How Can I Get Ahead Financially for the Entire Fall Season?

Speaker A00:00:00

Summer's flying by, and before you know it, fall's gonna hit with school expenses and holiday planning. Let me just ask you right now, does the thought of that annual financial shock make you dread the end of summer?Well, what if you could get ahead financially to prepare for the entire fall season and welcome it with peace and not panic? Well, stick with me today because I'm gonna show you exactly how to make that happen. That's what we're gonna talk about on today's show.This is Financially Confident Christian, your daily dose of gospel, grounded insight, and faith tips to help you break the cycle of financial shame with confidence. Hey, there. Welcome back to your daily Financially Confident Christian.I'm Ralph, and this is the show that answers that question, how can I become a financially confident Christian? And we're continuing in our series today Smart Money for Back to school and beyond.Now, if you missed yesterday's show, we kind of started this process. We talked about starting your back to school prep now to save money and, and to plan early.So if you missed it, I'm going to encourage you to go check it out. You can find all of our shows at financiallyconfidentchristian.com now, today, we're going to take it a little bit bigger picture.We're going to shift our focus to proactively preparing for the next season. I'm going to answer this question, how can I get ahead financially for the entire fall season? Hey, that's what we want to do.We don't want to have these surprises. We want to be ahead. We want to stick to our budget, and we really want to live out our faithful financial Christian mantra.And if, you know, like most people, you're feeling this all too well, you're starting to enjoy the last days of summer. You're thinking, oh, the colder weather's coming up right now in Delaware. It's hot. It's going to be like 97 this week.But you realize you look at the calendar, hey, those days are ticking away. And then suddenly start thinking about all the school expenses. We talked a little bit about these yesterday.Those school fees, those new fall clothes your kids got to have all those activities. And then just a little bird starts whispering in your ear, hey, it's not too far off from the holiday season.And the problem is this feels like a sudden overwhelming financial onslaught. And you feel this burden of being caught off guard by predictable seasonal expenses. I mentioned this on the show yesterday. The seasons, they come.They come. We need to start thinking about planning for these. But if we don't plan what does it lead to? It leads to overspending.It leads to frantic budgeting, dipping into our savings. And then we do that. We just find ourselves in this state of significant stress.And if we're not really careful, it really starts to erode our financial peace. But here's the thing, and I mentioned this yesterday, you might feel like I'm picking on you. That's not my goal here.But the fall and holidays are predictable seasons. We know that these seasons are coming, and we know that there's going to be increased expenses.We really need to start approaching these things as predictable things. We need to be proactively planning because that's the hallmark of savvy stewardship. Well, let's look to the Bible for some guidance.Let's jump right into Proverbs, chapter 6, verses 6 to 8. We talk about the ant here, and I mentioned the ant on the show. Can you like Ralph? Where is he going with this ant thing? Just endeavor me here.Proverbs 6, 6, 8. Go to the ant, you sluggard. Consider its ways and be wise.It has no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores up provision in summer and gathers its food at harvest. What am I talking about here? This is all about preparing. A lot of the times on this show, I'm talking about preparing.I'm talking about how to put yourself in a position where you're not scrambling at the last minute during those times of predictability, so that you know, hey, what's coming around the bend? Let's look at the second biblical principle, and that's prudence. We're going to stay in the book of Proverbs.We're going to go to chapter 22, verse 3. And I use this on the show probably once a week. But it's so appropriate, something we always have to be embracing. It says this, Proverbs 22, 3.The prudent see danger and take refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it. See, you got to start thinking in terms of seeing this. And I don't think the fall and the holidays are a danger zone, but they can be.A lot of people put themselves into a high level of stress. They put themselves into a lack of peace because they haven't thought about these upcoming fall and holiday expenses.And if you don't plan ahead, guess what? You're planning to fail. And the huge impact of that is you feel like you're losing. You feel like you're not being a wise steward.But if you plan these things ahead, you can be thoughtful in your purchases. You can spread out the cost and you can enjoy the seasons, especially the holiday seasons, with, without financial strain.And hey, in the end, it's all about peace and abundance and honoring God with careful preparation. So now you're thinking, Ralph, I'm on board. What do I need to do?How do I transform that financial dread of fallen holidays into calm, savvy and a prepared approach? Well, here's what we're going to do. This is our goal for today. We're going to prepare what I call the Fall and Holiday preparedness plan.We're going to identify the major upcoming expenses, but beyond those daily living expenses. And we're going to start allocating funds for them in your budget now.Not tomorrow, not next week, so that we can spread out that financial impact because we're going to be proactive and we're going to look for seasonal savings. So here's your one action step for today with the goal of getting ahead financially for the entire fall season. Yes, I've got the answers today.First step, we're going to brainstorm those upcoming fall and holiday expenses. Hey, this isn't rocket science.Get a piece of paper, get out your budgeting app and just go through your calendar and list all the anticipated expenses from now through the end of the year. I'm not talking about your regular bills, I'm not talking about your mortgage, your car.I'm talking about, hey, you know, we always do this in September. There's the fall festival, there's the this, there's the that. Hey, the holidays are around. We're going to have to travel.We're going to have to do this for Thanksgiving. Start thinking about school fees. Start thinking about a new fall or winter clothes. Hey, it's going to be getting colder.The shorts and the short sleeve shirts aren't going to work anymore. Got to start planning for that. Look through your children's closet. Hey, look through your closet. Is it time to start looking for some budgets?Think about those extracurricular activities. Think about Halloween. Are your kids going to need Halloween costumes? Hey, let's go a little further. Let's start talking about Thanksgiving.Dean to start putting together meal plans. Maybe you can buy some stuff now and spread that cost over. And then the big whammy of them all Christmas.Start thinking about gifts and decor and maybe you're going to be traveling. And then start building your year end giving goals. So it all starts with brainstorming those fall and holiday expenses. That's step one. Step two.It's not very complicated either. I just want you once you've made that list is put a cost estimate next to it and put a deadline of when you need that money saved.Put a realistic estimate next to each item. Be honest with yourself and put deadlines there because, hey, it's great to have plans.But if you need the money by the end of August and you're not saving it until the end of September, October, that's not going to help you. Put an end date for the school registrations, put a end date for your Christmas shopping.And hey, do it early so you're not struggling to last minute. So that's the second thing. Estimate those costs and then think about those deadlines. And then here's what, here's the big takeaway for today.This is the. Is the secret sauce. I want you to create a fall holiday fund. I'm going to call it a sinking fund.Get out your budget and create a new category, something like, you know, we did this about a few months ago. We did that Summer fun fund. Well, let's start thinking about a fall and holiday fund.We talked about what you wanted to do, we talked about the budget.Well, now let's start thinking about how much do you need to set aside between now and the end of the year to meet those deadlines so that you're not struggling. And, and here's the fourth step for today. It all comes down to action.I talk on this show all the times about intentions, but it all comes down to action. So I want you to really work at allocating your first contribution. Set aside a certain amount of money each week, maybe it's every two weeks.However, you get paid and automate that. If you can, start putting money into that sinking fund for the fall and the holidays.Because I really want you to fight that struggle of being caught off guard by these, hey, these are predictable expenses. Now we always have things in life we have to get to our emergency fund because something came up we weren't expecting. But these aren't those things.And we can transform those worries because so many people get worried this time of year. How am I going to pay for this? I remember as a young kid, my mom used to get. My mom used to get so stressed out about this.She lived on a tight budget. Yes, but it was so predictable. And I look at it now as an adult, as a, you know, she could have planned for these things.And I'm not bad mouthing my mom.But listen, we need to move beyond that vagueness and really start being predictable in this to spread out that financial Impact and avoid that last minute scrambling. And hey, the problem is a lot of people, let's be honest with ourselves, when we do that last minute scrambling, what do we reach for?Reach for that credit card. We build debt. And I want to, I want you to really feel peaceful empowerment today. I want you to have a joyful approach to the holidays.Not something that you dread. And I want you to proactively manage your resources. Are you game for that? I think you can do it. Well, let's pray together today.Father God, we just thank you for the beauty of every season, especially the fall seasons. One of my favorite seasons of the year, Lord. And we, we thank you so much for your constant provision.And we confess that planning for the fall and the holidays for so many of us, Lord, brings financial stress. And most of the time we have that stress, Lord, because to be honest with you, we Lord, we're unprepared.So we just ask that you would grant us foresight in our planning, Lord, and diligence in saving for these predictable expenses, Lord, Help us to be intentional in setting aside funds so that we can approach the upcoming seasons with peace, Lord, and generosity. Because that was your intention with this. And we just ask that you would guide us to manage our resources wisely and do that for your glory.And we asked this in 100% confidence, Lord, in Jesus name, amen. Listen to me right now. Proactive planning for fall and the holidays is your secret weapon. Hey, it's the secret weapon.It's the secret sauce for a stress free seasonal spending.So I just want to encourage you one more time, take that step today, create that holiday or that fall holiday fun to make your first contribution to get started with that because listen, I want you to move towards financial freedom. Hey, listen, if this episode has resonated with you, I want you to do one more thing today.I know I'm asking a lot today, but share this episode with somebody else.Hey, just like predictability goes, all of us are planning for this and maybe you know that friend, you know, I got this friend Ralph, she's always struggling with this.Or I've got this friend and he's always dealing with the holidays and back to school and he, he just tells me the stories, Ralph, and he could really benefit from this. I'm just going to encourage you.Share our website with them, share the show with them, send them a link to financiallyconfidentchristian.com hey, spread the wealth a little bit. If you're getting value from the show, I bet other people could as well.So I encourage you again, just point them to financiallyconfidentchristian.com now, tomorrow, we're going to be talking about another critical area of financial foresight. We're going to move beyond expenses, and we're going to start talking about your insurance needs.This fall year, we're going to be talking about how to adequately make sure you're protected without overspending on premise. A lot of times, people overlook this. This is a show you don't want to miss. So make sure you join me now today.Let's all go out there and be those financially confident Christians that we aspire to be. You can do this. I have confidence in you. Have confidence in yourself. Stay financially savvy. God bless you. And you have a great day today.