"The one who received the seed that fell among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke it, making it unfruitful" (Matt 13:22)

For most of my adult life this verse described me. I had received God's Word, like a seed, but you would have been hard pressed to point out any lasting fruit. The reason for this had to do with my attitudes towards money. I would swing back and forth between "the worries of this life" and "the deceitfulness of wealth" like the pendulum of an old clock.

My money story began in 2007, when I left for grad school. Two years later, I graduated in debt, in the midst of a recession and there were no jobs to be had in my field of study. I soon learned the principle of compound interest. In 2012, I married my love, April, and our debts combined. We soon found that we could no longer afford to live in California and spent the next 8 years on a whirlwind tour of America, "chasing the dollar". In the midst of that whirlwind, God faithfully showed up again and again as our Provider, and we learned to look to Him for our daily bread.

Today, by God's grace, I am a gratefully recovering "worrier". God is daily freeing me from these sins of self-dependence and fear; teaching me to trust in Him alone. He has also given me the grace of a calling, asking me to 'go and be like a gardener, removing these thorns, so that (His) people may bear much fruit.' This is why I do what I do and why I work for thrivent. Since joining this competent and caring team, I have learned how to "be wise with money" and help others do the same.