Budget
Budget. The word makes some women shudder. But to me it is a peaceful word. It is like the railing on stairs. I can hold on to them and be safer about each step. The budget is my financial railing guarding my monthly saving and spending. I have found something to be very true in budgeting. Never, never think you have learned enough about it.
If you read the Proverbs 31 chapter over and over again, you will see that this woman is consistently learning and growing in her job. I find that if I am continually learning new things, my job is never boring. So I strive to learn more and more about wisely handling my husband's income. It is a privilege he has given me since the beginning of our marriage.
"She considers a field and buys it; From her profits she plants a vineyard." Proverbs 31:16
Notice the verse carefully. She is talking about the family money first and then her own income next. She was trusted to manage both. So much so that she could consider a field and buy it. What does this mean in our culture? Well, to me it means that if my husband trusts me to take care of our finances, I must do my best by studying (or considering) where it is wise to put our money. And notice that her own profits went back into her home to continually build it up. A budget is a means to building up your home.
I keep my monthly budget on a 3x5 card in my wallet for quick access. And I keep a yearly budget on a 3x5 card in there as well. At a glance I can look at both cards and see what is needed for that month and what is coming up. So there are no surprises like, "Oh no, the car insurance is due!" I have it written down and calculated out so that when the time comes to pay the car insurance the money has been saved month by month until it is due.
Here are some of my personal monthly budget guidelines:
*Tithe & Gifts: These are the firstfruits to the LORD and the foundation of our budget. It's an investment safe in Heaven.
*Mortgage: I try to pay an extra $30 a month on the principal.
*Phone: I try to keep my phone bill at $30 or under. We call long distance over the weekend or before 8:00 if needed. We usually make four or five long distant calls a month and write letters the rest of the time.
*Electricity: We signed up for a reduction on our electrical bill by being on a special plan where we pay double if we use our electricity between the hours of noon and 6:00 p.m. on weekdays only. This helps me to get a lot of necessary cleaning, washing, and cooking done in the morning before the electricity rate jumps up. I also line dry all my clothes to save money. We don't use air conditioning, but we have an above-the-ground pool for cooling off during the summer months. And during the winter we use our fireplace to heat part of the house (we live in California) and feather comforters for every bed. The bill is usually $70 a month and lower in the winter.
*Water: I try to save money on water by using our gray water (from the washing machine) to water my herb and flower garden. I wash only full loads. My bill is usually $40 or under depending on the season. It is much lower in the winter months.
*Food: I try to keep my food budget at $260 a month. This is done by lots of cooking from scratch, researching, buying and stocking up on store specials, shopping from many supermarkets or stores (knowing prices), and always learning. This summer I am canning a lot of apricot and peach jam. It is a pleasure to continually learn in this area.
*Savings: This is where I put an amount of $220 a month which covers many bills that will come up over the year such as car insurance, house insurance, dental cleanings, car registrations, and homeschooling costs. So when these do come up (and they always come up!), I am prepared beforehand.
*Allowances: My children do not get an allowance. However, my husband and I have all of our married life. My husband gets $20 a week for his personal use, and I get $10 a week plus any savings I might incur on food, electricity, or water. I find this to be so important for the both of us as we both have our own interests and needs. I tend to spend my allowance frequently on homeschool books which I enjoy so much. The allowance gives us each some personal freedom. Our children earn money if they do jobs for us (outside of their personal chores) that are heavier than usual.
*Gas: We have $100 a month budgeted in this area as my husband travels a lot to and from work. I try to stay home as much as possible to save on gas and wear and tear on the car. So I schedule all my in town errands on one day of the week.
*Health Care: My husband does not have dental care from his company, but he does have health care. It is $10 a visit and $7 a prescription. However, I do my best to feed my family as healthy as possible and to learn wise use of herbs and vitamins that we might avoid as many trips to the doctor as necessary.
*Retirement: We have $120 taken out a month from my husband's check to go into a retirement account. We found that we could live without this money as soon as we didn't see it every month. Little by little savings grow, as the Bible says.
*Music Lessons: Our kids love music. So it is a privilege to send them to piano and guitar lessons for $110 a month. We feel this is money well spent as they can play their musical instruments all their life and also use them for worship to The King. Both of our boys play in a group at church. Also we tell them that maybe some day they can supplement their family's income with their musical knowledge, if necessary.
*Christmas: my Christmas buying comes from my own personal allowance. But I thought I would include it here because I try to be finished with my Christmas shopping by July. It is so peaceful that way. So all year I pick up little deals here and there and put them away in the back of my closet for Christmas. This last week I got some beautiful silver bowls with tulips on the side. They were marked down at our Hallmark Store to $2.99 a piece. They wrapped them in tissue paper for me and put them in a lovely box. I bought four of them for Christmas presents. My goal is to spend $3 and under on each gift, if possible. I enjoy buying things for those I love and seeing them open them in delight. Then we only buy our children one really nice gift. My husband and I do that together closer to the season. It is something we really enjoy.
*Vacation: My husband does not get any vacation time or sick time. So when he works overtime we save that towards our vacation or if he should be sick. It also goes towards any problems with our vehicles. Presently we just fixed our van and put new tires on it, so our vacation plans to go somewhere were shelved until September. But we are back saving again with any overtime he gets.
*Clothing: My husband and I both use our allowances for clothing. We buy most of our clothing from thrift shops, garage sales, or swap meet. We try to get the best quality for our money. We also love hand-me-downs!
The budget. It is a wise way to build up your house and to understand where your money is going. For it is not the amount of money that comes in that counts, but it is how the money is going out. May the LORD help us to be wise stewards with all that He has given us to work with. We will hand it all back to Him; and may He be glorified in it all! Love,
Laine
"I love you, LORD, my strength." Psalms 18:1
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