Whether you own a business or work for a paycheck, earning money is probably something you think about every day. While earning a living may be one of your priorities, you may not give much thought to how God thinks about it. Today Rob West talks with Howard Dayton about earning money God’s way. This is Faith and Finance - biblical wisdom for your financial decisions.

Howard Dayton is the founder of Compass — Finances God’s Way, and the former host of this program.

• You write about earning in your book, Business God’s Way. What’s the first thing we should know?
  • God owns everything and that He’s your real boss, no matter if you’re self-employed or you work for someone else. Colossians 3:23-24 tells us, “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men; it is the Lord Christ whom you serve.”
  • And even your ability to earn is a gift from God. Deuteronomy 8:18 says, “You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth.”
• That puts things in perspective. What principles should we follow as we earn money?
  • First is you should be totally honest.
    • Business people need to treat customers, vendors, and even competitors with complete integrity.
    • Workers need to be honest with employers and coworkers. Never steal even a pencil or a penny from your employer
• As we do those things, it’s important to remember that we represent Christ in the workplace, wouldn’t you agree?
  • I would. Jesus says in Matthew 5:16, “Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”
• Owning and running a business is always a challenge. What biblical principles might help with that?
  • Planning and being in order certainly come to mind. We might not think of orderliness as a biblical principle, but it is. 1 Corinthians 14:40 says, “But all things should be done decently and in order.”
  • And not presuming on the future would be another. James 4:13-14 warns, “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit’ — yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring.”
• The world would probably agree with many of these principles for running a business or earning wages because they help the bottom line, but probably not generosity, don’t you think?
  • The world often looks at making a living as “dog eat dog,” but that’s not how Christians should view it, especially when it comes to giving. Proverbs 11:24-25 tells us, “One person gives freely, yet gains even more; another withholds what he should give, but comes to poverty. A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed”
  • That doesn’t mean God will always reward you with material wealth, but He promises to bless those who are generous, and He can do that in a lot of different ways.

Next, Rob answers these questions at 800-525-7000 or via email at askrob@FaithFi.com:

• What's a good strategy to get debt-free if you are about to pay off your $800/month car loan and then the only debt remaining will be $125,000 on your mortgage if you have an emergency fund in place and are not contributing to a retirement plan?
• Should you still contribute to your 403b if it went from $52,000 in September to $39,000 at the end of the year and what should you ask your investment advisor when you meet them?
• What banks allow liquidity and offer high interest rates for checking and savings accounts? (Rob referred the caller to Ally, Marcus and Capital One 360.
• Is it correct that you can't take distributions from a 401k until age 67 that you inherited after your husband passed away?

Be sure to check out the rest of FaithFi.com to access our books and our many free helpful resources. You can also find us on Facebook Faith and Finance (Live) and join the conversation. Thanks for your prayerful and financial support that helps keep Faith and Finance (Live) on the air. And if you'd like to help, just click the Give button.