Set Free for Freedom

Two of the books I'm currently reading are about freedom. One is Richard Foster's Freedom of Simplicity: Finding Harmony in a Complex World. The other is Start Late, Finish Rich: A No-Fail Plan for Achieving Financial Freedom at any Age by David Bach. Though Foster's book falls into the category of "Religion/Christian Living" and Bach's can be found in the "Personal Finance" section of the bookstore, the books cover a number of the same topics (in addition to freedom).

One of these topics is attitudes about the accumulation of wealth. Bach's goal is to motivate his readers to take steps that he thinks are most likely to put them in a position of being rich when they retire (these steps are to spend less, save more, and make more). But he says that it is ultimately not about the money:

"What it's about is the feeling of freedom that comes from knowing you are doing something about your worries and fears - that you're in control of your destiny, and not at the mercy of forces beyond your control . . . . It's about having the security and independence to focus on LIVING MORE instead of just having more" (p. 24).

In contrast, Foster emphasizes our dependence on God as our creator, our need to relinquish control over our lives to God, and our need to trust God for our future well-being in order for us to be freed up to be able to cultivate a spirit of extravagant generosity and care for the poor and oppressed. Foster says that Jesus

". . . saw how people were broken by the effort to attain riches. He perceived their awful vulnerability in believing that it was their responsibility to provide for themselves, to watch out for number one" (p. 38).

So Bach's goal is to enable his readers to be free to control their own destiny and Foster's goal is to help people to relinquish control over their lives and trust God to meet their needs. Given these diametrically opposed objectives, might it nonetheless be possible for me to acquire wisdom from both of these books?

I think so. Christians have always been faced with the "faith-works" paradox: How can I work hard at being a responsible steward of the resources that God has given me to do his Kingdom work while at the same time trusting in his provision and care? How can I be diligent in planning for the future without having any anxiety about what the future holds in store for me and my family?

I pray that God would enable me to seek first his Kingdom. I also pray that God would help me to be wise about spending, saving, and making money. I know that true freedom comes from trusting God, but I also know that God wants me to be a wise manager of the money he has given me in order to do his work.

Bach's last chapter is entitled "Give More and Live More." Foster would agree that this is a worthy goal.