Wesley United Methodist Church

My dad has been self-employed for most of my life. For a while, he ran a small sawmill he bought, but that never became a money-maker in spite of the long hours and hard work he put into it. He had another business that did better, but there were years he didn’t make much money and years that he probably lost money. My mom worked as a teacher and we had family to help out sometimes, so we never went without, but I remember some stressful times in our home when finances got tight. This probably isn’t an unfamiliar story to most of you because you may have lived it yourself. Maybe you are living it now. The details of your story aren’t the same as mine, of course, but you’ve gone through shutdowns, strikes, and layoffs. You’ve racked up medical bills when family members got sick. You’ve had cars break down and basements flood. These things happen and when they happen, they put lots of stress on families and marriages when our household finances are unprepared for them. Money problems are widely recognized as one of the top causes of divorce and family stress in the United States. Hibbing Wesley United Methodist Church will be offering a nine-week financial-planning course called Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University. The program is based on biblical principles for money and households. It covers topics such as making a budget, building emergency savings, eliminating debt, becoming smart consumers, and creating household wealth through investments. A goal of the program is to help you take control of your household finances, so that you can avoid the stress of being short at the end of the month or having to put emergency bills on credit cards at high rates of interest. We can’t control when the rains come, but we can take responsibility for being prepared by getting our household finances in ship-shape to weather the storms. Another goal of Financial Peace University is to help you to become as generous as you probably wish you could be now. There is a saying attributed to John Wesley, the father of the Methodist church: “Earn all you can, save all you can, and give all you can.” Wesley said that we should earn and save money so as to take care of and prepare for our family expenses, not extravagantly but reasonably. When we live within our means and save money, we also are able to share and give generously to charity, to good causes, and to family and friends in need. God provides all that is needed for everyone when we share with each other. God expects us to be wise enough to prepare for generosity. We can’t be really generous unless we have planned ahead for it. Do you want the peace of mind that comes with financial preparedness? Are you tired of arguing with your spouse about money? Do you want to be more generous? Financial Peace University will start on Wednesday, October 17th, from 6-7:30 pm, and will be held each Wednesday (except the week of Thanksgiving) through December 19th. James Bayliss of Thrivent Financial will co-lead the course with Pastor Andy Petter. Childcare and a meal will be provided by our church. Space in the program is limited, so please call our church office at 263-3653 to reserve a spot for your household if you are interested. The cost of a household kit is $129. Some partial aid for the cost of the kit will be considered on a case-by-case basis. For more information about Dave Ramsey and Financial Peace University, visit his website at www.daveramsey.com

Pastor Andy
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