Your Current Habits Have Deeper RootsThat tendency to overspend when you're stressed? The way you feel guilty every time you buy something nice? The anxiety that creeps in when you check your bank account? Those aren't random quirks, well, they're usually connected to something much deeper.
After years of helping Christians transform their relationship with money, I've learned this fundamental truth: Your current spending habits aren't just about willpower or discipline. They're the result of every money lesson you absorbed growing up (both the spoken and unspoken ones).
Maybe you learned that money was scarce and had to be hoarded. Or that spending money on yourself was selfish. Maybe you saw money used as a weapon in arguments, or as a way to show love. Maybe talking about money was taboo, so you never learned healthy financial communication.
These early teachers are what I call your "money influencers". These are the people who shaped your relationship with money through their words, actions, and attitudes. They include:
- Parents and guardians
- Grandparents who helped raise you
- Older siblings who modeled financial behavior
Let me share some examples of how childhood money messages show up in adult financial behavior:
"Money doesn't grow on trees" might have created:
- Scarcity mindset and difficulty spending on necessities
- Guilt around purchases, even reasonable ones
- Tendency to over-save at the expense of current needs
"We can't afford that" (said frequently) might have led to:
- Feeling like there's never enough money
- Anxiety around financial planning
- Either extreme frugality or rebellious overspending
Money used as control or manipulation might have created:
- Difficulty setting healthy financial boundaries
- Using money to control relationships
- Fear of financial vulnerability in marriage
"Rich people are greedy/selfish" might have resulted in:
- Subconscious resistance to financial success
- Guilt around earning more money
- Difficulty receiving or accepting financial blessings
Money stress creating family tension might have led to:
- Avoidance of financial conversations
- Anxiety around money management
- Using spending as emotional regulation
Here's the beautiful truth:
understanding your money story is the first step to changing it.When you can identify where your habits come from, you can start making conscious choices about which patterns to keep and which ones to leave behind. You can start writing a new money story! One that aligns with who God created you to be and how He wants you to use the resources He's given you.
If you're ready to dive deeper into understanding and transforming your relationship with money, I'd love to help you through this process. Inside my course, Redeeming Your Finances, we spend an entire module exploring your money story in detail, helping you identify your money influencers, understand their impact, and begin rewriting your narrative in light of God's truth about money and stewardship.
It's honestly one of my favorite parts of the course because I watch people have incredible "aha!" moments when they finally understand why they've struggled with certain areas of their finances. More importantly, I get to walk with them as they create new, healthier patterns rooted in biblical stewardship.
Ready to start your journey? You can learn more about Redeeming Your Finances and see if it's the right fit for where you are in your financial journey. Or, if you'd like to start with a practical tool, download our free Kingdom Focused Budgeting Planner to begin applying worship-centered principles to your money management today.
Your story is still being written, and God has beautiful plans for how He wants to use your finances for His glory and your good.
