Abrahams Wallet

Lately I’ve run into more and more talk from companies who will use language of family (which makes my skin crawl), even religion, to convince employees to sacrifice everything at the altar of profits, which they will disguise with language about vision, culture, inclusivity or whatever they think will adequately mask their true intentions. Some companies, I’m convinced, will do this unintentionally because they have drunk their own Kool-Aid at the highest levels. They really believe that the company doesn’t exist to make profits but to, say, “Improve life.” Some, as you'll see in this episode, do it with very clear (can we say evil?) intentions.

What is the most important ingredient to wealth building once you've been wise enough to go out an earn some money? TIME! And it doesn't matter if you're investing in stocks and bonds, or start a business. In fact, you starting a business with a solid business plan and two years’ worth of living expenses in the bank will terrify your competitors far more than any degree of hustle or clever social marketing that you might come up with.

Do you really want to start building “an enormous arsenal of resources”? Well you’re going to need some dry powder to get that ball rolling, and the way that most of you young bucks are going to accumulate that will be to find a J.O.B.  And I’m not talking about a 6-month side hustle. The Normal and Unsexy Job is very out-of-fashion right now, but allow us to vaunt the security that health insurance and a regular paycheck can provide to a young family builder in the early season of their journey. It is not insignificant.

Mark and Steven recorded this short chat on the topic of weekly rhythms and how they provide rails for our households when it comes to our work, parenting, spiritual lives and even our finances.

Goday, we’re going to talk about one specific part of your calling, which is: expressing the heart of the Father. You might already know this, but you’re God’s ambassador. That means, if I may just quote the Bible instead of paraphrasing, that God is making His appeal through you. He intends to use you–your gifts, your personality, your relationships, your career, your money–to explain to the world what He’s like, and make His Name glorious in all the platforms you occupy. One of those platforms, as I’ve said exhaustively in this series, is your money. Money is influence and power and possibility–and the Master wants all of yours, thank you very much. 

You wanna run your home and dough like a Biblical boss? Well you need some brothers around you to do that well. And anyone who has been around churchworld for long knows that the standard programming (let's have coffee and talk about our feelings) feels not so nourishing to the male soul. In this episode, Steven lays out his step-by-step guide for how to create a men's group that will challenge and grow you along with 3-6 of your best buddies.

From this point on, I’m going to act like living out the administration of the Kingdom is YOUR problem, and that you’ll answer straight to God on what His Kingdom looks like in your locale.  (As if, you know, God was making His appeal straight through you…) So please do not interrupt today’s diatribe with “but my church/religious organization…”  I’m not talking about them; I’m talking about YOU.  Flex your muscles, boys.  I’ll remind you that a Big Packet of Money will go through your hands this year, and what happens with it is ENTIRELY UP TO YOU. That’s power. I’m going to assume from this point that you understand, based on your thorough digestion of Part 2 of this series, that giving to your community of faith is Quite Important and that we can proceed from there.  So let’s do it.

Giving is one of the great blessings God bestows upon His sons. According to Hebrews 2:10, God is in the process of “bringing many sons to glory”… that wonderful process (which concludes with our being entrusted with the Father’s business, a la the Psalm 2-based affirmation of Jesus when He was baptized) trains us in awesome Kingdom skills. But WHERE are we to put that giving dough? To what should we be giving? Here we go....

As America begins to reopen after the COVID shutdown, we're asking the question, "just how much of the many changes we've put in place over the recent weeks should we undo now that we're seeing the beginnings of a return to 'normal' life?" In this episode Steven and Mark discuss fear, how to maintain healthy rhythms that you've discovered during the quarantine, and the notion that we steward those just like we would steward financial gains.

Giving isn’t some random, meaningless “good deed” that you do casually and it just goes into God’s Great Big Penny Jar In The Sky which we hope He remembers 100 years from now. It really matters. And it matters NOW. In this BlogPod episode, Steven brings you an ice cold six pack of points to back that strong assertion up!

It's not every day that you wake up to an extra grand or two in your bank account (thanks Uncle Sam!). In this pod we give you our thoughts on how to make the most of it. For those who haven't read or listened to our Slush Budgeting thoughts, you can click here to read about the framework we discuss in this episode: https://abrahamswallet.com/2018/04/11/a-framework-for-your-slush-budgeting-202/ For those who want to create a financial plan during the quarantine, book a call right here: https://www.outpostadvisors.net/schedule-a-call

Heard of The Tiger King? Of course you have. You’re probably like me and have that steady IV drip of Hollywood coming straight into your family room. To be real clear – we don’t think you should watch this garbage – it’s just that I’m sure you’re well aware of its prevalence right now in the zeitgeist. In need of some triviality recently, I listened to a podcast with one of these Tiger King fellers on it. You’ll never believe this, but I actually heard something kind of pithy come out of this guy’s mouth, about the human capacity for managing problems.  It got me thinking, and I’ve concluded there’s (at least) one big lesson that can be learned from the outrageous dumdums over at The Tiger King...

My friend Mark Douglass from The Viceroy Project sent me this book by Amor Townes a few months back about how to live well whilst under house arrest. Given the current state of the world, we thought it would make for good listening as you seek to make your homes places of order and peace during the quarantine. Check out the link below for more from The Viceroy Project: Link: The Viceroy Project

In this episode Mark and Steven discuss how choosing hope and optimism (which you're commanded to do anyways) will transform your work, your finances and your home life in a time when the rest of the world seems to be panicking and choosing the opposite emotions.

What does it look like to lead your family during a quarantine? In this episode we walk through specific tactics that you can use in each of the 5 capitals: spiritual, relational, physical, intellectual and financial.

In our second emergency podcast of the past 4 days, we're coming to you with some tips on how to navigate your likely and unplanned transition from not-homeschooler to homeschool family. Steven has been at this for a while and has some great tips to share from what has worked in his family!

We had to do it guys - instead of waiting until next Wednesday, we wanted to provide some financial insights into what is happening right now and then give you some actionable tips. Whether you have millions of dollars invested or nothing, we've got some steps that you can take to shore up your family's strength in an uncertain time like this one.

In this podcast, Steven sat down with his parents, who have been through multiple life-changing financial disasters, and talked with them about how they responded. You WILL be better equipped to trust the LORD and deal with unexpected bad news after listening to this episode!

This week we have a chat between Mark Douglass and Steven Manuel on Terrence Malik's film, A Hidden Life. We have so few examples right now of men who truly stand up for right even when they are standing all alone. Heck, most folks who wish to stand up for something can pretty quickly assemble a few hundred like minded standers on Twitter or something. But a movie recently came out that gave us a fantasic example of what it looks like to be willing to play the oppositional role, while submitting wholeheartedly to Jesus. Before you blast into this episode, first go watch the trailer if you've not seen this movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJXmdY4lVR0 And after you enjoy this episode, head over to The Viceroy Project for more good stuff from Mark Douglass and his crew.

We are just closing the books on an annual family tradition in which we spend as little money as possible through the month of February. LoDoFeb, as it’s been dubbed, is our rhythm of intentionally saying no. (And, heck, it can be yours, too. Matter of fact, we recommend it. You can have LoDoMar or LoDoNov for all I care, but you’re going to have to deal with more than 28 days of it if you do. Sorry.) As with any form of asceticism, I’m always a bit relieved when it’s over (because I can get back to my indulgent, freewheeling lifestyle), but while I’m inside it, I’m always thinking about it and reflective of its benefits.