#101 4/22-23/23

Radio Seminar: Economy 2 of 2
Dave Ramsey: Our Economy
John Maxwell: “Desire”

(UNEDITED TRANSCRIPT)

INTRODUCTION

Welcome to Financial Freedom God’s Way Radio. This is where you are continuing to learn, apply, and pass on, Bible-based financial principles and applications so that you and your family will not only just survive, but can thrive during these very uncertain times.

Hi and welcome everyone, this is Bob Louder from Christian Financial Ministries, and it is an absolute honor to have you with us again, it really is. Where are we going during our 30-minute time together today?

1. First of all—during the Your Finances in Perilous Times Radio Seminar, you are going to take your second look at what is really going on in our economy today. Last week we began learning about our economy based on the world’s perspective. This week you are going to discover what God has to say about where we are economically in our nation today.
2. Then Dave Ramsey will suggest a solution or two on how to correct where we are economically,
3. And finally, leading Christian author, speaker, teacher, and trainer John Maxwell with share with us his thoughts on the word “Desire.” What a great word for these economic times.

So stay tuned, it’s going to be another great time together with the Lord. You are not going to want to miss a minute of today’s program.

As we start, as we always start, please open with me in a word of prayer. Father, we thank You for meeting with us again today. Please give us ears to hear all that it is you have planned for us, all to Your glory, in Jesus’ mighty name, amen.

BODY

Radio Seminar
Introduction

Now, during our last time together – last week, you discovered from the world some startling facts that surround our national economy as well as our personal finances.

1. For example, you saw that an economy – any economy, is based on people wanting to buy what others want to produce. No problem there.
2. However, you also saw that, for the most part, the government of the United States of America attempts to administer our national economy based on the failed practices of Keynesian economics. Recall Keynesian economics is committed to manipulate the economy thru the use of credit—to try to create jobs and take care of people no matter what the circumstances. That was last time.
3. And by the way, remember, you can always go to our website at christianfinancialministries.org to either re-listen to this program or any of our prior programs and even get a transcript of those programs.

What God has to say.

1. So, last time you saw some bad news—the bad news is that our national economy is pretty much based on the failed economic theory known as Keynesian economics. And this national failure has worked it’s way down into our states, and into every area of our local communities and economies and even into our personal finances.
2. That’s the bad news. However, this bad news has laid the foundation for the good news about what can be done about all the bad news. You see, according to the Bible our national economy (as well as our personal finances) can move from where God would have them to be.

Last week we saw our national and even our personal economic situations based on what the world has to say. This week, let’s see what God’s Word has to say.

1. First, what does God have to say not only about our nation and but any nation that chooses to follow His commandments and His principles, to include His economic and financial principles and commandments? If we choose to do finances His way, well, according to Deuteronomy 28:12-13–as a nation, if we choose to do it His way…

   The LORD will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season and to bless all the work of your hands. You will lend to many nations but will borrow from none. The LORD will make you the head, not the tail…

   
   

2. That is what we can expect if we follow—if we as a nation choose, to follow God’s plan. However, do you know what? God always knew that there would be people, that there would be nations who would choose not to do it His way. He says, basically, if any individual, if any family, if any nation, if the United States of America chooses not to follow His principles and His commandments, to include His financial principles and commandments, if we choose ignore His Word, well, He gives us a warning as to what we can expect. Take a look at Deut. 28:43-44. If we choose not to live and do finances His way, then

The alien who lives among you will rise above you higher and higher, but you will sink lower and lower. He will lend to you, but you will not lend to him. He will be the head, but you will be the tail.

Now, I don’t believe it takes the gift of discernment to figure out where we are and where we are headed in this country today. Our economy is sick…Uncle Sam is sick.

1. For example, have you ever noticed that many of the very few new plants and buildings that are going up in this country, have you noticed that they don’t have good old Irish American names on them anymore? But names like Honda and Yamaha and Toyota and a whole bunch of names we can’t even pronounce?
2. Did you know that in back 1985 the U.S. became the single largest debtor nation in the world?
3. And that every year—every year we are selling more and more of our national wealth to foreign interests. Look at the huge amount of real estate being bought up by foreign interests.
4. The foreigner is rising higher and higher above us. More and more of us are working for foreign owners right here in our own land.

Now let me ask you, do you think this sickness is this an indicator of God’s blessing for following His precepts, or maybe His judgment for our disobedience? I believe a reasonable man or woman would probably agree that we just might be witnessing God’s warning being placed into action in this country. Would you agree?

What can we do?

So what can we do? Well, it is really very simple. There are only three ways a nation, any nation or economy, any business, any family or individual, there are only three ways to respond to what we see going on in this nation today. Here they are. And remember, just listen for now. You can go back and re-listen or get the transcript of this program at the website. Three ways our nation and our families can respond to our current economic distresses.

1. First, get on and stay on a budget that balances, or better yet, get back to where you spend less than you take in. It does not appear that the majority of our elected officials are serious about balancing the national budget. Why do I say that? Because it would require some hard choices. Choices that you and I would find it hard living with. But more than that, the data shows it’s not likely our national leaders will balance our national budget. Let me give you some facts. Do you know what it would have taken to balance the budget way back in 1992. I mean there was talk of a plan to balance the budget way back in 1992. Do you know what it would have taken to balance the budget way back then? We would have had to cut government spending across the board by 40%. What does that mean? I means cut the military by 40%, reduction in entitlements, in grants, food stamps by 40% of all government pay checks, anything to do with the government, cut it by 40%. But that is not all. Even with cutting Government by 40% they would still have to tax every tax payer at 50% of his or her income; 50% tax brackets for everyone. Nobody had the political nerve to even try to put this plan into practice. Most people in the know do not believe balancing the national budget is something this nation is going to choose to do. But it is something our country could choose to do, but most simply do not believe a balanced national budget is ever going to happen.
2. So, we as a nation probably won’t balance the budget. But what’s the second thing we could do to right our national economic ship? Well, as a nation, we could also choose to default on all our debt, to simply not honor any of our treasury notes and bills and bonds and all the rest. This would mean our country would declare technical bankruptcy. This is to say we would simply tell all those governments and all the individuals and all the businesses that hold any of our debt, we would just simply say, “Sorry about that, but forget about being repaid. We’re simply going to wipe the slate clean and start over.” Now, if that were to happen there would be rioting in the streets here and all across the world. But, do you know what? There are those who say it may come to a national bankruptcy as part of a transition into a one-world political and a one-world economic system. But most folks, well, they don’t see this happening just yet. But, default on our national debt is the second choice we could make.
3. So, it’s not likely we’re going to balance the budget or default on our national debt, so what other choice is left? What is the only thing that’s been tried throughout history, time after time after time with any and every nation that has ever been in the shape we find ourselves in right now? What is it? The only other thing that can be done is what? We can monetize our debt—this means more, a lot more borrowing, and printing more and more money. But we’ve already seen that this doesn’t work, right? What happens when we try to spend our way out of debt and print more and more money? We begin to see inflation. And I’m not talking about the kind of inflation numbers we have seen in the past in our lifetime. No, no. Eight, 10, 15%? No way. History shows that when a nation—any nation—starts to print money to spend their way out of debt, to fuel their economy, what they end up with is something called hyperinflation. Look back in history to what happened in Mexico, Argentina, Peru, Chile, and Brazil. There was a time when Brazil saw 1k% inflation rates. Argentina went through a time when they were experiencing 5600% inflation rates. And then, and then, there was post WWI Germany.

This is truth. This is history. And this truth and history doesn’t paint a very pretty picture, does it? And by the way, you still read all about it in the history books that still tell you the truth.

History shows that in this country—in this country we really started downhill when we went off the gold standard, and we started on the entitlements programs. Let me give you some more facts.

1. Do you realize that for over 200 years we had a whole lot of people suffering in this country? We had lots of folks suffering economically in the cities, in the country and everyplace in between.
   1. We had people suffering in slavery.
   2. We had people in a bad way in this country for 200 years. But, for over 200 years we had what no one could ever take away and what no amount of money could buy or replace. What is it? We still had our family.
   3. Do you also know that for over 200 years it was illegal for the government of the United States to take tax money from one person and give it to another? The Supreme Court of the United States declared that redistribution of wealth as unconstitutional time after time.
2. Now, put all of that together. We can now look back over the last 50-60-70-80 years and we can see that our system of welfare, of government entitlements, has done what 200 years of oppression could not do. It has caused the break-up of the family.
   1. Listen my friend, when we allow the government to make it more profitable for a woman to have a baby than have a husband, we are headed in the wrong direction. We are asking for trouble.
   2. You know, there are gangs in the streets in part because there are no dads in the homes. Now, granted, a dad can still be in the home and still not in the home, if you know what I’m talking about.
   3. My friend, listen, a father in the home can never be replaced by a check from the government. It just can’t.
3. So what do we need to do? Well, we need to get involved and help reverse the financial incentives that encourage the breakup of our families.
   1. This is one of the things all our time together are going to be all about…getting involved.
   2. Now, don’t get me wrong. I am not approaching this Radio Seminar politically—not at all. True, we blame a lot of what’s happening to our nation on our government—and rightly so. But it’s not a republican problem; it’s not a democrat problem or the problem of anybody in-between. You see, there is enough political blame to go around. But it is time for you and for me to stop blaming and get involved. The solutions do not come from Washington, my friend. They do not. The solutions we need come from one place and that is from God’s Word.
4. How are you going to get involved?
   1. How about agreeing to get into God’s Word then prayerfully get His Word up and operating in your heart and in your life and then sharing what God has given you with others.
   2. The Bible says that if you want to change what’s going on around you, first of all you must first prayerfully change what is going on inside you.

Wrap Up

Alright. Wow, last week and this week, wow, lots of information.

1. We see that an economy is based on people wanting to buy what others want to produce.
2. We also see that for the most part, our national leaders follow failed Keynesian economics which is committed to manipulate the economy thru the use of credit..
3. And our history is clear, and so is our present condition.
4. God’s Word tells us that as long as we continue to go down the road we’re headed down, then…
   1. We will continue to borrow,
   2. We will continue to be in debt to the foreigner,
   3. And we will continue to become the economic tail rather than the head.
5. You see, we have made some mistakes…at the national level, down thru big business, and small business—through churches and families. And these mistakes have even found their way into every aspect of our life. individual, family and church finances.

Now, that is the bad news.

But like we said just a little bit ago, there is good news. The good news is that there is hope. The Bible tells us that is always hope. You see, there are solutions. There are things that you and I as individuals can prayerfully put into place.

1. Now let me ask you again. How do you get rid of a bad habit? Do you remember? You must first recognize the bad habit. Then replace it with a good habit.
2. I believe from God’s Word, that we need to recognize that we as a country, that we as a church, and that we as individuals, we have been led down a worldly road into some lousy economic habits. Habits that regularly and routinely get us into trouble. We have been taught well, but we’ve been taught the wrong things. We have been taught to live by the world’s financial standards.
3. But there is a way out. If we want to take it, there is a way out. And the way out is to move away from man’s economics and financial principles and move back into God’s economics and financial principles found in His Word—The Bible. Remember, His Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth. This is the first and only book God ever wrote and it has everything we will ever need. We need to first recognize and prayerfully move to replace our bad habits, with habits based on God’s Word, based on God’s economy, not man’s. Remember what we said earlier? Finances are never the problem. You don’t have any financial problems. Finances are always the symptom of the true problem, and the true problem is always spiritual. And what do we know? There are always spiritual solutions to spiritual problems.

I truly pray this look from God’s Word at the United States economy today as been both informative and motivating for you. I really do. You’ve seen some bad news and some good news. But listen to me here as we are about to close out this Radio Seminar time together. Remember, God is all about turning the bad news into good news.

1. Because, you see, you as a Christian can choose to be either part of the solution or you can choose to be part of the problem. Right now, if you are like most Christians, you are part of the problem because you are no more debt free than anyone else.
2. You and all of us need to move to become part of the solution.
3. How do you become part of the solution?
   1. You get back into God’s Word so you can change your attitudes, so you can recognize and replace ungodly habits. Then, then what can do you do? You live out your changed attitudes and your changed habits and help others to do the same.
   2. And remember, if you need some help to live out what the Lord wants to put in, why not seek the help of a trained, Bible-based financial coach from—Crown Ministries or the Dave Ramsey organization.
4. What else can you do? Come back right here next week to start to dig deeper into all of what the Lord has to tell you about money. For example, next time, you are going to take a huge step down your personal road to financial freedom God’s way as you begin to learn about the first of the two most important financial principles in all of God’s word. All the 3,000+ verses in the Bible about money reduce down to two critical financial principles. You will discover the first of the two most critical financial principles in all of God’s Word nest week. So, I’ll see you then I sure hope so.

Dave Ramsey

Now, I’m sure it is no surprise that our friend Dave Ramsey has something to say about our current economic situation AND what we can do about it…let’s listen.

Wow, that was a little bit more economic perspective from our friend Dave Ramsey, thanks Dave.

John Maxwell

Now, we want to make sure we hear from our favorite Christian leadership author, teacher, trainer, mentor and coach, John Maxwell as he tie shares with us his thoughts on the word “desire.”

Wow, what a great word–desire. H how strong is your desire to seek Him and His path to financial freedom His way.

CONCLUSION

Let me close us in prayer.

Father, we do thank You for bringing us together again today, and for each of the days yet to come, to Your glory, in Jesus’ mighty name, Amen.

Have a great rest of your day, won’t you, and we are looking forward to seeing you next time for Financial Freedom God’s Way Radio.