Some Use Church for Guidance with Personal Finances

Jan. 24, 2008 — -- The country's economic woes have forced some to look for advice not from traditional financial advisers but from a higher power.

For some, churches with financial support groups have superceded brokers and accountants. Now thousands of churches worldwide offer teachings on how to handle money.

Such was the case for Keith Kiser and Terri Lampman, who were $90,000 in debt before they joined a group at their evangelical megachurch in suburban Chicago.

"Before, it was just money. It was paper," said Lampman, who is a Willow Creek Community Church member. "You earn it; you spend it. It goes in and out. And now, it's like,: 'Ok. God has given me this. How does he want me to spend it?"

Kiser and Lampman said becoming debt-free has re-ordered their priorities and brought them closer together, while also bringing them closer to God. They said it also lifted a huge spiritual burden.

"If you're not debt-free, you're a slave," Lampman said.

Self-professed, former greedy businessman Howard Dayton said it works because the Bible is full of information on how to deal with your finances.

"In the Bible there are 2,350 verses dealing with money and possessions," he preached.

Dayton, whose radio show reaches 2 million people weekly, said even though there were no mortgages or 401(k)s during biblical times, the messages in the Bible are still relevant.

"It's incredibly practical. Obviously, it doesn't deal with home mortgages and Roth IRAs and that sort of thing, but the basic fundamentals are there," said Dayton, who is also the co-founder of Crown Financial Ministries.

Dayton said there are biblical fundamentals to handling funds, which include:

Debt is bad. Save aggressively even if it means giving up luxuries to pay off home loans.

Giving is good. You should give 10 percent of what you make to the church.

However, not everyone agrees. The heart of the critics' critiques is that Jesus is dealing with much more profound issues than how you handle your money.

Emory University professor of preaching Tom Long said finance ministries trivialize the Scriptures by turning them into a how-to guide.

"It's one thing to say, 'What would Jesus do?' But it gets a little silly when you ask, 'Would Jesus diversify his portfolio or take a no-loan mutual fund?'"

But Dayton said not marrying spirituality to financial health is a mistake.

"That's the huge mistake that most people make, that they don't see handling money as a spiritual issue. It's intensely spiritual," Dayton said.