Bible Money Matters

Christian personal finance

Decision On Extension Of The Bush Tax Cuts Pushed Off Until The Last Minute

I‘ve written several times on this site about the expiration of the 2001 and 2003 Bush tax cuts, and how if they aren’t renewed for all taxpayers before the end of the year, we could be seeing an increase in tax rates for everyone across the board.  While both parties have been making overtures about […]

ShareBuilder By Capital One Review: Discount Online Brokerage

I‘ve been looking into the many options available to me lately when it come to discount online brokerages.  It seems like just about everyone has a service that they like best, and that they prefer using.  The first one I had heard recommended was OptionsHouse, which I reviewed last time.  It had a good mix […]

What Money Issues Does Our Lame Duck Congress Need To Address?

Now that election day has come and gone, and because there will be some drastic changes in the makeup of the congress, we’re in a sort of limbo – the lame duck congress. Despite the fact that many of these politicians won’t be returning, there are still a ton of things that really need to […]

2011 Traditional And Roth IRA Contribution Limits And Phase Outs

At the end of October, the IRS released their 2011 IRA contribution limits.  If you have a Roth IRA (and you should), you’ll want to keep a close eye on the amount you’re allowed to contribute each year, because from time to time the amount does go up. When it does, you want to make […]

Have A Debt Free Holiday By Using A Rewards Checking

In the past I’ve advocated planning ahead for regular expenses that come up every year by setting up specific goal based savings accounts at places like Ally Bank or Capital One 360.  I believe it’s a good idea to plan ahead for things you know are going to happen, so that when the time arrives […]

Giving, Generosity And Idolatry: How I’ve Been Challenged

These past couple of weeks have been eye opening for me, and I have been challenged to think about greed,  generosity and idolatry in whole new ways. It all started a few weeks back with a new building campaign fund that was being started at our church. Our congregation bought a new building 2 years […]

What Is The Best Place To Open A Roth IRA?

As my wife and I go through the Dave Ramsey’s 7 Baby Steps, we’re finally completing step 3, building 3-6 months of expenses (although we decided to save closer to a year of expenses), and we’re now entering step 4 where you are to invest 15% into Roth IRAs and other pre-tax retirement accounts. While […]

Lending Club Update: Still Making Good Returns, But They Could Be Better

I‘ve been investing in Lending Club for quite some time now, and so far I’ve been extremely happy with the experience. I’m getting a good return on my money, while at the same time helping others to get loans at lower rates than they might have otherwise been able to obtain. I really do think […]

Taxpayers Could Face A Tax Increase As Congress Delays Vote On Taxes

We’ve written about the Bush tax cuts several times in the last few months, and how if Congress doesn’t act, the tax cuts will be expiring for everyone, not just the wealthy.   While I still think it’s a remote possibility that the tax cuts won’t be renewed, and that congress will just blame it not […]

What Is A Health Savings Account (HSA)? How Does It Work?

Last year I wrote a lengthy post on Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) because the company I work for was looking for ways to help employees cut costs in light of a large health insurance premium increase that we were slated to see. Flexible spending accounts are a great deal because they allow you to set […]