Stewards of God’s Money

As students return to campus for the spring 2015 semester, the feeling of empty pockets and bank accounts returns alongside reunions with friends and the start of new classes.

Dr. Melanie Hicks, professor and co-chair of the Accounting, Economics and Finance Department in Liberty’s School of Business, discussed the confusion between long-term needs and impulsive wants that plagues so many college students and their Flames Cash accounts.

“The definition of need versus want is very different … and it is important to understand the difference between the two,” Hicks said.

Hicks also gave several tips that could assist students in saving money in both the short-term and long-term.

“If you have a meal plan here at Liberty, definitely use it to your advantage,” Hicks said. “If you don’t (use it) you are essentially giving away money. If you want to eat off campus, Flames Cash is made available to you, and many restaurants such as Jersey Mike’s offer discounted prices and point systems for students.”

One of the biggest expenses students face is the price of food, according to studybreakscollegemedia.com. The wide array of restaurant and fast-food options with high meal taxes available in Lynchburg can take a real chunk out of an already shallow budget. Hicks urged students to be rational when choosing what they should eat.

“Make healthy decisions when choosing food,” Hicks said. “Fresh Market tends to be a little bit more expensive, whereas Walmart tends to be cheaper and still offers some good products. And in the long-term, if you choose to buy in bulk, yes, it may be more expensive at first, but it will allow you to budget more over time. Eating out while trying to make healthy choices … is going to be very expensive, but that is ultimately going to be better than spending extra money on something like a pizza delivery.”

While the expense of food is a huge burden, Hicks explained that credit and loans are what really haunt students the most.

“If you do use a credit card, make sure you pay it off at the end of each month,” Hicks said. “There has really been some debate if you should even have a credit card, because (it) will allow you to build credit which comes in handy when you’re trying to buy a house or a car, but if you’re not being a good steward with that money, you’re going to run into trouble. The same goes for loans. Try to start paying some of those student loans off, or at least some of the interest, before you graduate, because if not, debt will accumulate and you will quickly start going downhill. If you’re working, definitely take some of that money and put it into savings if at all possible. That will really help.”

Hicks expressed the importance of ultimately honoring God and family in all financial decisions. Hicks urged students to recall whose money they are actually spending.

“With the large amount of freedom that comes with attending college, it is important to understand how to be good stewards of God’s money and the resources that he has given to you, because everything we have isn’t really ours. It’s just borrowed,” Hicks said. “The big question is, ‘Are we going to use this (money) for the things God really wants us to use it for, or are we going to waste our money on things that we will look back on one day (and) regret because it wasn’t needed?’”

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