Today I continued my 3 part teaching on money in the Discipleship Training School that we run here. I glanced at one student’s notes before class and he had a huge header “Bling Bling” for last week’s notes. “Bling Bling: the sequel” for today’s notes. Clever. I am not making this stuff up. I was pretty touched.

I love teaching about money. Why? As a missionary, you have to be practical. Its part of the job description. I’m no theologian by any stretch of the imagination. That’s not what I aspire to. However, I like imparting the basics of what the Bible has to say and how it translates into different cultures. God has alot to say about money. So then, shouldn’t we as missionaries?

This week we covered debt and savings. The pain and power of interest. We used monopoly money. They totally got it.

Last week, one of my students blew me away.

She’s a young South African from the Ndebele tribe. I asked the class, “Tell me something about how your culture views money”. She answered, “Well in my culture, some might not have alot, so parents buy shoes that are a few sizes bigger than what their kids currently wear because they know they will grow into them eventually.”

She gave me the perfect example to work with. All my “teacher nerd cells” were bursting with pride.

We moved right into Duet. 20:19-20. God tells his people when they take a new land, eat from the trees but don’t cut them down if they produce food. In a nutshell. What in the world does this have to do with money? Alot. It shows God values the future. God didn’t just teach them about the current, but instructed them to think ahead for future food. Thinking of the future isn’t anti-spiritual or only something one culture has contributed to the world. Its a Biblical principle. The Israeli people needed this kind of basic advice at that point in history.

I looked at the class and said, “She has picked up on a part of Ndebele culture that understands one of God’s values. They think ahead for their kids. They are wise parents. It might not seem like alot or involve alot of money, but they get it. We can all learn from this. We may not all have to buy bigger shoes, but this is how practical God gets when it comes to our lives and money.”

She sat up a little straighter after that.

Looking forward to our final session next week. Later that same day we fly to America. ;) Thanks to Clara for thinking ahead too!