Do you ever feel like you're just bleeding money?

I'm talking about on things that you might be able to do yourself.

A car repair here, a plumber, call there, meal kits, because cooking feels too hard.

All those little secret fees that seem to creep into our lives every day.

Yes, they add up fast.

But what if I told you that learning one small skill, just one could

save you hundreds, maybe even thousands, and not just money.

Confidence, peace, and a whole lot of freedom.

Well stick with me today because we're gonna unlock some

powerful truths on today's show.

Hey there, friend.

Welcome back to your Daily, financially Confident Christian.

I'm Ralph, and I'm honored to be with you on part of your journey

today as we continue seeking an answer to that question.

And that's how can I become a financially confident Christian?

And we're continuing in our series today Beyond the Budget, we're

working to find financial freedom through intentional living.

Now, if you missed yesterday's show, we talked all about the

joy of secondhand savings.

We talked about how to go to swap meets and things like that, and really

find stuff that you could use and best part of it, save a ton of money.

So if you missed it, I'm gonna encourage you to check it out.

And today we're gonna go a little bit further.

We're gonna answer this question.

Can learning new skills actually save me thousands.

Well, let's find out together on the show today.

So let me ask you, when something breaks, let's say you're, you're, you're

sitting there and the sink breaks.

You know, you go to turn the water on and no water's coming out.

Or worst case scenario, maybe the water's shooting out everywhere.

Well, is your first instinct, well, I'm gonna go get my

toolbox, I'm gonna go fix that.

Or is it more like, Hey, I'm reaching for the phone to call somebody.

Like I said, maybe you've got that leaky faucet and you say, oh, you know what?

I could go look it up on YouTube.

Yeah, that's what I'm gonna do.

I'm gonna go to YouTube.

I'm gonna find a video about, so I type in leaky faucet and I'm looking

at YouTube's, oh, this looks so simple.

Like, wait a minute.

It doesn't look so simple.

After all.

Actually, it looks kind of scary.

So what's the first thing you do?

Huh?

Pick up the phone.

You call a plumber.

Well, let's say you're driving to work and all of a sudden on your dashboard

you see that tire pressure light.

Now you could learn what that means.

You could learn how to fix it, but instead you just head

right to the automobile shop.

And then of course there's dinner tonight.

Hadn't planned on anything.

No meal prep ahead of time.

So what do you do?

You grab your phone, take out order again.

See, the truth is we've all been conditioned to outsource everything.

Our whole economy, dare I say, the United States economy in general is

all about outsourcing everything.

Have you ever thought about what it's costing us?

Yes, it's costing us financially.

Those things add up.

Hey, eating out, ordering out dinner is definitely more

expensive than making it yourself.

Hiring that plumber, going to the automobile shop.

All those things cost money.

So it's definitely costing us financially.

Well, guess what?

It's also costing us emotionally and spiritually.

Anybody saying, Ralph, I don't get it.

I, I get the financial part, man, but you lost me on the emotional and spiritual.

Here's the bottom line.

When you have to constantly outsource for everything, you don't feel capable.

What does that lead to?

It leads to this feeling of being dependent, and even in the bottom of

that, which I think is the most sinister part, it leaves you a little frustrated

because deep down, you know, in your heart you say, I could probably learn this.

And here's the thing I want you to understand today.

This is a Christian show.

God wired you for growth.

He just did.

He didn't wire us to all, every, outsource, everything

we were made to learn.

We were made to develop we were made to steward what he's been given to us.

Let's get into the word a little bit.

Look at the book of Proverbs, chapter 12, verse 24.

It says this, this one is kind of harsh.

The hand of the diligent will rule, but the slothful will be forced to labor.

Now, listen, I'm not saying that you're gonna be forced to labor, but we can,

we can learn a lot from the scripture, the hand of the diligent, those

people who learn new things, refine new skills they're gonna rule, but

those who are slothful, those who are outsourcing everything and not learning.

Now listen, I'm not saying to never outsource stuff.

There is stuff that should be outsourced.

I'm, I'm an accountant for, for a living.

People outsource that work to me.

But if it's things that you can learn, if it's a skill that you can

pick up, it's a great thing to do.

See, that means when you're willing to learn, when you're

willing to try something, when you're willing to work hard at it.

The scripture very clearly says that God just honors that diligence.

Look at Matthew 25 verses 14 to 30.

Now this is the well-known parable, the talents.

I'm not gonna read that whole thing to you today, but the whole point of

that was that Jesus had said to at the end, this is the last part of that

well done good and faithful servant.

You've been faithful over a little.

I will set you over much.

Enter into the joy of the master.

Now listen, God's not asking for perfection.

He's asking for faithfulness.

Well, what does that faithfulness look like, Ralph?

Well, it it looks like action.

It looks like stewardship.

And see, when you learn a new skill, when you go and do some study, go and try to

figure stuff out when you're multiplying what he gave you and that, my friends,

that right there is faith in motion.

So you might be asking, what can we do?

How do we solve this problem, Ralph?

What I'm gonna tell you, it's pretty simple, but if you agree

to do this, it is hugely powerful.

Just choose one money saving skill and start learning it today.

That's it.

Not, not 10 things.

I don't want you to go get a degree from a trade school so

that you can fix your faucet.

It's not what I'm saying at all.

Just one skill.

So here's your one action step for today.

I want you to this week identify one paid task.

What's one thing you regularly pay someone to do that you could handle on yourself?

Lemme give you a few ideas.

Maybe changing your car's air filter.

Could you get a YouTube video?

Could you go to the local parts shop and pick up the air filter, maybe

that loose cabinet door that your wife or your husband would say,

I, I wish we could get this fixed.

Maybe it's mending a shirt.

You know, learn how to do a couple stitches.

How about this?

Making some homemade bread or hooking up a new printer instead of calling a Geek

Squad or somebody to come out and do it.

Hey, maybe you're in the shower and that shower head just

doesn't work like it used to.

Maybe you can replace that shower head.

And here's one that I think all of us can learn from.

How about cooking a meal from scratch?

Okay, so once you've decided on what that looks like for you, just

one, not 12, not 10, just one.

Go and find a free learning resource.

Hey, that's one of the best things about technology.

There are places to learn.

You can go right on YouTube.

You might be watching this on YouTube right now.

You might be listening to this.

You can go to YouTube and find all kinds of information.

You can go to your local library, check out a book, or Google

has great step-by-step guides.

Or maybe next time you're in one of your church groups or a small group bible, say,

Hey, does anybody here know how to do X?

Maybe you've got a, a friend at the church who's a plumber, and then just spend 15,

20, maybe 30 minutes learning the basics.

Again, I don't want you to go to trade school to become a plumber.

And then the big takeaway from this, try it yourself.

So the next time that need comes up, give it a shot.

Hey, if it's cooking at dinner, I think we all can figure that out.

You're, and remember, you're not aiming to be perfect.

You're just aiming for progress because this works in the long term because

it really cuts down your expenses.

And like I talked about, it's not just financial.

It builds your confidence.

It helps you become less financially dependent and emotionally dependent.

And the best part of all, it honors the time and talents

that God has already gave you.

And remember this, you don't need to master everything

just one thing at a time.

Well, how about we pray together today?

Heavenly Father, we just thank you for the gifts and the talents, Lord, and the

opportunities you've placed in our lives.

And Lord, we just ask that you would forgive us for shrinking

back, for doubting when we're capable of, and for defaulting to

convenience when growth was an option,

Lord.

Help us identify this week just one new skill, one act of faith-driven

stewardship that we can learn from and that we can apply to our lives, Lord,

and just give us the courage to try it even if we fail the first time, Lord.

Let us honor you by using our hands, Lord, and our minds, and our

time to build a life that reflects your wisdom and your provision.

And we ask this with confidence.

In Jesus' name, Amen Friend.

Learning a new skill isn't just a do it yourself win.

It's so much bigger than that.

It's a spiritual discipline.

It's a step towards freedom, and in the end, it's a bold

act of faithful stewardship.

So today, like I said, one skill, one step, and if this show helped

you today, or if this episode helped you today, I'm gonna encourage you

to share it with somebody else that could use that same encouragement.

You can point 'em right to our website.

That's financially confident christian.com.

And hey, while you're there.

Why don't you get a copy of my free book?

It's called Mastering Your Finances.

It's free to you.

It's a short book, but man, it is super impactful to help you finally

gaining control of your finances.

And again, you get that@financiallyconfidentchristian.com

slash master.

And listen, don't miss tomorrow's episode.

We're gonna talk about how to give gifts with meaning without overspending.

Hey, if you got that birthday coming up or that anniversary and Christmas,

hey it's, I heard yesterday.

It's just about six months away.

I want to show you tomorrow how to give gifts with meaning without overspending.

So don't miss tomorrow's show.

And I just want you to hear this.

You are doing things, you're growing, you are becoming a

financially confident Christian.

I believe in you now.

Go believe in yourself.

Stay faithful, stay wise, learn that new skill.

God bless you and you have a great day today.