Managing God's Money: A Biblical Guide [Mass Market Paperback]

Randy Alcorn (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 17, 2011

God cares a great deal more about our money than most of us imagine. The sheer enormity of Scripture’s teaching on this subject screams for our attention. In fact, Jesus says more about how we are to view and handle money and possessions than about any other topic—including both heaven and hell. In Managing God's Money, Randy Alcorn breaks down exactly what the Bible has to say about how we are to handle our money and posessions in a simple, easy-to-follow format. Filled with Scripture references, Managing God's Money is the perfect reference tool for anyone who is interested in gaining a solid biblical understanding of money, possessions, and eternity.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Randy Alcorn is the founder and director of Eternal Perspective Ministries and the best-selling author of Heaven; Money, Possessions, and Eternity; The Treasure Principle; If God Is Good; Deadline; Dominion; Deception; and Safely Home. Randy and his wife, Nanci, live in Oregon and have two married daughters.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Tyndale House Books (February 17, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1414345534
• ISBN-13: 978-1414345536
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #24,975 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Randy Alcorn is an author and the founder and director of Eternal Perspective Ministries (EPM), a nonprofit ministry dedicated to teaching principles of God's Word and assisting the church in ministering to the unreached, unfed, unborn, uneducated, unreconciled, and unsupported people around the world. His ministry focus is communicating the strategic importance of using our earthly time, money, possessions and opportunities to invest in need-meeting ministries that count for eternity. He accomplishes this by analyzing, teaching, and applying the biblical truth.

Before starting EPM in 1990, Randy served as a pastor for fourteen years. He has an MA degree in Biblical Studies from Multnomah University and an Honorary Doctorate from Western Seminary in Portland, Oregon and has taught on the adjunct faculties of both.

A New York Times bestselling author, Randy has written more than forty books, including Courageous, Heaven, The Treasure Principle, and the Gold Medallion winner Safely Home. His books in print exceed seven million and have been translated into over fifty languages. Randy has written for many magazines including EPM's issues-oriented magazine Eternal Perspectives. He is active daily on Facebook and Twitter, has been a guest on more than 700 radio, television and online programs including Focus on the Family, FamilyLife Today, Revive Our Hearts, The Bible Answer Man, and The Resurgence.

Randy resides in Gresham, Oregon, with his wife, Nanci. They have two married daughters and are the proud grandparents of five grandsons. Randy enjoys hanging out with his family, biking, tennis, research, and reading.

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#62 in Books > Religion & Spirituality

#62 in Books > Religion & Spirituality

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Challenge your hearts and your paradigm about money and stewardship! July 22, 2011

By Redeeming Riches

Format:Mass Market Paperback

Managing God's Money deals with the whole spectrum of Christian stewardship, and addresses issues like insurance and inheritance, gambling, saving, investing, giving and debt. And, in true Alcorn style, the theme of stewardship is woven throughout the book.

What I Liked About Managing God's Money

1. This book makes sure the proper foundation is laid for good financial planning. That foundation, of course, is our understanding that nothing we have is ours. Our money is really God's money. As such, we need to understand how we should handle what the Master has entrusted to his stewards. This book helps you get that mindset firmly rooted in Scripture.

2. Alcorn offers some very challenging words throughout the book on fighting against our culture of materialism. He cleverly calls materialism the disease of "affluenza".

3. I particularly liked the back of the book, which provided some common sense answers to questions about debt, retirement funds, investing, and leaving an inheritance. I thought his words on giving money now compared to leaving it to good causes when we die provided a good challenge and great clarity.

4. There's been a response recently to materialism within some Christian circles that has to do with creating a simple lifestyle. Randy provides a great distinction between a simple lifestyle and a strategic one:

"Simple living may be self-centered. Strategic living is Kindgom-centered."

"If I'm devoted to "simple living," I may reject a computer because it's modern and nonessential. But if I live a strategic lifestyle, the computer may serve as a tool for Kingdom purposes."

How You Can Benefit from Managing God's Money

This book will help you establish a good foundation for financial planning. What it won't do is provide a practical, step-by-step guide on the "How To's".

What the book will do is challenge your paradigm, challenge your heart motives, and offer a clear description of what the Bible has to say about the way we handle our money - as stewards.

You will particularly find Section V helpful, which deals with questions on debt, savings, retirement accounts, gambling, investing, and leaving an inheritance.

You will also enjoy the practical examples of how to teach your children about money in Section VI.

Eternal Perspective Ministries provided me with a complimentary copy of this book to review.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars "Prequel" to other money courses July 15, 2011

By S. Theis

Format:Mass Market Paperback

I began reading Managing God's Money by Randy Alcorn before we left on our big vacation, and I finished it within the first few hours of being on the road. In some ways, this was a very easy book to read. It's not too long, the chapters are organized well, the concepts are easy to grasp. In some ways, it was a difficult book to read--especially when I felt challenged to look at how I handle money. I could be reading along and say, "Oh good, I already do that." Easy part. Then turn the page and feel, "Oh, I don't do that. I don't like that at all. He's saying I should change." Hard part. Temptation to put the book down and stop reading. I found during these times it was good to keep pressing on. And also to acknowledge my shortcomings and pray for a change of heart.

I have read many books by Christian authors on handling money. I felt prompted to read this book, but I asked, "Why?" We've read Larry Burkett, we did the Dave Ramsey course, and even a small-group study by Crown Financial Ministries, why did I feel like I should read another book? I pulled up the book on Amazon.com and looked at the table of contents (using the "Look Inside" feature). That right there motivated me to pick up the book. Think of this as a "prequel" to Dave Ramsey, Larry Burkett, and the others. It deals with a heart focus more comprehensively. The book answers questions that I have wrestled with even after going through other courses.

The table of contents really is helpful in knowing what the book contains. The book is divided into 6 sections. Under each chapter title lists a set of questions that the particular chapter tackles. Such as Chapter 1: Are we faithful in how we handle money? Alcorn says in the beginning that the chapters can be read in any order that you want, however each builds on the previous. That is true. I recommend reading the book straight through once. Then you can use the table of contents to easily find your way back to parts you need to reread later.

One of my favorite sections was on giving (or tithing). I was impressed with the care and gentleness of how Alcorn handled this sensitive subject, acknowledging that many in the church debate the theology behind giving and tithing. Of particular interest to me was the section on teaching our children to be good stewards of their money. The answer is easier than you think. But you will want to read the section on giving first.

I highly recommend this book, even if you weren't exactly looking for a book on money. Some very good information is to be found here, that is foundational to living a Christ-centered life. If some of it is difficult to swallow, well, that's a good sign that you have found an area to work on! At only $5.99 for a copy from Amazon.com, it's a good investment.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid Resource on Christian Stewardship June 30, 2011

By Shane VINE™ VOICE

Format:Mass Market Paperback

If the polls are correct, many Christians spend more on their pets than they give to missionaries (our pets are better cared for than our missionaries). If the polls are correct, most Christians only tithe about 2% of their income. Even if those polls are a bit off, I think it is safe to say all of us need to hold a little (or a lot!) less tightly to our cash and coin. So when Tyndale made Alcorn's "Managing God's Money" available for review, I quickly requested it. I've not read anything by Alcorn before this one; I was happy to see he did his best to summarize the Bible's teaching on how Christians should handle the money God has given them to utilize as pilgrims and stewards.

The book consists of six sections: 1) Money and possessions in the Bible, 2), Perspectives that hinder biblical money management, 3) Stewardship in light of eternity, 4) Giving and sharing, 5) Wisdom and money, and 6) Training our children (and churches) about biblical money management.

One part I appreciated was Alcorn's discussion of materialism. He writes about the materialistic aspect of Western culture, how it affects all of us, and how we can fight it. Alcorn also rightly criticizes the prosperity gospel: "Prosperity theology is like chocolate-covered rat poison." He mentions the suffering Christians are often called to and also explains that God often gives his people wealth so they can give it to others who need it. Alcorn gives a great quote by Augustine: "Find out how much God has given you and from it take what you need; the remainder is needed by others."

One part of this book I wasn't completely convinced by was Alcorn's discussion of rewards in chapter 11. He wasn't suggesting that our giving earns us a place in heaven, but he did mention that heavenly reward should motivate us to give liberally. There wasn't anything terrible in this chapter, but it was ambiguous and could have been more nuanced and theological. I also was disappointed that Alcorn never mentioned gratitude when it comes to managing money. The book would be much better if he had discussed the gospel and how it motivates us to a life of thankfulness - including managing money in a way that shows gratitude to God for his saving grace. To be fair, Alcorn did mention the gospel and he didn't veer into legalism - I was just hoping for a clearer grace/gratitude discussion.

Having noted my critique, I still do recommend this book. It is easy to read, full of wise biblical advice, and very applicable to all Christians. From young married couples to older Christians who want to be better stewards of the money God has given them, the book will be a good help for many. I'll end with a few of my favorite quotes.

"God entrusts riches to us, not so we can keep them, but so we can give them" (p. 72).

"Abundance isn't God's provision for me to live in luxury. It's his provision for me to help others live. God entrusts me with his money not to build my kingdom on Earth, but to build his Kingdom in Heaven" (p. 133).

"Whatever role saving has in our lives, it should always be secondary to giving. And it must never be a substitute for trusting God" (p. 194).

"The almighty dollar bequeathed to a child is an almighty curse. No man has the right to handicap his son with such a burden as great wealth. He must face this question squarely: Will my fortune be safe with my boy and will my boy be safe with my fortune?" (Andrew Carnegie) (p. 209).

My thanks go out to Tyndale for providing this complimentary review copy.