Are you satisfied with your ability to manage your financial affairs or those of your family? Although the following true/false quiz is certainly not a comprehensive test of your abilities in all the areas of personal and family money management, it should provide a good indication of whether or not you can benefit from financial planning.

1. How a Christian manages his financial affairs may affect his ability to witness effectively to others.

2. A Christian’s own spiritual health is likely to be affected by his financial affairs.

3. A person who tithes is not necessarily a good steward in his financial affairs.

4. Monetary problems are a leading cause of marital conflicts.

5. The amount of a person’s income is the critical factor in determining if that person will have financial problems.

6. Financial planning is not necessary for people who don’t have financial problems.

7. Most people won’t achieve their financial goals without financial planning.

8. Although determining long-term financial goals may take a lot of time and thought, most people need to do it only once.

9. Young adults don’t need to be concerned about financial planning.

10. A big negative with financial planning is that it takes away personal financial freedom.

1. True. The way you manage your financial affairs tells others a lot about your self-discipline, priorities, etc. If others are aware that you as a Christian are undisciplined or self-indulgent in financial matters, your ability to witness effectively to them could be seriously compromised.

2. True. If you are weighted down with financial concerns, they could adversely affect not only the amount of time that you are able to devote to personal prayer and Bible study and to church-related activities, but also the quality of that time. Furthermore, if you are weighted down with financial concerns, you are likely to find it more difficult to contribute financially as much you would prefer to give to Christian ministry.

3. True. Tithing alone does not make a person a good steward. We are expected to be good stewards of all (100%) of our financial resources, not just the tithe (10%). The Bible tells us in 1 Chronicles 29:11-12 that “all that is in heaven and in earth” is God’s and that riches come from God. Some day we will have to give an accounting to Him for how we managed all the financial resources He gave to us.

4. True. For many couples, monetary problems may be the leading cause of marital conflicts, and Christians are not exceptions.

5. False. How well income is managed is usually the critical factor. There are people with very substantial income who have financial problems, while there are many others with only modest income who do not have financial problems. (However, those with modest income certainly have fewer choices as to what they can or cannot do financially.)

6. False. Virtually everyone can benefit from financial planning. Anyone who wants to become a better steward of the financial resources that God entrusts to them can benefit. Sound financial planning increases the probability that you will be able to achieve your short-term and long-term financial goals with regard to purchases, savings, and contributions to Christian ministry.

7. True. Just as a well-operated business needs to do sufficient planning to improve the probability of attaining its financial goals, families and individuals need to do financial planning so they will be more likely to achieve the most important, if not all, of their financial goals. Although financial planning does not guarantee success, the lack of financial planning virtually assures failure.

8. False. Your long-term financial goals should be reassessed periodically, but no less frequently than every five years, to determine if they have changed and to evaluate how well you have been progressing toward attaining your goals.

9. False. The time for an adult to start financial planning is as soon as possible. By learning at a relatively young age how to do financial planning, people can avoid many costly financial mistakes. In addition, young adults can benefit more than older adults from such factors as the power of compounding, which can greatly increase the amounts that they earn from saving and investing.

10. False. Over a period of years, financial planning can actually give you more financial freedom than you would have if you did not do financial planning. Financial planning helps you to control your financial situation rather than letting your financial situation control you.