It occurred to me during my devotional time this morning that we have 365 reminders not to be afraid spread throughout the Bible.  It's easy to become fearful during these uncertain times.  Our governmental leaders seem to be doing their best to maintain peace and order, but there remains quite a bit of hysteria and panic around the world.  While emotions tend to be running high, we don't need to live in fear!  We have much to be hopeful for.  

I'm about halfway through leading a Financial Peace University course, and we have switched to virtual meetings on Zoom due to social distancing.  This past week, we spent our time discussing steps we can take now to be prepared for the future. Here's what we came up with:

1. Get On A Budget

Now, more than ever, it's critical to know where your money is going.  If you aren't tracking your expenses, let me encourage you to start now.  Take a look at your planned income, and decide how much you will give, where you will spend, how much you will save, etc.  This can make such a huge difference in your results as we come out on the other side of this virus!

2. Take Care of the Essentials

What are the the essentials?  The things we need in order to survive.  We must provide for our families and ourselves in terms of Food, Utilities, Shelter, and Transportation.  I pray that you are staying healthy and are generating enough income to cover these essentials and then some.  But if you are wrestling with your income, be sure and take care of these Essentials before you take care of the optional stuff.

3. Consider Pausing the Debt Snowball

If you are laid off from work, or at risk of being laid off, consider pausing your debt snowball for a season.  You'll want to stay current on your debt payments, of course, but you may want to conserve your surplus cash just to be better prepared for the unknown.

4. Sell Something

Many people seem to have a lot of time on their hands right now, and friends have told me that they have sold excess "stuff" on Facebook marketplace as well as other online mechanisms very quickly.  Perhaps now is a good time to do some de-cluttering to generate extra income from your excess.

5. Get a Temporary Job

If you're unemployed or under-employed right now, and you need to boost your income, consider a side-hustle.  Even in this unusual economy, there are several large employers hiring.  A few that come to mind include large groceries and drugstores like Kroger, Walgreens, CVS, etc.

6. Look for Things to Cut

We had a very lively conversation this week around subscriptions that we could cut - ranging from magazines to online streaming services.  If you look hard at where your money goes each week or each month, you are likely to see these sorts of recurring expenses.  They may not seem like much money when you look at them individually, but look at them as a whole and they add up pretty quickly.  Take the time to evaluate if you really need each of these services, or if they are indeed just wants.

7. Connect with your Local Church or Community Group 

If you get to the point where you're generating all the income you can, you know where the money is going, you've cut everything you can cut, and you still come up short, remember that there are local resources available to help you.  Let's not let our pride keep us from asking for a helping hand when we truly need one.