G. Edward Reid, Stewardship, North American Division

Summary:Stewardship Director announces the completion of the new Faith and Finance stewardship resource along with the small group Leaders’ Guide. Readers will appreciate the strong biblical foundation and will benefit greatly by following the practical principles for daily living.

The North American Division is pleased to announce the completion of the new Faith and Finance stewardship resource.

Faith and Finance is a 12 lesson practical study on the Biblical principles of money management. The material has already proven to be life-changing for those who read and study the material. It has been prepared for personal or small group study and contains helpful forms and Bible study application worksheets at the end of each lesson. A small group Leader’s Guide is available and sold separately.

The Leader’s Guide has helps for each lesson to assist in outlining the primary principles for each lesson and to focus attention on each lesson’s highlights. It presents discussion questions that will facilitate the small group study. A CD is included in each Leader’s Guide containing PowerPoint illustrations for each lesson. Faith and Finance is currently available in both English and Spanish editions from AdventSource and the Adventist Book Centers. The price is $12.99.

This book has been prepared in response to the request of families who wanted information that was biblically based and yet had the practical information needed to manage family finances in our changing world. The full cross-section of personal finance is covered from getting an education to making end-of-life decisions. Titles include, Why Money Management is Important to the Christian; Planning for the Cycle of Life; Giving: Tithe, Offerings, Helping Others; Dealing with Debt; Making a Budget; Training Children, Money and Marriage, Money and Singles; Major Purchases: Housing, Automobiles; Honesty, Integrity, and Work; Planning for Retirement; Saving and Investing; Inheritance and Estate Planning, and The Rewards of Financial Faithfulness.

Those who study and follow this material will: 1) learn to organize their finances in a way that is simple and easy to understand; 2) systematically pay off their existing debt; 3) learn to live within their income; 4) learn to save and invest; 5) become faithful with their tithes and offerings; 6) experience the joy of giving, and 7) plan their estates to return to God the excess of their assets.

Pastors and local church stewardship directors are encouraged to order a Leader’s Guide and the study book for presentation to the local church leaders and to use in promoting its use in small group study.

Readers will appreciate the strong biblical foundation that is evident in the book and will benefit greatly by following the practical principles for daily living. Many individuals in the church today do not have a good training in managing money. No matter your current age or background you will benefit from this book. The stress associated with economic downturns and crisis will be minimized. Preliminary feedback has all been very positive from the cover design to the up-to-date content.

The contributors to this study are Gordon Botting, Dick Hanson, Ben Maxson, and G. Edward Reid. They have all been stewardship directors and financial counselors and have worked together to prepare this material.

The small group Leader's Guide was created and designed by Maria Ovando-Gibson who with many years of academic and ministry experience in discipleship and small groups is presently assistant director of the General Conference Stewardship Ministries.