Canadian Personal Finance Blog

One thing that this whole severance theme in my summer has taught me is that there are some amazing people that I know, and they are incredible givers. People who I barely know are giving me suggestions or helping me directly in so many ways, that I must now pledge that when I do get another job, if I hear of someone I know that is looking for a job, I will try to help them the same way. It is important to keep up the good works, because that is what makes us a Society.

For my readers, I will attempt to put something together to either set up the chronology of how things worked and what helped me, or put together a “How To” E-book or something like that to outline what you need to do, and what has worked for me over the time I looked. If I find a job quickly, this may be a very short book, and I hope it is, but I will then investigate this as a topic further.

I thank everyone who has helped me so far, and I thank those who don’t even know they have helped:

A Prayer For the Unemployed

Heavenly Father, we remember before you those who suffer
want and anxiety from lack of work. Guide the people of this
land so to use our public and private wealth that all may find
suitable and fulfilling employment, and receive just payment
for their labor; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

“Let each one give as he purposes in his heart, not grudgingly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (II Corinthians 9:7)

Why would anyone give their money away in a cheerful way? We work hard for our money, and we have many bills to pay, so why would you give it away cheerfully?

Here are a couple of reasons I can give:

• It’s going to do some good for my community, my family or my friends. Pretty selfish reason, but a good reason to be cheerful giving money to a local charity or local community group.
• It’s going to help someone I love, like say paying for my kids’ University Education (yes, I complain about the price of it, but the money is given happily).
• It’s going to help someone, I give to the United Way for that reason. I know the United Way has a high overhead, but some of the money is going to do someone some good (I really hope).
• It’s going to help someone get better, like when I give blood (#14 two weeks ago, which is not much, but it is a start).
• It’s going to make me feel good too. That is the usual reason I give to charity is the selfish happy feeling I get (maybe it’s smugness, I don’t know) that I am helping in some small way.

Give Cheerfully, and enjoy the feeling

This is sort of an off shoot of a discussion I read in my paper about whether Obesity is a Moral issue.

Is debt a moral issue?

Let’s go over a few points here:

• I am not saying anyone who is in debt is of questionable morality (since that would include me), or imply a “sinful living” of some kind.
• Remember Greed is one of the Seven Deadly Sins, and thus trying to gain wealth and reduce debt might actually be viewed as immoral in some ways (if you want to think of the converse of this question, which would be, “Is Debt Reduction immoral, as it is a type of Greed”).
• Let’s stick with Morality as your “code of conduct” as it were.

If the way you live is what is getting you into debt (and most of the time, that is the cause of debt), then I think yes, Debt is a Moral issue. If you cannot control your spending that is a Moral issue for you and you need to change that pattern in your life (I won’t use the trite term Lifestyle Change for this).

If you don’t view your debt as being a problem, yet it is affecting how you live then most definitely debt is a Moral Issue, and it must be dealt with in that way, as well.

In some ways debt build up can be a sign of Greed, in that you don’t worry about whether you can pay for something, you simply want it, and that is a moral issue as well (depending on what you are going into debt for). If you are building up debt to better yourself (i.e. education) then that is not a moral issue, but if you must buy a new car every year, simply to keep up appearances, that is a moral issue.

Opinions from my good readers would be appreciated for this Sunday, as well.

“When you pray, say: `Father…give us each day our daily bread.’” —Lk 11:2-3

How folks interpret this part of the Lord’s prayer are many and varied, but to me it is more of a reassurance that as long as I keep working hard in my life, in all aspects of life then I don’t need to worry about where my next meal is coming from. There have been many days when I have worried about my family’s finances (OK most days) but if I remember these words, I feel more assured.

Should I assume that I don’t need to do anything to get my Daily Bread? I don’t make that assumption, because Heaven helps those who help themselves (another phrase to live by for a Sunday).