Ever eat a Pomegranate?

If you ask my wife about my eating habits, she'd say I'm a health nut. I wouldn't go that far but I do prefer a banana over candy and I'm always on the look out for the fruit or vegetable of the season.

With Cindy's last grocery store run, She grocery shops once a week with a list and having a list will save you money, she purchased a Pomegranate. Pomegranate's even have their own web site. Www.Pomegranates.org. Who would have thought.

The fruit is really cool looking. It's bright red, has a great smell and the one I have is about the size of a softball. My son Chaz just walked by as I'm typing this and saw the Pomegranate and said "What the heck is that thing?" I told him and he still didn't know what it is.

Ok, confession time for me on this..... I had to go to the above linked web site to figure our how to get to the fruit. I must say it was very easy and I'll be purchasing Pomegranates on a regular basis from now on. Try one yourself and let me know what you think.

Always on the lookout. . . .

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend and gave thanks for all the blessing in your life. I did.

I like to take some time over this long weekend to do some financial planning for the upcoming year. In doing that, I came across a good web site sponsored by the state of Ohio to help with personal finance. You should take note whenever the government gets involved in trying to educate people.

The web site is www.yourmoneynowonline.org. It is an educational financial site for all ages. Financial education is one of the main ways to help overcome financial stress that a lot of people are facing this time of year.

How about you. Do you have financial goals? If so please share one with me here. Here's one of mine for 2008. I want to save $50 per pay for / into our vacation fund.

Down Time

Every once in a while in my "Down Times", I like to play puzzles. I came across a great one thats called Kakuro.

Kakuro puzzles resemble cross-words with numbers; you have 'across' and 'down' clues, but instead of filling in letters, you must use the numbers 1-9

The aim of the game is to fill each blank square with a number from 1 to 9 to sum up to the clue associated with it. However, no number can be duplicated in an entry. For example a clue of 8 (over 2 squares) could be 1&7, 3&5, but not 4&4.

Give it a try next time you have "Down Time" the game is a lot of fun.

Off we go . . . .

It's 36 degrees outside and the white stuff is falling. What a great day to load up the bikes (5 of them) and hit the road. Myself, Bill G, Bud K, Scott W and Kevin B are heading down to Holly Springs NC to ride bicycle with our buddy Scott.

I'm really looking forward to getting away for a few days and riding hard. Last time we went down to ride with Scott, it was the beginning of the bike season in Ohio and I had to work hard to keep up with those NC bikers who had been riding for months. Now that I have 2,100 miles on my bike this year, I'm ready to ride up front with the "big dogs".

So, have a great weekend. I sure will.

Another FPU class in the Books

Last night was our last FPU class for 2007. These classes always go by fast. On one hand, it's sad when they end because members of the class form bonds through relationships of growing and sharing together and now we no longer meet on Tuesday nights. On the other hand, its exciting the life change that has taken place and the future these members have with financial tools at their disposal.

Here are some way cool results of this round of FPU.

1. Total debt paid off - $20,571
2. Total put into savings - $8,301
3. # of "Cash" envelopes being used - 103
4. # of financial success stories shared - dozens

A very big thanks to Larry & Mike for their time and leadership in co-leading this round of classes. You guys are great!

If you want to take control of your financial life, our next round of FPU classes will begin Jan 15th. Contact me via a comment if you are interested.

How much longer will we need "Cash"?

Looks cool, but is it going to replace your visa card?

Visa recently began promoting the Visa Micro Tag, a new key fob payment device embedded with Visa payWave, the company’s contactless technology feature. The Visa Micro Tag is designed to easily attach to a key ring, and allows cardholders to pay by simply waving their Visa Micro Tag in front of a contactless payment terminal.

Those with Visa payWave cards have the option of not having to sign for payments under $25. Just "wave and go".

There are two issues that may stop this form of payment before it even gets off the ground.

1. The RFID platform has been hacked a number of times already, proving that your key chain might be easier to access (wirelessly) than your back pocket.

2. The use of a PIN number is also not needed for smaller purchases, meaning that your keys may now become an easy target for thieves to score some quick cash.

Is technology going to far with something like this? What do you think?

Is it time for Holiday shopping?

This past weekend while watching college football, I saw my first Christmas commercial. It was advertising garmin gps systems. I remember the days when Holiday shopping didn't start until the day after Thanksgiving. Those days are long gone.

Today, nearly 40% of Holiday shoppers buy online. I do 99% of my shopping online. For those of you who still love "Black Friday", that's the day after Thanksgiving, I found a way to get a leg up on the crowds.

There is a web site called Black-Friday.net. It alerts you in advance to the ads printed in Thanksgiving Day newspaper circulars plus you'll find links to the products online so you don't have to wait outside a store in the dark.

Freeze those ID Theives

Almost 10 million people have their identity stolen and that wreaks havoc with their finances. We as consumers now have a new tool to block access to our credit report and score. This prevents anyone from granting credit to a identity thieves. What's that new tool? It's a credit freeze. A credit freeze gives consumers the choice to “freeze” or lock access to their credit file against anyone trying to open up a new account or to get new credit in their name.

When a credit freeze is in place at all three major credit bureaus, an identity thief cannot open a new account because the potential creditor or seller of services will not be able to check the credit file. When the consumer is applying for credit, he or she can lift the freeze temporarily using a PIN so legitimate applications for credit or services can be processed.

For more information on how to "freeze your credit" click on this link. www.consumberunion.org/securityfreeze.htm

Are Mutual Funds a bad buy?

This is a good question. Jason, left me a comment and asked me my opinion regarding an article he recently read on Bankrate.com from Phil Town and mutual funds.

The short version of the article is Phil Town doesn't like mutual funds. Keep in mind, Phil makes his living by selling books and "advising" people on how to make money in the stock market. One area I agree with Phil on is in most cases, you are much better off investing in an index fund than in a managed mutual fund.

Index funds beat 80% of managed funds each year. My investments, all mutual funds, include a number of index funds as they provide great diversification. (Diversification - to spread around)

In my opinion, Mutual Funds are the best investment vehicle for 99% of the people who invest.

IRS Web Scam

Be on the lookout for an email from the IRS. . . .

If you receive an email in your inbox saying the IRS has calculated your "fiscal activity" and that you are eligible to receive a tax refund of a certain amount, delete this email.

If you click on the link, you or type in the web address, you are sent to a website named "Get Your Tax Refund!" This site mimics the appearance of the genuine "Where's My Refund!"

Like the real site, taxpayers are asked to enter their Social Security Number and filing status. However, the phony site then asks for you credit card account number instead of the amount of the refund as shown on your tax return.

Always remember, the IRS doesn't contact taxpayers via email to advise them of refunds or to request financial Informaiton

All in good fun

This past Saturday, our family went to my cousins annual Halloween party. It's always lots of fun. Lots of family, laughs and good food. (Thanks Jackie & Tim)

Here's a picture of what Cindy and I went dressed as. What do you think?

Publish Post

Thinking about 2008 yet?

Have you given any thought to 2008 yet? The IRS has and they have made more than three dozen changes that will effect most all taxpayers.

For 2008, personal exemptions and standard deductions will rise, tax brackets will widen and workers will be able to save more for retirement, thanks to inflation adjustments announced last week by the IRS.

Here are a few changes worth noting.

• The value of each personal and dependency exemption, available to most taxpayers, is $3,500, up $100 from 2007.

• The new standard deduction is $10,900 for married couples filing a joint return (up $200), $5,450 for singles and married individuals filing separately (up $100) and $8,000 for heads of household (up $150). Nearly two out of three taxpayers take the standard deduction, rather than itemizing deductions, such as mortgage interest, charitable contributions and state and local taxes.
  
  
• The maximum Hope credit, available for the first two years of post-secondary education, is $1,800, up from $1,650 in 2007.

Take advantage of the changes to make adjustments to your withholding on your paycheck. Remember when you get a refund from your tax return, you have given the government a interest free loan for 15 - 18 months.

Financial Stress

I've been invited to speak to a local group next month on Financial Stress. My talk will focus a lot on the holiday season and it's effect on our financial lives.

There are lots of ways I could go with this talk. I've got 20 minutes to convey a message and give some tips and tools that will help ease this stress.

I'm interested in your thoughts, tips and suggestions on this topic. I'm asking for your help in what with my presentation.

Please comment with your suggestions.

Thanks

Goal Reached! - 2,000 miles!

If you live near me, you know the weather was unbelievable this past weekend. Sunday was sunny and in the upper 70's. I took full advantage of this.

I'm very excited to report that I've exceeded 2,000 miles on my bicycle this year. This is a mile stone for me as this farther than I've ever ridden by bike in a single season.

One of the important lessons I've learned in reaching this goal is. You have to set your goals a little out of reach. I really never thought I'd hit 2,000 miles. By setting your goals a little out of reach and then telling someone what your goal is, you work harder to achieve it.

The most important thing about goal setting is not actually reaching the goal but it is who you are becoming as you work toward reaching your goal.

29 More!

Another Tuesday night, another Financial Peace class here at NewPointe. I know I blog a lot on FPU. That's because this is where and how God is using me in the ministries of NewPointe. That gets me pumped.

I get very excited when members of our class come forward and give up their credit cards to be cutup and destroyed. As such, last night was a great night. Between two couples they turned over 29 credit cards. Check out this picture. That's a stack of cards.


If you come to NewPointe for worship over the next few weeks, you'll get to hear first hand stories of life change from some of the people who have taken FPU here. I can't wait for others to hear what I already know. You have to get your financial house in order before you can truly
worship God.

Who's helping you grow?

On the way into work this morning I was thinking about the guys I meet with or talk with on a regular basis that help me learn and grow. Each guy that came to mind influence me in a different area of my life.

Because we have spent time together, trust has grown, stories have been shared and in turn we have helped each other grow. Here are the areas I'm growing in because of them.

1. Spiritually
   
2. Accountability
   
3. Professionally
4. Relationally
5. Leadership
6. Husband
7. Father
8. Employee
9. Boss
10. Volunteer
    

I hope you have a few people in your life that you can look to for growth. I believe as you grow you are doing life the way it should be done.

Bill, Bill, and more Bills

I'm sitting at the bar in my kitchen as I've just finished paying my bills for the the next two weeks. Why the next two weeks? Thats a great question. I get payed every two weeks. Tomorrow is pay day.

I always sit down the night before I get paid and "spend" every dollar of my paycheck on paper. Some pays it goes better than others if you know what I mean. But hey, that's life.

I use an excel spreadsheet to do the number crunching. This makes it easier to go back and revise my allocations as i work through the bills. Believe it or not, I enjoy this process. Once your entire paycheck is spent on paper, it takes away managing your finances by crisis or impulse.

Here's a snapshot of the spreadsheet that I use.

1. I enter in my net pay and my wife's net pay along with any check book balance carryover and any miscellaneous deposits. This adds up to what is available to spend in the next two weeks.

2. Next, we start "spending" the money by entering amounts in column C. As I do this, the remaining dollars available to spend in column D get smaller and smaller. When I get to the bottom of the sheet, column D must equal zero.

3. As I spend money throughout this pay period, I enter these amounts in columns E - H and column I shows me how much I have left to spend in each category.

How about you? What method do you use to pay your bills?

Steps for Life

The staffers at NewPointe just completed an 11 week walking challenge. The goal for each participant was 10,000 steps a day.

The results are in and I'm quite happy with how things ended up. I came to find out that as a staff, we are a competitive bunch and each team (there were 3 teams of 7 people each)wanted to win. The winning team gets their car's washed by the loosing two team.

It was very close. Here are the total number of steps by team:

1st Place 7,229,860
2nd Place 7,150,349
3rd Place 7,079,567

On a personal note, I was very happy with how I did. Yes, I walked the most steps out of everyone.

I walked 1,667,772 steps in ll week or approximately 790 miles. That's way cool. On a side note, I only have 15 more miles to go pedaling my bicycle to reach my goal of 2,000 miles for the year.

bankrate.com and going green.

I love bankrate.com's web site. It's full of great financial information. The site focuses mostly on news, tips and advice to compare mortgage rates, home equity loans, CDs, car loans, credit cards and money market accounts.

Recently, They ran an article on living green. In fact, they list 153 ways to go green. You can link to the article here. I've been investigating how to go green around our house of late. Much to the chagrin of my wife, I'm replacing all of incandescent bulbs with Compact fluorescent bulbs.

Compact fluorescent bulbs use 75 percent less energy than incandescent bulbs and last up to 10 times longer. They're more expensive than traditional light bulbs, but it only takes about 3 months to make up for the higher sticker price in energy savings.

You will save $85 over the life of the bulb for each 60-watt light bulb you replace with a 15-watt CFL. You'll also save 543 kWh of electricity and reduce your CO2 emissions by 833 pounds.

This is a simple and cool way to go green and save some green $$.

Fasting

I'm sharing something very personal here today. I'm doing so because after just finishing a fast, I believe it's something all Christ followers should do.

For some time now, I have sensed God wanting to deal with me regarding certain areas of my life. (God's good like that.) I knew this would be painful and I wanted to be "all in" and to be focused like a laser on God during this process.

In cooperating with God on this, I did a three day fast. The fast, along with many quiet times in prayer and reflection was life changing. I really focused on God and He did a work in my heart. I'm in awe at how I'm feeling right now. I wish I could stay here.

If you want to experience a breakthrough and let God do a work in your heart, consider fasting. It will rock your world.

IRS & Lesson Learned

Last week, here at work, I received a letter from the IRS. If you are anything like me, just seeing the envelope with "IRS Notice" gets your heart pumping a little faster.

Deep down, I had a feeling I knew what this notice was about. See during our reorganization time, I was late in filing our payroll deposit. I knew the IRS would come a knocking on this and rightfully so.

I opened the letter to see that NPCC was being assessed $381.30 in a penalty. Ouch. In reading through the letter and getting past the "warning" of additional penalties and interest if not paid by 9/17/2007, there's this section at the bottom of the letter stating "Removal of Penalties."

The IRS say's if you have reasonable cause the IRS would consider reducing or removing the penalties. That was my open door.

I wrote the IRS a letter laying out the reasons for my late filing and that I've never filed late in the past and I've taken steps to insure this doesn't happen again in the future.

I'm very pleased to say in the mail today was a letter from the IRS waving the $381.30 penalty.
If you've stayed with this post this long, thanks. The point of all this is to be proactive in all that you do. When you are wrong admit it. Don't try and hide it or make excuses. Take responsibility for your actions and learn.

Thanks IRS for the waived penalty and lessons learned.

RetailNeNot

I'm always looking for great ways to save money. Recently, I came across a web site called Retail MeNot. On this web site you enter a product you are looking at purchasing and if there's coupons or discounts on this product, RetailMeNot will provide you with printable coupons for it.

RetailMeNot provides a database of over 35,000 coupon codes, each of which is tagged according to its category, and rated by users according to its utility. The site offers discussion forums where members can swap shopping tips. You can also download a Firefox extension, a Mac Dashboard widget, or a quick-access bookmarklet to make finding coupon codes even simpler.

This weekend, I'll be using this site for a Papa John's pizza for a buy one get one for $0.99.

It keeps getting better

Last night was another great Financial Peace class. We began the night by cutting up 10 credit cards. That's 18 total for this class. Way cool!

After the credit card party, we started the DVD and learned all about investments. Here are a few key points when considering investing.

1. Savings would be defined as a period of 0 - 5 years.
2. Investing is anything over 5 years.
3. Playing individual stocks will on average get you a return of only 7%
4. Diversification (to spread around) is the most important part of your investment plan.
5. Pay off your consumer debt before you start investing.
6. The Roth IRA is a great investment choice.
   

Great Weather & Cool Pictures

This weekend was the best weather weekend of the year in my book. Low 80's no humidity and lots to sunshine. As such, I got to ride my bicycle both Saturday and Sunday. I rode a total of 68 miles. (By the way, I'm now over 1,800 miles ridden for the year. 2,000 miles is within reach.)

During my ride on Saturday, I came to find out that the Ohio Plein (Outdoor painting) Society was all over Tuscarawas county painting landscapes. So, After my ride, My wife and I borrowed my mother-in-law's convertible and headed out to take in the beauty of Tuscarawas county in the fall.

Here are a few pictures that I took. Enjoy.

One of the Ohio Plein Artists allowed me to take this picture.





One of the roads I ride down


I love Barns & there are lots of them in Tusc County

Minimum Payments. What is it costing you?

Let's face it. The interest you pay on your credit card debt is like throwing money away. This is a blanket statement but what is credit card debt really costing you?

If you are making the minimum payment on your credit card each month their's a free tool that shows you just how much this is costing you. Check-out this credit card calculator over at bankrate.com.

Here's an example: If you carry a balance on your credit card of $5,000 @ 12% interest and make the minimum payment each month of 2.5% $125. It will take you 219 months (just over 18 years) and cost you $3,180 in interest to pay off the $5,000. Ouch!

If you could bump up your payments to $200 per month, you would pay this same $5,000 off in 29 months (2 1/2 years) and pay only $782 in interest.

Two points in all of this. One, Stop using credit cards. Two do whatever you can to be able to pay more than the minimum monthly payment each month.

Nana Nana Na, Nana Nana Na, 8 Credit Cards Goodbye

I so excited. Last night during our Financial Peace dumping debt lesson, we cut up 8 credit cards. Way Cool!

I believe that the families who were bold enough to come up in front of our class and say no more to their credit cards are feeling a tremendous sense of freedom today.

Truth be told, I have no idea if these families have credit card debt but the fact they are saying goodbye Credit Cards is a step toward financial freedom.

I'm so very proud and blessed to be part of life change here at NewPointe.

Thank You!

Yesterday after services were over, the "paid" facilities staff transformed Studio 56, our 5th and 6th grade space, into a banquette hall. We thanked our "unpaid" facilities team with a lunch.

There were more than 75 people in attendance and many more who were unable to attend. The lunch was a thank you for the work that they do around NewPointe.

Truth be known, the weekend services wouldn't go off the way they do without the dedication of those on the facilities team. This group of dedicated individuals give countless hours each week and they are the ones that make this building shine.

Thanks guys for all you are doing and may God bless you richly for serving in this way!

How do you measure up?

The list of 12 items from my last on a Healthy Financial Plan included retirement funding. (That was item #5)

In doing some reading today, I came across this very interesting chart. Based on your age and retirement Savings Value, what percentage do you fall into?

To be truthful, it doesn't really matter. The important thing is that you are saving for retirement and that you are doing it consistently.

Retirement Savings

Reported total savings and investments not including value of defined-benefit plans or primary residence, active workers by age group, 2007

	Age group
	25-34	35-44	45-54	55+
Less than $10,000	50%	36%	24%	26%
$10,000-$24,999	18	16	10	5
$25,000-$49,999	9	10	11	9
$50,000-$99,999	10	14	15	11
$100,000-$149,999	7	7	9	11
$150,000-$249,999	1	9	10	9
$250,000-$499,999	1	4	12	11
$500,000 or more	4	4	9	17
Note: Survey of 1,001 active workers.
Source: Employee Benefit Research Institute

Healthy Financial Plan

How do you know if you have a healthy financial plan? There is more to it than saving for retirement and your kids college.

Here a list of items you should have in place or be working on as part of your overall financial plan.

1. A per pay cash flow plan. (Tell each dollar where it's going before you get paid.)
2. A Will (This is a must have!)
3. A debt reduction plan.
4. An Emergency Fund
5. Retirement Funding
6. Life Insurance
7. Health Insurance
8. Disability Insurance (Most people ignore this one. Don't you ignore it.)
9. Adequate Auto & Home owners insurance. (When did you last review these?)
10. Charitable Giving
11. Teaching your children how to handle money.
12. College funding for your kids.

If you are addressing these 12 items you have a health financial plan. If you are missing some of these 12 things then set an action date right now and get it done.

18 wonderful years

Yesterday was my 18th wedding anniversary. I am very blessed to be married to a wonderful woman. Among many important milestones in our marriage, Cindy played a big role in me having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. For that, I am eternally grateful.

I must say our 18th anniversary day will be a memorable one. We spent 7 hours together in our own private room. . . . at Union Hospital. A blood test, chest x-ray, and 3 bags of I.V. solution we headed for home. Cindy started getting sick Friday night and continued to get worse. So Sunday it was off to the emergency room.

I just got off the phone with her and she's feeling a little better today. Say a get well prayer for her.

Thanks

1400 chairs in two minutes flat

Each week, teams of dedicated NPCCers come in on Saturday nights to transform our auditorium from sports space to worship space.

Thanks guys for your dedication and attention to detail. Take three minutes and enjoy their efforts.

Top 5 signs you may be in financail trouble

Getting into financial trouble can happen to anyone. There are some signs that are obvious but there are many more than are not. Spotting the signs that allude to underlying troubles can often be difficult. While we all know that we should get out of debt and spend less than we make there are plenty of more subtle clues out there that could signal pending financial problems in the future.

Here are 5 warning signs to look out for.

1. You have little or no savings. At a minimum, you should have $1,000 set aside for emergencies. (Ideally, you should have 3 - 6 months of living expenses in a savings account.)
2. No Budget. You have to have a game plan and tell your money where to go each pay.
3. Financing a vehicle for more than 5 years. (It is possible to pay cash for a vehicle.)
4. Money fights with your spouse. This is the number one reason for divorce.
   
5. Using Credit Cards to pay for necessities because you don't have the cash.

There's lots of help out there in getting your finances under control. One of the best resources I know of is Dave Ramsey and his Financial Peace University. I've got his best selling book, The Total Money makeover available here on my blog. (See below.) This book will change your life, if you apply it.

Mega Millions, Just another Tax

One of the articles on the front page of our local paper today was "Mega jackpot: Area residents lining up for chance to win". The jackpot is up to $330 million. That's a lot of money and people line up to buy tickets for a chance to be a millionaire.

Did you know that your odds of having the winning ticket is One in 175,711,536. Did you know a person who plays the lottery on a regular basis spends on average $30 per week. Let's see, $30 per week x 52 weeks a year = $1,560 with little if any winnings. (Looks a lot like a tax to me. . . )

How about this instead of purchasing tickets. $30 per week invested in a Roth IRA earning 10% from age 20 to age 65 (45 years) equals $1,233,641 TAX FREE every time.

This sure beats odds of 1 in 175million. So this weekend, skip the Mega Millions ticket line and open up a Roth IRA.

Do you have a Cash Flow Plan?

Well? What's your plan? One of the most valuable things I've learned in leading Financial Peace University is this: If you don't tell your money where to go, it will leave all by itself. Hang with me and I'll explain.

Before I had a paycheck by paycheck cash flow plan when I had money in my checkbook a day or two before I got paid, that money left. I found something to spend it on. I said, "Hey, I get paid tomorrow so what can I buy? This money's not doing any good just sitting in my checkbook." Have you been there?

Now with my cash flow plan, every dollar is "spent" on paper before I actually get paid. I even have a "blow" category in my cash flow plan. We all blow money and that's ok. Just plan for it.

So why do a cash flow plan before each paycheck?

1. You avoid managing finances by crisis.
2. Managed money goes farther. ( I don't know why but it does.)
3. It reduces money fights in your relationships.

Three great reasons to me. Try it. If it doesn't work, you can always go back to the way your doing it now.

History and a Bike Ride on a Sunday Afternoon

Today was a great day. Worship was wonderful as always. NewPointe is a great place to worship God. Cindy and I hade some old friends check out services today. It was nice to see Greg and Sandy. Worship is always a little extra special when you personally know people are here for the first time.

Sunday afternoons this time of year for me include bike rides. That bicycle rides. I'm now pushing close to 1,600 miles for the year. Today our route started from Gnadenhutten. Gnadenhutten was the settled in the late 1700's Ninty-six christian Indians were massicured there in 1782.

We left from Gnadenthutten and headed out on hill after hill until we reached Peoli. Peoli is where baseballs greatest player of all time is burried. Cy Young. It was cool to ride by his grave. I'm sure most people didn't know that he is burried right here in Tuscarawas County. Now you do.

To Rollover or To Role Into?

My mom has come to me for some financial advice. She currently works at a local bank and do to an acquisition, her bank is now a different bank.

With the ownership change of the bank, comes stacks and stacks of paperwork and choices for her and her fellow employees. One critical choice is what to do with her 401k from the now non-existing bank. Of course the acquiring bank wants all the employees to roll their 401k dollars into the new banks plan. I told my mom that's a bad idea. Here's my opinion why.

Anytime you have the opportunity to roll retirement dollars out of an old employers retirement plan into your own self directed "rollover" IRA you need to do it. The biggest reason why is fund choices. Instead of being stuck selecting from a limited number of mutual funds the new employer is offering, with your own "rollover" IRA you have access to every fund, stock, and then some in the market.

In my mom's case, I'll be helping her open a "rollover" IRA this weekend with Vanguard. I'll place 100% of her money into their Target Retirement 2015 fund. There are a couple of reasons I picked this fund family and this fund for her.

1. Vanguard has very low fees
2. Vanguard has been around a long time
3. Their target retirement funds are simple and somewhat conservative. (That's real good for my parents.)
4. This fund is diversified and it changes it's allocation of holding (Stocks /Bonds/Cash) over time.
   

I'll talk more about Target Retirement Funds if anyone has a desire for me to do so. Just post a comment.

Where to put your 401K money?

I get asked all the time, "What funds should I pick for my 401K?". Before I give my answer, I ask a few questions.

1. Are you at least putting into/having withheld from your paycheck an amount that gets you 100% of the company match? If not you should be.
   
2. Do you have consumer debt? If you do, don't contribute more than what your company will match. You must get out of debt.
   
3. When was the last time you reviewed your retirement plan beneficiaries?
   

With answers to these 3 questions, I don't give "financial advise" I can only tell you what I do and my what your hearing from me is free. So here it is.

Diversification - To spread around. As the saying goes, money is like manure, spread it around and it helps things grow. Leave it in one pile and it stinks.

Most people will do well to pick / spread their retirement fund choices between 4 - 5 classes of mutual funds. I currently have 5 classes.

• Large Cap
• Small Cap
• Foreign
• S&P 500 index
• Growth & Income
  

I came across a free asset allocator calculator from cnn money that may help you pick your categories. The answers I gave returned this asset allocation. Not that far off my my current mix.



The most important thing is to get started and stick with it over a long period of time.

Who's in control

In my conversations and readings here of late, the topic of email has been coming up over and over again. The more I engage in conversations about email, I keep recalling my high school science class when we talked about Pavlov's dogs. (Pavlov was the Russian scientist who conditioned dogs to salivate when a bell rang.)

I get the feeling that's what most people do when they are working on their computer and that "dig" sounds letting them know a new email has just arrived. Most people then can't resist. They stop what they are doing and read the email. (Email is in control.)

I no longer "Pavlov" to the ding. I've turned it off. I'm going one step farther and am about to set-up an auto email response letting people know that I'll only be checking my email twice a day. 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. (I'm back in control)

Here's what my auto response is going to say:

Thanks for emailing me today. I have scheduled the hours of 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. to review and respond to my email. If you need to reach me before those times, please call me at 330-365-xxxx.

Thanks.

What do you think? Good idea or bad?

Goal Reached!

I've reached, surpassed another goal. I'm very excited about reaching this goal so soon in the year. Ok, here it is, and it's a big one for me.

I've exceeded my 1,500 miles goal for 2007. (That is miles pedaled)

See, the bottom number on my bike computer is showing 1,504.4 miles as of today. (Don't tell my wife that the 43.7 number was my max speed on Kinsey Valley's downhill. She doesn't like when I got that fast on my bike. Maybe it has something to do with my bike tires being less than one inch wide.) This is a story for another time.

I've set a new goal of 2,000 miles before the year is over. Will I get it? Who knows but the important thing is I've got goals.


I love the line by Zig Zigler, "If you aim at nothing you'll hit it every time." His statement has motivates me. I've come to realize that reaching the goal you set is never as important as who you are becoming as you move toward the goal. When you set a goal you have to push yourself to reach it. If your not pushing then your goal wasn't "stretching" enough for you. If you really want to reach a goal, tell a few friends what it is and ask them to hold you accountable.

Setting goals for me also helps me to stay focused on what I value. It allows me to say no to some good things and some not so good things without feeling guilty when say no.

If you're looking for a simple goal to get started, here's a good one, read a non-fiction book in the next 30 days. Go visit the library. There's lots of books to choose from and it won't cost you a dine. I just checked out "The Power Years" by Ken Dychtwald.

Is winter here yet?

Ok, I'm not wishing for or wanting winter to come but it will be here sooner than I'd like. With this thought in mind, I started searching for a good rate on natural gas. This is how we and most people heat their homes.

Now is a great time to shop and lock-in natural gas prices for the upcoming winter. If your living in Ohio, here's the best place to start doing your research. The PUCO of Ohio has an "Apples to Apples" comparison of gas suppliers.

I took this directly from the web site.

The PUCO produces the Apples to Apples charts to provide consumers with a snapshot comparison of current natural gas and electric supplier price options and contract terms. The PUCO updates the Apples to Apples charts on a regular basis and verifies each supplier offer to ensure accuracy. The charts list only the certified suppliers that are actively enrolling new customers. As with all contracts, consumers should carefully read and understand all terms and conditions before signing any forms or agreeing to enroll with a supplier for natural gas service.

After I did my research, I signed up with Lakeshore Energy Services. They had and have the lowest rate per mcf @ $9.117

How best to pay down your debt?

There's more than one way to attack your debt. The first step in this is stop borrowing money.

When your ready to get serious about becoming debt free, you need some tools to help you get there. I'm a big fan of Dave Ransey's debt snowball concept. It's the system I used to become debt free.

Just the other day, I came across a new online service, www.debtlogistics.com. This site analyzes your debt and suggests ways to pay it off most efficiently. There's lots of good stuff here for free. You can get a personalized plan for $30. My suggestion is check out the free stuff then head over to Dave Ramsey's site.

One of the happiest days of your life will be the day your can proudly say, "I'm debt Free"

Free Financial Advise - Complements of Kiplingers

As I've stated in the past, I'm a fan of Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine. Here's another reason why. On August 17th and again on the 3oth, Kiplinger's along with the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) will answer your finance and retirement questions for free. Hey, these fee only advisers normally charge clients $100 to $250 an hour.

On the 17th and 30th you won't pay a dime. So, get your financial and or retirement questions ready and call 888-919-2345 and a NAPFA adviser will respond to your question. You can also email them a question @ jumpstart@kiplinger.com

Everyone has at least one retirement question you've been dieing to ask. Why not ask and expert for free?

Here's a link to Kiplinger's Jumpstart article.

I'm off to phase my question.

In the lead. . .

As you may recall, our staff here at NewPointe are participating in a wellness program. We are currently tracking our walking with pedometers. Today at all staff, we received certificates for the miles we have walked through the first three weeks.

I'm very proud to say that I'm in the lead. I've walked 238 miles so far. Way cool.

How about you? What do you do to keep your body in shape? I truly believe that there is a spiritual side of exercise and eating right. So get yourself an accountability partner for fitness. It can lead to all sorts of good stuff. For example, yesterday during my 35 mile bike ride, a new rider asked me, "So, what's your testimony?" I spent the next 5 miles talking with him about my relationship with Jesus Christ. Way cool.

As we finished the ride, I told him on our next ride, I wanted to hear his story. (That will be Tuesday.)

Purchase price X 2

While doing some work tonight, I had the national news on tv. I stopped working when the news anchor was doing some shopping and comparing shopping with credit cards vrs. shopping with cash. (I didn't catch all the details of their test.)

I did catch the results. Here's what NBC news found, people were willing to pay twice as much for the same item when they paid for it via credit card vrs cash. That's unbelievable to me.

This may the best reason not to use credit cards for those who tell me "I always pay mine off when the bill comes." That may be so but NBC's news test says you're willing to spend twice as much.

Wesabe - led to online discounts

I just signed up for my free Wesabe account. (See my last post to see what Wesabe is.) Right after is signed up it took me to an Account page and there was a tip from another user that we all can use.

Checkout currentcodes.com when shopping online to get that checkout discount. Here's what Debbie P inside of Wesabe said.

During checkout, most online stores have a "Discount code" or "Promotional code" box. Before you complete your purchase, check www.currentcodes.com to see if you can save some money by filling in that box. The site maintains a database of active codes to save at online stores and lets you search by store name. They have lots of biggies like Amazon.com, gap.com, car rental sites, etc. It's pretty hit or miss... some of the deals are on really specific items, but you sometimes find a flat "15% off" or "free shipping" code that saves you $ and makes you feel in the know.

Here are a few more sites to check out.

www.slickdeals.net

www.fatwallet.com

www.dealcatcher.com

Have fun with them, I'm going back to my Wesabe set-up.

Financial Tips / Advise . . . . WESABE

Today was the first day to sign-up for our next Financial Peace University class. I was very pleased with the response today. I'm looking forward to next Sunday's final day of sign-ups. After that, I'll order material.

With FPU just around the corner, I'll be doing lots of personal financial posts over the next quarter. Hopefully you'll learn something new and even more importantly, put something new into practice.

In reading my Kiplinger's magazine today, I came across a small article entitled "Budgets made Simple". In the article it talked about several softwares that help you track your spending. Kiplinger's picked Wesabe as their favorite "FREE" site.

According to Kiplinger's, the site provides excellent security and it doesn't ask you for your account passwords. (This is a must for me!). Once your up and running, Wesabe lets you tap into the insights of more than 30,000 users..

I'm off to set-up my own Wesabe account. I'll report back soon.

Money Slang. . .

I've always wondered where the different terms for money come from. So the other night I started doing some Google searching. Here's what I came up with.

Bacon - In the middle ages, among the British, having this food in the house was considered a sign of prosperity. 'Bringing home the bacon' was the new slang when games of catching a greased pig at county fairs took effect.

Buck(s) - This became popular in the mid 1850's. It was an abbreviation for buckskin, a unit of exchange in the west.

Bread / Dough - A main staple in numerous peoples lives and has been equated with cash for centuries.

Moolah - mill, from le moulin - This word may be the origin of the English slang meaning of "moolah" as "money", as mills are even today equated with income in the Northwest.

Cash on the Barrel - The barrels used as informal counters in old-time general stores or to merchants refusing to hand over a barrel containing goods until it had been paid for.

Greenback - A nickname originally applied in the 19th century because of the color of paper money.

Smackers - This referred to the sound the clamshells made on the string. It was also heard in the 1920's and referred to the sound when coins weresmacked down on a counter.

Do you know of any other slang words for money? If so, I'd like to know.

Employer to Fine Unhealthy Workers

I've talk with lots of business owners on a consistent basis. One of the recurring issues for them and for us here at the church is the rising cost of health insurance. More and more businesses are looking at creative ways to get their employees healthy in hopes their yearly insurance premiums increases will drop below double digits.

My good friend Dr. Kindra Browning sent me an article from Workforce Management. The article covered a company in Indianapolis that's going to start fining employees with unhealthy habits.

Here's the deal. The following numbers carry a $5 per pay fine that is deducted automatically from an employees paycheck.

1. Body mass index over 29.9
2. Blood pressure over 140/90
3. Blood glucose over 120
4. LDL (Bad) cholesterol over 130

I'm very interested to see how this plays out over time. Will more companies follow suite? Will employees not work for this company? Will this really effect their health insurance premiums? Would you work for a company that has policy like this?

It's time. . . . . . Sign ups for Financial Peace begin Sunday

It's that time again. Time to sign up for this fall's Financial Peace University class here at NewPointe. I'm very excited as lives are changed and marriages saved with each class offered here.

Here's the scoop on this round of classes.

1. For the first time, we are limiting the class size to 30 people. (So don't delay in signing up.)
2. Classes begin Tuesday August 21st @ 7 p.m. here at the church.
3. Sign-up's start this Sunday at the church. Look for the FPU sign in the main Atrium.

To get a great feel for what the class is all about, watch this short FPU video. I get goose bumps every time I watch it.

Without a doubt, this is one of the best investments you could ever make.

Sweet Corn Chalenge

What is the Sweet Corn Challenge? It's a bicycle ride that starts in Richfield Ohio and weaves in and out of the Cleveland Metroparks. This is the 4th time I did this ride and it was the hardest. My Buddy's Bill G., Kevin B., and Bud K., and I tackled the 55 miles of hill after hill. (We missed you Scott)

There were more than 2,000 riders in total.

Here are a few pictures I took and our new van in all it's glory. My wife Cindy wasn't crazy about all the bikes on the van. I thought it was way cool.


Arrival at Sweet Corn. Kevin's helping to get the bikes ready.



Bud, looking for the port-a-pots before we take off. (Bud's on the left of the picture walking away from the camera.)


Our fist pit of the day. 20+ miles into the ride. Two optional hills under our belts. (Pain!!) Kevin, (White & Black) and Bill (Sleeveless jersey) are enjoying the shade and the rest.


The Ride's over (3hrs 20 min of ride time). We've finished off our lunch, picked up our bags of sweet corn and are ready for the drive home. Don't ask how we got out of our bike cloths into street cloths. (It not a pretty site.)

No pictures of me. I was the camera man.

Blogger Tag

Tag, I'm it. There is a game going around the blogging world right now and it's my turn to play. Thanks Double D.

The Rules:

1. Players start with 8 random facts about themselves.
2. Those who are tagged should post these rules and their 8 random facts.
3. Players should tag 8 other people and notify them they have been tagged.
   

8 Random (cool) Facts about me:

1. When I'm deep in thought, I take one shoe off as I work. If I'm alone the sock comes off as well.)
2. I love live musicals / operas. (I've seen Phantom of the Opera 3 times)
3. I sat for the CPA exam while still in college.
4. I've had 13 broken bones (1 in a youth fist fight)
5. I worked in a coal mine 3 out of my 4 college summers. (The other summer I worked in a slaughter house. . . . Don't ask what I did, it involved animal guts.)
6. I taught 3 semesters of accounting at Kent State University - Tuscarawas
7. I love public radio. . . Any Prairie Home Companion fans out there?
8. I have a relative who is a Secret Service agent on President Bush's detail. I'm looking at Mike's (the Secret Service agent's) business card right now. He was home this weekend for my grandmothers 90th birthday party.

Ok, now it's my turn to tag 8 people. Here we go.

1. Joe Sangl
2. Jennifer Bartlett
3. Dr. Scott Matthews
4. Dave Mast
5. Tony Morgan
6. Tom Troyer
7. Tina Lawver
8. Rita Hershberber
   

Credit Report take 2

As a follow-up to my post yesterday, I received a great email from my good friend K. (Yes, here fist name is the letter"K",) Here's what she had to say.

Hi Todd,

Be sure people use the www.annualcreditreport.com to get the free report ( you can buy the credit score form them for about $7.00) do not use the www.freecreditreport.com scam site . One woman wrote Dave Ramsey that she paid almost $300.00 in stupid tax before she got free of the scam site. They advertise on TV all the time but I see now that they print a very small disclaimer at the bottom of the screen. Consumer Reports is also running warnings about the site in their magazine.

Have a great day,
K

Thanks for the great info.

Credit Reports

I was cleaning out our some files this weekend and came across my Equifax credit report from June of 2006. That made me realize I hadn't pulled a credit report on myself in some time.

Did you know that each credit reporting agency is now required by law to give you one free credit report per year? If you work it right, that allows you to look at your credit report 3 times a year for free. Let me explain.

I'll run an Equifax credit report on myself tonight. It will be free since the last time I did this was over a year ago. In November, I'll run a credit report from Experian. Then in March, I'll run one from Transunion. Then I'll start all over again.

Each reporting agency reports the information a little bit differently. None of them will give you your "famous" credit score for free. All three agencies charge for this. I'd consider paying for this once a year.

This goes without saying but I will say it.

1. Keep your credit reports in a safe and locked location.
   
2. Take action on anything in your report that looks funny.
   
3. Close those old dormant credit card and department store accounts.
4. Don't add more debt you your life. (I listed this one for good measure.)
   

Goal accomplished!

I'm posting this to encourage and to let others know it can be done. In no way am I sharing this to boast or brag.

My wife and I are the proud owners of a 2004 Honda Odyssey. Here's the best part, we paid cash for it. That's the accomplished goal. When we started our savings plan years ago, I really didn't think paying cash for a vehicle was possible. I'm happy to say it is possible with steady plodding.

So what's the alternative to paying cash? Debt. According to the latest figures I could find on the internet, the average car payment is $378 per month over 63 months. (Just over 5 years) Car dealers are now offering loans over 72 months (6 years).

If you do borrow for you next vehicle, and I'm living proof that it's possible to pay cash for it, remember to take all the costs of ownership into account and your car debt & insurance shouldn't be more than 12% - 15% of your monthly take home pay.

PS - The car we sold as part of this cash transaction was a 1998 Honda Accord. In 7 years of ownership of this car, we put 112,000 mile on it.

What is your TV costing you?

It seems I'm constantly on one of my kids, I won't tell you which one, to turn off the TV and get outside. That conversation usually gets me thinking about how much time I spend in front of the TV. It's not a lot but probably more than I realize.

Consider this,the average adult watches 31.5 hours of TV each week. Let's put a value of minimum wage of $5.85 an hour to this. That equates to nearly $800 a month ($9,600 a year) to watch TV. If you value your time more than minimum wage, then this figure goes way up.

I'm not suggesting everyone give up all their TV time. What I would suggest is you consider reducing the time spent watching TV and do something you believe is more valuable with your time, like blogging. . .

How many steps does it take to . . .

This past Sunday, we kicked off our staff wellness program here at NewPointe. Over the next 11 weeks, 78 days, our staff is keeping track with pedometers of how many steps they take each day. I mentioned this in a prior post.

We are posting daily steps taken in our staff break room. I'm very proud to say that I walked the most steps on the first day of the competition.

36,269 steps taken by me Sunday.

I checked out some web sites on walking and it's around 2,000 steps equal one mile. So I walked an equivalent of 18 miles Sunday. Way cool.

Just so you know this is not a fluke, yesterday I walked over 22,000 steps. My wife says I never stop moving until I lay down in bed for the night. I think she's right.

It's official . . . I'm addicted & rated "G"

I was over at John's blog reading up on his great post. Recently he's had a lot of quizzes on his blog posts. I came across one I couldn't resist.

Are you addicted to coffee? Take the test yourself. I'm very please with my high score.

I am 92% Addicted to Coffee

Also thanks to John, I found out my blog was rated G. So everyone is welcome. . . read on.

The Power of Cash continues to work. . . .

Opening my email this a.m., there was one from my buddy Tom Toyer. Tom attends NewPointe and has recently joined the blogging world.

He shared with me his furniture purchase from last night and how he used cash to get a good deal (Stewardship). I've copied his blog post here. It's worth the read....

This evening we made a purchase ... with cash and got a good deal. We have been shopping for living room furniture for the house we are buying. We have two chairs so we decided that would buy a sofa or a sectional. Last week we found a sectional at one of the furniture stores in New Philadelphia, it had a small hole in the back and was marked down considerably. We liked it and had decided that we would get cash and go down again this week and offer them less and use the cash as a bargaining chip. Well, tonight we went with our cash & our game plan to get the sectional, they were closed. Ugh now what, Elsie says: "do you want to stop at this other place just up the road". "Sure" I said: "why not". So we stopped and guess what, God literally closed & locked a door and opened another. Make a long story short ... we ended up buying a couch - no damage, more features & much nicer.

Here is the deal: $999 regular price, on sale for $759, we got it for $700 cash delivered & tax included. We paid about 63% of the original price or saved $131 off the sale price. I'm pumped. Todd it works. The guy jumped all over that offer I think he may have come down even more.

Check that thing out, isn't it sweet!

Stewardship is personal responsibility for taking care of another person's property or financial affairs.

- In our case this money is God's and we are trying to be good stewards of it

Wellness at work

Today we kick-off a wellness program for the staff here at NewPointe. I'm excited for the events of the day and what this "should" mean for each staff member as the program gets going.

A month ago, our staff participated in a health screening held here a the church. We each gave blood, had our blood pressure checked, was weighted, ( I'm weighted in at 177) and filled out a questionnaire. (There was no filling of cups. Think on this for a minute, it will come to you.)

As part of the program today, we'll each get our screening results back from Dr. Browning. In addition to that, we'll be divided into three teams and the competitions will begin. The team names are:

1. Fatty Acids
2. Protein Shakers
3. Triple Bypasses

Our first completion is 10,000 steps a day for the next 12 weeks. We have pedometers for each team member and we'll be putting up a chart in the break room to track progress.

Wish us good will and root on the Fatty Acids as I'm the team captain.

Personal Check ordering tips

These day's I don't write many checks any more. It's usually cash, debit card, or online bill payment. Today however, I did put the last set of 50 checks into our checkbook. ( I'm hoping they will last 6 months or more.)

My next task was onto the net to find the best price on checks. I ended up ordering 3 boxes of 200 checks in each box from Super Value Checks The total with shipping was $20.70. ($0.0345 per check)

Here are a two things I did to help guard my identity on the checks.

1. I didn't put my wife's or my first name on the check. I used our initials from our fist name. T or C Colucy. This way no one other than us and the bank know how we sign our checks. This will be a big plus if your checks are stolen and you try and prove to the electronics store that you didn't write a check for that big screen TV.
   
   
2. I put my work phone number on the checks not my home number. If someone tries to use your personal information from your check to open up a bogus account somewhere in your name, they will not have your home phone number. When they use your work number as your home number, this should send up a red flag where the account is being opened.
   

Next time you order checks, let me know if you find a better deal and if you used your initials and work phone number.

4th of July and my personal best

The 4th has been great for me so far today. I enjoyed reading the newspaper on my back porch as the sun was coming up. With my newspaper I had two cups of my fresh home roasted coffee made in my press pot. (Coffee doesn't get any better that that.)

At 9 a.m. it was off to the meeting point for our annual 4th of July bike ride. We had 10 riders today. I knew I was in trouble as I looked over the field of rides. All speed guys and a tandem . When it was all said and done today, I'm was jacked.

Ride distance: 50 miles on the nose

Average speed for the entire 50 miles. . . . 19.5 mph. (My new personal best)
We had miles of speeds around 25 mph. That allowed us to average 19.5.

Now I'm tired and my legs ache. It's time for some vitamin "I" (ibuprofren) and a nap.

Happy 4th to you.

5.36%

In my continuous pursuit of high savings rates, I came across AmTrust Direct. This is a bank located right here in Ohio. Cleveland to be exact.

I applied for my account with AmTrust on line over the weekend. The application process took less than 10 minutes. I'll be moving some of my savings from Emigrant Direct (Paying 5.05%) to AmTrust (Paying 5.36%)

I'm looking forward to comparing the two web sites head-to-head and to see how long it takes to transfer funds in and out of these accounts.

I've been asked many times, "Is it worth switching savings accounts from my local bank because of higher interest rates on the web?" My answer. . . You bet. With the internet, it's easy and fast to open a new savings account and in this case, and extra .31% in interest for the 10 minutes it took to set up the account will be time well spent and money well earned.

Is it proper to get a great deal?

My last post resulted in 8 comments as of Friday night. I'd venture to say I evoked some emotion. That led me to this post.

Is it proper to get a great deal by negotiating?

My answer is yes. . . . If you follow these five basic rules/techniques in negotiations.

1. Always tell the absolute truth
2. Use the power of cash (see my last post) Cash is:
a) Emotional b) Visual c) has Immediacy
3. Understand and use "Walkaway Power" (It's ok to leave and not buy it.)
4. Make the offer then "Shut up". Wait for them to respond to your offer.
5. You can say to them, "That's not good enough".

Remember, as long as you always tell the truth, everyone wins.

Deals on Wheels

It's way past time for new tires on my wife's Honda. The thing is we'll soon be trading it in or selling it to one of two friends. Regardless, new tires are needed now.

I did all the usual checking in the Sunday paper and I wasn't real excited to lay down $280 - $350 for tires. So today, I let my fingers do the walking and call the local salvage yards.

On my 3rd call, BINGO. 4 used tires the same size that I currently have on the Honda. The tires have 90% life left. Jeff, the guy at the salvage yard told me $30 each for a total of $120.

A quick stop at home to pick up some cash and off to the salvage yard. When I met Jeff, I told him I was here for the tires and then I pulled out 5 $20's and counted them out in front of him. I said $100 cash was all I could do and then I held out the $20's and shut-up.

Jeff looked at me, then the $20's and after a few seconds of silence said ok.

Let's add up the savings. I'll split the $350 - $280 price. $315 possible vrs $100 actual paid = $215 savings. Wow. Way cool. I love the power of cash and a bargain.

It's time for you to opt out

I get to spend/invest lots of time meeting with people one-on-one to talk about their personal financial issues. It's a true blessing. (Thanks God!). When those I meet with have financial trouble, one of the major culprit is credit card debt.

The time has come for everyone to opt out of credit card offers forever. How can you do this? It's very easy.

This website www.optoutprescreen.com lets you opt-out for either five years or forever from annoying credit card solicitations by adding your name to the do-not-call/mail lists at the three major Credit Bureaus. This will reduce your junk mail and keep your credit report and social security number from the companies you don’t want to have it.

As an added benefit, this removes trash from the waste stream — people literally throw away tons of mail from credit-card companies every day. This doesn’t just save paper; it also cuts down on the weight of the mail carried each day, helping the postal service burn less gas while reducing green-house gasses and other harmful tailpipe emissions.

So go for it. Opt out now!

$300 in my pocket today

With one phone call today, I put $300 back into our family finances. With our do we / don't we purchase a new to us car, I also took a look at our car insurance. (By the way, we are going to wait another year before the car purchase.)

Since both our cars are 1998's, don't laugh, they have both been paid for for years now. I called and asked our insurance agent what would happen to our premium if we went with liability coverage only. End result, $150 per car savings. I pulled the trigger right there. Why did I do this and carry the extra risk?

First, we have to be involved in an accident that is our fault. This has not happened in over 6 years. Second, the book value on our cars is less than what it would take to repair the car in most cases. If the book value is $3,000 and the cost to repair is $5,000, the insurance company declares the car totaled and pay you the $3,000. After my $1,000 deductible, that's only $2,000 in my pocket and increased insurance premiums to go with it.

So, I'm going to take that $300 savings and put it in our new car fund. The goal this time next year is we'll own 1 1998 vehicle and 1 2004 or '05 or '06 vehicle. Whatever we can get for the cash we have saved.

Happy B-Day to me

Today June 18th is my birthday. The question that always follows that is how old are you? 41.

Some other birthday fact.

1. I'm not into presents. (Just let me go for a bike ride) I did ride 65 miles this weekend.
2. If you must get me something, make it bike or coffee related.
3. I don't like cake. I get a fruit pie every year. This year it was peach. (It's all gone already)
4. I don't mind getting older and I wouldn't go back if I could. However, I would like to spend a weekend or two back in college.

Anyway, Happy birthday to me. . .

Bike Helmet saves my buddy's life

Last night I got a phone call from my good friend Bill. He told me our biking buddy Steve was the victim of a car being larger than his bicycle. The details of the accident are not real clear at this point.

What is clear is during Steve's commute home from work on his bike, a car caused him to crash. Steve when over his handle bars. His bike helmet was broken in three places. Just like his leg. His leg will heal and there is no dough that the helmet saved his life.

Steve is recovering in the hospital and is awaiting surgery. Please say a prayer for him and his family today.

Thanks

Decision time?

My wife and I have the opportunity to purchase a 2005 Honda Accord EX for trade-in value. A co-worker is purchasing a new car and will sell me his Honda for what the dealer will give as a trade-in.

Our "family" car is a 1998 Honda Accord with 140,000 miles on it. We have a 14 year old son who will be driving in 2 years. Our original game plan was to keep our current Honda as the family car until our son was driving. Then we would give that car to him and then purchase a good "used" car with CASH.

If I pull the trigger on the 2005 Accord and am able to sell our 1998 in the next few months, I'll have a loan around $3,000. I hate borrowing money it makes me crazy.

Decision time. . . What would you do?

I Love a bargin!

Like all of us, I work hard for the money. When it comes time to send it, I want the most for the dollar.

We have been doing some remodeling around the house. One of the updates was a stamped concrete walkway and patio. It looks like flagstone and it's truly wonderful. With the new patio come the need for outdoor furniture so we can enjoy the new patio.

Off to Lowes we went. My wife and I looked at all the outdoor furniture, sat in all the furniture and by the Grace of God agreed on the same furniture. (Thank you Jesus.)

Now it was my turn to take over the shopping experience. I found the set of furniture we wanted in an open box. I'm assuming it was returned and one of the cushions had a dirt spot the size of a quarter on it. I asked to talk with the manager to make a deal.

The original price of the 4 chairs was $239. Lowes had a sale and marked it down to $191. I showed the manager my cash, told him I was going to pay cash and wanted a discount because of the open box and the dirt spot. He asked me what I had in mind and I said, "I'm not sure but the $191 wasn't good enough (This is a classic Dave Ramsey line.) He said I'll give it to you for $150. I said Sold!

That was a $89 / 37% discount off the original price and a 21% discount of the sale price. That made sitting in the furniture tonight ever so sweet. The power of cash and the ask is always worth the effort.

Next time your in the market for a big ticket item, take cash and try negotiating a better price. But remember, you have to be willing to walk away.

Online Giving

We have successfully rolled out another component of Fellowship One here at NewPointe. We have added online giving to our web site. We have put together a great Frequently Asked Questions pdf file related to our online giving program. You can check it out by clicking here.

The main question seems to be, Why should I give online? It is a personal preference, but here are a few of the benefits:

1. It's a step of faith . . . deciding in advance to give faithfully.
2. It helps simplify life.
3. It allows you to give consistently . . . even when you're not at church.
4. It allows you to focus on the service when you're at church.

I'd like you're thoughts. Feel free to leave a comment or email me.

99 words for every morning

Our family and Terry & Sondra's family, a couple in our small group are coming together this weekend for a garage sale to be held at our house. For our family, the process thus far has been fun. We are going around the house putting stickers and our initials on lots of "stuff" to sell in our garage sale. I'm even selling my crossbow and tree stand.

In looking though my collection of books, (I love books, even the word "book" sounds good to me when I say it.) I came across a leather bound copy of "My Utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers. (Not for sale) When I picked up the book, an email that I printed out from 2003 out fell out of the book. It was a saying/devotion, I'm not really sure what you would call it but it's worth sharing and I'm glad I came across it again.

99 Words for Every Morning

I live today with gratitude, humility, and patience, accountable for:

Serving Others;

Building, never destroying;

Sharing my gifts freely and abundantly, needing neither notice nor credit;

Treating everyone with compassion, candor and fairness;

Encouraging others generously;

Honoring others' feelings;

Regarding everyone as peer and teacher;

Appreciating differences while withholding judgments;

Trusting others, assuming only good intentions;

Forgiving quickly when I feel wronged;

Holding my tongue when I want to criticize or condemn;

Confronting only with love;

Being a source of comfort, inspiration, and joy for all I am privileged to meet;

Living as I want the world to be.

I'll be reading this and "His Utmost for His Highest" daily.

Weekend round-up

I wanted to list out my weekend activities on this post. I must admit, this post is more for personal documentation than anything. However, Maybe you'll see something interesting or fun that you may want to do/try.

1. Took my wife and daughter to the library. I love the library for many reasons but that's another post someday. I did check out 3 books. Read two of them already. (Our iceberg is melting & Be the elephant.)

2. Took the family to see our fist ever arena football game. It was a blast. (Thanks Mike)

3. Roasted some coffee. There is nothing in the world like fresh roasted coffee.

4. Cindy and I tackled tiling the kitchen back splash. 100+ tile & 15 hours over two days, it looks "phenomenal". God was with us because we enjoyed the process and time together doing this project. No arguments or fights. There is ongoing conversation about the caulk.

5. Worshiping God @ NewPointe Sunday was special for me. For only the second time since we have been in the building (7 months now) Cindy & I were able to sit together in a service. Great Message as always Dwight!

6. Hanging out at the cafe @ NewPointe. I meet new people almost every week and touch base with friends. I get into some great conversations and sometimes I'm able to bring encouragement.

7. My only disappointment this weekend. . . . . I didn't get on my bicycle.

Thanks for sticking around and reading over my weekend. Have a great week and stay encouraged!