February 16, 2019


How Did Dave Ramsey
Get My Brain?


I'm pretty certain I've blogged about Dave Ramsey in the past. And I'm pretty sure just about everyone in America must know who he is by now. Most of you reading this have probably listened to Dave's radio show, or maybe even taken his "Financial Peace University" class (I paid for all three of my sons to take the class). Nevertheless, I can't help but bring the above interview to your attention, and highly recommend it.

What Dave says in this video about things like debt, delayed gratification, going to college, wealth inequality (no class envy allowed), capitalism, the responsibility of government, and personal charity are all in perfect accord with my belief system. They are things I would say if I could so giftedly communicate with the spoken word like Dave.

Dave defines wisdom as "the art of living life well." As far as money goes, he says that, "If you read Proverbs over and over you'll have a master's Degree in finance."

His mission is to help people be debt-free, and build wealth so they can be "outrageously generous."

An example of outrageous generosity he provides is giving a pregnant waitress in a greasy spoon diner a $300 tip. It's a compelling scenario, especially if you know people like that—people who are among the working and struggling poor. People who would be truly blessed to receive such generosity.

Dave says, "People who give are always grateful people, they're more humble, and they're more selfless, and they're highly attractive people. They're who you want your kids to be when they grow up."

Speaking of growing up, the interviewer asks Dave about his upbringing and Christian faith. To fully understand Dave's answer, you need to know that he made 4 million dollars in real estate when he was 26 years old. Then he lost it all. Here's his answer...

"I didn't grow up in church. I was a hell raising, beer drinking, hillbilly. I was a crazy man. I met God as an adult. I actually met God on the way up, when I was making that money, and when we were losing everything, I got to know Him on the way down."

The last part of that comment really spoke to me. I can relate...

I've never made a lot of money in my life, but I managed to actually save some money doing carpentry work in my early years. I felt pretty good about myself. And then I lost it all in the late 1990s pursuing a bad business idea. 

It was a difficult time for me. I was depressed. But I got to know God really well on the way down, and especially when I hit the bottom. That experience totally changed my life. But I digress.

Did you know the typical millionaire pays off their home in 10.2 years? I learned that listening to the interview. 


4 comments:

  1. Elizabeth L. Johnson said, Wow, good interview, good blog. Good subject to, as Dave says, learn to give outrageously. I've learned there are 4 biblical ways to give: tithe, firstfruits, alms, and seed giving. Each has their own benefit. Reading about them was quite an education, and still pertinent to us today. God wants us to handle wealth well so He can keep multiplying it to us, and in that give and receiving we learn to be outrageously generous, as He is. It's not a love of money. It's freedom not to be afraid you'll run out, because our Father owns it all, and cannot run out. It's a lesson to learn not to live in the world's economy, but in the Lord's, Whose end result is ONLY to spread the gospel.

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    1. Thank you, once again, for your comment Elizabeth. I did not know there were four biblical ways of giving. I need to research that sometime.

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  2. Soooo...When are you going to move? ;op Loved this and thanks for bringing it to my attention.

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    1. The prospect of uprooting and transplanting myself somewhere else is daunting. I might wither and die in new soil. But it may be necessary someday.


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