I tell churches where I present my No Debt No Sweat! Seminar that dealing with our money the right way isn’t complicated — it’s very easy to understand. What’s tough is making up our minds to do it. Good financial management has a lot less to do with our head knowledge than it does our actual behavior.

I want to share four tricks of money control. None of these are difficult to understand — but they are all tough to do.

1) Learn to recognize and avoid the desire for instant gratification. One of the major differences between children and adults is that an adult has learned to delay gratification for a greater goal. This applies to all aspects of our lives. Godly people know that sexual temptations will come and go. But the short-term pleasure will be eclipsed by a lifetime of regret and broken relationships. In the same way, mature people learn that buying stuff on a whim frequently leads to long-term financial agony. Remember, what one does in haste is often repented of in leisure.

Remember, it’s a war out there. Advertisers, retailers, and creditors — they all want your money. Your job is to take control of your money and learn to say "no" a lot more often than you say "yes."

2) Realize that we are only stewards of the money we possess. Someday God will expect an accounting of what we did with what we had. In his letter to the Philippians, Paul tells the first century Christians to, "work out there own salvation with fear and trembling." I don’t believe he was telling Christians that they are expected to "earn" their salvation solely on their own merit. Instead, I think Paul’s point is that each one of us needs to do a "check up from the neck up" and consider our motives and our actions in the light of eternity. One day, each of us will be called on to give an account before the throne of God. Christians should have a world-view that differs from the popular bumper sticker that proclaimed: "He who dies with the most toys wins!"

3) Learn to recognize what motivates you to buy. What’s going on between your ears? Why are you about to spend money? Is it something you really need or want? Or, is there a baser motive at work?

Before I make a questionable purchase, some questions that have helped me sharpen my focus include: Is this something that will tickle my vanity? Am I simply trying to impress others with my ability to outspend them? Do I hope that buying something else will fill an emptiness within? Am I trying to rebuild my self-esteem? Am I trying to fill the hole in my heart with more stuff? Maybe I need to examine that hole more carefully. If I look very closely, I may see the hole is shaped like Jesus — and nothing else will ever really fill it.