Category Archives: Money

Money Test

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widows’ mite worth less that a cent

Now in my 70’s I can tell you that I have ALWAYS found God faithful to provide for ALL of my needs. Additionally I have seen that my heart has followed my decisions about money.

The tiny copper coin known as the “widows’ mite” was worth less that a cent.  To His disciples, Jesus commended the poor widow who gave two of the tiny coins to the temple treasury.  Furthermore, Jesus said she was giving all she had, even her whole livelihood!

Why would she give so much?  What motivated her?  And why did she give to the temple treasury?

In her day, she would have had knowledge of the scriptures of the Old Testament in which God invites His people to test Him by bringing tithes and offerings into the storehouse.  He promises to provide generously for those who will enter into this “faith” agreement with Him.  This is the ONLY place in the Bible where God asks us to test Him so that we can experience His faithful provision. Continue reading →

Seniors Sharing

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Sharing is for seniors who like living on Reality Street. The key ingredient for success is to share with someone you know and trust.

The key ingredient for success is to share with someone you actually know and trust.

Sharing is a “senior season” idea that needs to receive thoughtful consideration for seniors who like living on Reality Street.  The big picture is to create a lifestyle that allows for maximum independence for as long as possible.  The key ingredient for success is to share with someone you actually know and trust.

Transportation is an ongoing need for seniors, but lots of seniors find our lovely, low mileage well maintained cars in the garage 95% of the time.  Finding a way to share the car and all the expenses associated with driving is a great idea and one that is working for seniors living in close proximity to one another.

Take the example of Mary and June who are neighbors again in an independent senior living apartment home community in a Twin Cities suburb.  Continue reading →

Home Share

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Home share

Several home share landlord experiences were the tipping point on my resume when I entered my second career as a resident property manager at age 65.

Sharing space in my home was a good idea.  It still is.

While still raising 4 children I found myself alone with lots of years left to bring them to adulthood.

One of my financial solutions was to rent out part of my house to others, home share style while getting ready to sell my large property.  Several home share landlord experiences were the tipping point on my resume when I entered my second career as a resident property manager at age 65.

Now at 70 I am entertaining the home share idea again for retirement.  I have an eye toward a high end senior building with good amenities for maintaining health such as a pool, and properties of that type always come with hefty rents. Continue reading →

Prayer Helped

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Prayer helped anointing him with oil

…let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.

When I was 40, after 23 years of marriage I was served with divorce papers and left to care for 4 young children on my own.  Over half of the money I had from the sale of our house was immediately handed out for rental housing that would accommodate our needs.

I was working as a self-employed hair stylist.  With less than 1 year of history in that position my income possibilities were not great but I was willing and able to work hard and I was good with hair.

At the time my Church, in obedience to the direction of James 5 in the bible, invited those who needed special prayer to be anointed by the elders (appointed leaders of the church) and to receive prayer for their needs.   Continue reading →

Gambling

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Gambling destroys the work ethic. The core values of the work ethic are all part of the free enterprise system. Gambling corrupts these values and replaces them with greed and selfishness. Rather than depending upon hard work, gamblers depend instead upon luck and chance.

Gambling destroys the work ethic. The core values of the work ethic are all part of the free enterprise system. Gambling corrupts these values and replaces them with greed and selfishness. Rather than depending upon hard work, gamblers depend instead upon luck and chance.

“I hate casinos!” was my not at all wimpy comment while my coworker replied in like manner….. “I love casinos!”  We were not developing an argument, but clearly our opinions were far apart when it came to the issue of gambling.

It got me thinking……….  Why am I so opposed to gambling?

Go to any casino and you’ll see many gray heads at the slot machines and blackjack tables. Gambling has become a popular pastime for seniors who often have time to spare and holes in their lives to fill. Gambling, like many things in life, can become addictive and seniors who are bored or lonely may be more vulnerable to addictive behaviors. Continue reading →

Grow Some Money

Featured

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I like working and having a job puts me in touch with some interesting people. There are jobs for those who are willing to put their passion and experience to good use.

I like working and having a job puts me in touch with some interesting people. There are jobs for those who are willing to put their passion and experience to good use.

I am hearing from some of my peers that they are definitely not living the comfortable retirement lifestyle they always imagined because the needed money is just not there.  Complicating matters, things keep getting more expensive, while incomes remains fixed. Something’s got to give.

The solutions are that same as they have always been.  Cut spending and increase income at the same time. Continue reading →

Eagle Project

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Everything about scouting is handled by volunteers, and the Scouts working on these projects are young developing future leaders of the community.

Everything about scouting is handled by volunteers, and the Scouts working on these projects are young developing future leaders of the community.

This week I met with a young man who is working to become and Eagle Scout.  This soon to be 10th grader is interested in pursuing an Eagle Project, which I have learned is no small undertaking.

A quality Eagle project takes time.  The Scout must do all pre-planning, design, any fundraising, and go through a multi-step review process with the end user of his work, property owners, his scout troop and the scouting district. Most Scouts plan 6-9 months for an Eagle Project, taking it from a concept to a fully fledged plan, getting it reviewed (which often involves changes), reviewed again until it is fully ready, and then to implementation. Continue reading →

The Financial Pinch

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Feeling the financial “pinch”? If so, you have lots of company.

Here’s the thing… we all have some money, but that is not the only “spendable” thing we have to work with.

Feeling the financial “pinch”?  If so, you have lots of company.  When you start talking to people there is never any shortage of complaints and the old adage if often heard, “The money ran out before the month.”  We’ve all been there.

I recently heard of a cost cutting measure that is working like a charm for some of my elderly friends.  Granted, these folks are already living in a financially affordable apartment home, having left the big expensive setting behind as their children grew up and established their own families, but the “pinch” is still felt, even by these careful proactive people. Continue reading →

Leisure Time Choices

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The movie was about six boarded young adults with lots of time and money who were looking of a “different kind of experience”.

As I left the theater, a young employee smiled and said, “Thank you for coming to our theater. I hope you enjoyed your movie.” I told Him that I did not enjoy the movie and pleaded with him not to see it adding, “I don’t know why I made myself in to a garbage can for the last hour and paid for it besides!”

I like to work.  The tasks are clear when my time is spent producing desired results.  At the end of the day, no matter how tough the problems were, I feel great about what I was able to accomplish.  Sometimes it is just a piece of the problem was solved, but the feeling of make a valuable contribution to the project is very satisfying.

Last week I had a rare day off for a holiday and consequently, found myself with extra time on my hands in the afternoon.  I went to the local mall to look around and decided to take in a movie.  I chose the one that was starting just as I arrived, bought a small bag of popcorn… for a huge price, and settled in to a common entertainment experience.

The movie was about six boarded young adults with lots of time and money who were looking of a “different kind of experience”.  Continue reading →

Learn it & you own it!

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The class was full of young people and the teacher and I were the only older folks in the class, but I loved it!

The class was full of young people and the teacher and I were the only older folks in the class, but I loved it! 

When I was 10 years old we got our first TV set, not because my parents needed more entertainment, but because a family friend gave it to my dad. The only reason he wanted to get near a TV set was to find out “how” it worked. He had already disassembled a few of them to discover what made it work. He was also a ham radio operator conversing with people all over the world and we had a big towering antenna attached to our house to bring in the signals. Continue reading →