18 Plan and work the plan

Solomon says, “Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty” (Proverbs 21:5 NLT). This is one of my favorite money verses! People who have a plan and work the plan are WAY more likely to see prosperity than those who just work hard.

In the world of finances we call that plan a “spending plan” (aka a budget). Do you have one of those? John Maxwell says that a budget is you “telling your money where to go instead of wondering where it went.” Plan… and work the plan!

#19 Only a fool spends everything he gets

Look at this, “The wise have wealth and luxury, but fools spend whatever they get” (Proverbs 21:20 NLT). The reason the wise have “wealth and luxury” is because they have learned the value of delayed gratification. In other words, they know how to say “no” now so they can say “yes” later! (check this post out for more on this topic)

Ironically, just a couple of versese earlier Solomon wrote, “Those who love pleasure become poor; wine and luxury are not the way to riches” (Proverbs 21:17 NLT). He’s right in both instances! The issue here is one of timing. A poor man who craves luxury NOW and has not learned to say “No” to himself NOW will NEVER enjoy the lap of luxury! The wise man however, the one who has learned to say “no” to himself, will someday have everything the poor man wants… but cannot have. Solomon is right… only a fool spends all he has.

#20 You are a slave to the one to whom you owe money.

Some of you think you are free… but you are not. Not if you have debt. If you really think you are free then stop sending in money every month and see how quickly your life changes! Solomon said it like this, “Just as the rich rule the poor, so the borrower is servant to the lender” (Proverbs 22:7 NLT).

Here’s a question, are you in charge of your life or is Sallie Mae? Bank of America? Best Buy? Mastercard?

#21 Skilled workers will live well.

I heard a story once about the president of an ivy league school who was talking to his faculty and staff. He reportedly said, “Be nice to your ‘A’ students for someday they will come back here and teach. Be really nice to your ‘C’ students, for they they are the ones who will come back and build the buildings in which you teach.” Whether or not that is a true story is debatable, but I know plenty of people who though perhaps not “A students” were highly skilled in their craft… and lived very well as a result.

Solomon made this point as well; he wrote, “Do you see any truly competent workers? They will serve kings rather than ordinary people” (Proverbs 22:29 NLT). So here’s a question, what are you doing to improve your valuable skill sets?

#22 Security comes before comfort

Hey, don’t go buying and building just because you THINK your business is going to pay for your pleasure! Remember this, hope pays for nothing! Get that money-maker up and running and then you can spend! Look at this nugget from Solomon, “Develop your business first before building your house” (Proverbs 24:27 NLT).

This is especially wise counsel for young people and newly married couples! Don’t let your first big decision be one that leads to big debt! A broke man with a big house and a new is much worse off than a broke man with a small house and an old car. Make sure to establish your financial security before you begin to splurge on comfort and luxury! You’ll be glad you listened to Solomon!

OK, next week we’re going to wrap up this six part series through Proverbs. I hope this has been as helpful to you as it has been for me. I love Proverbs!

If you could sit down with someone who loves you and is both wise AND rich and listen to them talk about money, would you do it? That’s what reading the book in the Bible called Proverbs is like. It is a collection of wisdom written mostly from a father to his son.

What we find in Proverbs is wisdom that has passed the test of time. It is the kind of wisdom that when you look around you realize is still embraced by those who have accumulated and manage their finances well. Obvious exceptions come to mind, but on the whole these financial principles stand on their own.

If you’ve missed any of this series I encourage you to catch up: part one, part two, part three. Today we’re going to pick up the top five financial principles from chapters 16-20 of Proverbs (we’ve covered 12 principles thus far in chapters 1-15).

#13 Hunger keeps you moving!

Sometimes we’re scared to be hungry. It turns out, according to Solomon, that it may not be such a bad thing after all! A hungry person is a focused person! While this is true of food, it is also true of goals too… particularly financial ones.

Right now Sherri and I are “hungry” to be totally debt free. This hunger drives us to do things some folks just don’t understand… because they don’t have the same hunger we do for this goal.

Solomon writes, “The laborer’s appetite works for him; his hunger drives him on” (Proverbs 16:26 NIV).

So here’s the question, what are you hungry for and to what lengths are you willing to go to feed that hunger? Don’t deny the hunger. Let it be a motivation for you to achieve that goal! Let it focus your attention like the growling belly focuses your attention on your need for food!

#14 Stupid people co-sign.

We’ve hit this one before, but not this strong. It really is foolish to co-sign a loan. If you want to help someone GIVE them something, but don’t become responsible for their bill… because it his probable that you will end up paying for it… and if you don’t have the financial margin to cover it you will both sink!

Solomon said it like this:

It is poor judgment to co-sign a friend’s note, to become responsible for a neighbor’s debts.(Proverbs 17:18 NLT)

#15 A strategically timed gift will open doors for you.

Some people may call this a “bribe” and denounce this practice. Solomon would say it’s wise to use strategically timed gifts (though certainly he would insist on a high level of integrity as the whole of Proverbs indicates).

A gift opens the way for the giver and ushers him into the presence of the great. (Proverbs 18:16 NLT)

A couple of other verses in Proverbs make this case too:

• A bribe is a charm to the one who gives it; wherever he turns, he succeeds. (Proverbs 17:8 NIV)
• Many beg favors from a prince; everyone is the friend of a person who gives gifts! (Proverbs 19:6 NLT)
• A secret gift calms anger; a secret bribe pacifies fury. (Proverbs 21:14 NLT)

Businesses recognize this. They often give perks and rewards with hopes of winning your trust and return business. Men recognize this! It’s why we bring flowers when we’re trying to win the heart of our lady! Keep it in mind… a strategically timed gift might just be what is needed to open the door for you.

#16 Passion without a plan leads to poverty.

OHHHH! This is a big one! Look at this:

Zeal without knowledge is not good; a person who moves too quickly may go the wrong way. (Proverbs 19:2 NLT)

You’ve seen it… and maybe even done it (I have)… invested in a poorly thought through idea… and payed for it… BIG TIME. Here’s the scoop, passion (i.e. zeal) is not a bad thing… it’s passion without a plan that will sink you. Let your passion drive you to put together a plan and then work that plan! Solomon says that, “Good planning and hard work lead to prosperity, but hasty shortcuts lead to poverty” (Proverbs 21:5 NLT).

#17 Watch out for the person who is always negotiating.

Solomon writes, “The buyer haggles over the price, saying, “It’s worthless,” then brags about getting a bargain!” (Proverbs 20:14).

There’s certainly nothing wrong with working to get a good deal… just be mindful that the “negotiator” who mocks your price may later mock you because he snickered you out of your goods. (“Snickered”… not exactly sure what that means but it sounds right here).

The point here is that you should not be deceived or tricked in your financial dealings by smooth talking cons. Be mindful!

OK, here’s the scoop, there is so much more to say about finances from Proverbs! I just can’t get it all in over the course of these six weeks, so I encourage you to take one month to read and make note of all the references to finances in the book of Proverbs! You’ll be wiser, and likely even richer for the wisdom you accumulate!