Keep the Change: Managing Your Money Wisely Sýnishorn

Shauna realized that her biggest obstacle toward financial freedom and living a life of generosity was her mindset. Before she could ever adjust her budget, she had to adjust her heart. Here’s how changing her mindset about money has impacted her financial life. 

Growing up, money was always a touchy issue. After my father’s business failed, we lost our home and faced many hard times. Thanks to church food banks and the generosity of others, we always had what we needed, but not always what we wanted. We really experienced this when I hit middle school—right around the time clothes and appearances became a concern for me. I remember some classmates making fun of my secondhand clothes, and it really stuck with me. 

Once I started working and had my own money, I was careful to save at first. I even bought my first car with cash! But soon, I realized I had the ability to buy more things—things I had always wanted but had never been able to afford. 

Although there’s nothing wrong with buying things for ourselves, what I didn’t realize was that I was buying things because I thought those things could change my identity. 

Without realizing it, I was using money and things to gain value from other people. It made me feel better initially, but it never brought lasting relief. Over time, buying more only created a pile of debt I struggled to pay back, trapping me in a vicious cycle of buying stuff to feel temporarily happy—but also permanently stressed. 

Finally, I realized that I had to root my identity in Christ—not in money. So one year, I decided to take a spending fast. On this fast, I challenged myself to do the following for three weeks: 

1. Identify where my money was going and why I was spending it. 
2. Spend more time in God’s Word to remind myself of my identity in Christ. 
3. Only buy what I needed—not what I wanted. For me, this meant sticking to my grocery list, not using credit, and nixing luxuries. 

Of course, this will mean something different to everyone. Some things I would consider necessities would be considered luxuries by others. I defined a luxury as anything I thought I needed but only actually wanted.  

I also decided to stay off social media for these three weeks after realizing my feelings of comparison came after scrolling through them. 

I learned so much about myself during this fast. One thing I realized was just how much I thought about buying things! It consumed my mind more than I ever realized. By focusing on only what I needed for that day and preparing in advance by bringing my own coffee, lunch, etc., I found I had so much more mental margin for other things. 

I also realized I had greater capacity for generosity. By not focusing so much on what I wanted, I was able to save money to bless others. And that brought me real, lasting happiness—not fleeting satisfaction from buying something new.

Having money and spending it on yourself isn’t a bad thing. But if consuming stuff is consuming you, maybe it’s time to consider a spending fast. For me, it’s one of the most helpful things I’ve done to make sure I’m honoring God with my finances.