Category Archives: christianity and finances

When in Guatemala, eat sweet bananas. When in the U.S….

We gave it all away

Pastor Mike Ashcraft reflects on the Rule of 20.

Tragedy strikes pastors too

What to do instead of New Year’s resolutions

Deo Delightful: God’s show of glory

What can you build for your future?

Build a monument. Leave a legacy.

Thrift your way rich

Very simply: If you can’t control your expenditures, you will never get rich. But being frugal gives you the capability to the hit the highs, though it may take 10 years.

It’s your choice, but please don’t envy others who tightened the belt for years.

35 chairs in a one Honda Civic

What comes first? Getting or giving?

In Instanbul International Airport, some reflections about Christians getting rich

Stakeholders — how to get the best out of your team

How the poor stay poor

Saving is not enough. You must also…

I’m going on full-on attack mode

Too busy to make money?

If you wish to work in finance, I train. Reach out to me 310-403-6471

Bored Pastor

Just one step to getting rich

Structure and adminstration

How “passive” is your passive income?

Success depends upon how well you can adminster.

He fought cancer while building a business

When Adelso Lemus was expanding his business and felt pressured to cover ballooning expenses with sales, he was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer.

“The doctor was gently telling us that they were going to see what they could do,” Adelso told God Reports. “I didn’t want to do chemo because the last time I had cancer it jacked me up.”

From his hospital bed, he watched his family huddle.

They weren’t weeping; they were strategizing. Who would do what to cover Dad’s extensive responsibilities in the business? Adelso and his family sought what they always wanted in times of trial: a turnaround, for good to come out of the bad.

“I wasn’t thinking I was going to die,” he says. “I just needed to work this through and get back to the business.”

Adelso miraculously survived the cancer. His 10-year-old business of specialty tres leches cakes now grosses $1 million in revenue.

He shares his life philosophy on a radio podcast “The Flipside” which encourages listeners to not despair but to find how “all things work together for the good,” as the Bible says.

Adelso, 54, lives in San Antonio, Texas. He got saved as a youth in Albuquerque when he saw a formerly “fried” pothead” all cleaned up and alive.” It was an unexpected surprise, and the young man invited Adelso to church. He didn’t want to go, but his friend hounded him and he broke down. Of course, Adelso ended up receiving Jesus and transformation.

He grew zealous for the things of God and even prepared himself to enter ministry. He was part of the church-planting mission that emphasized evangelism and discipleship and not Bible school degrees.

He and new-convert Veronica got married “Jesus people style,” the way the hippies did in the Jesus Movement of the 70s, without expensive ballroom-like details and during the Sunday morning service. They were in love with each other and considered the fact that Jesus didn’t have any money.

Adelso and Veronica marched off to Panama, where they were missionaries for nine years. It was a wild time of scrambling to make ends meet. Adelso became very resourceful as he adeptly negotiated equipment and building rentals without having enough money to do so. Navigating financial hardship with resourcefulness became a skill he carried forward in life and it became the hallmark of his business.

“It hardened my hide to be able to go through what I’ve gone through in the business,” he says.

When his 25th wedding anniversary approached, he was on staff at John Hagee’s Cornerstone Church. He decided to save as much money he could every week to honor his wife with a big bash to renew their wedding vows. He wanted to make up for the skimpy beginnings of married life.

How would he cobble together the money for the event? His sister gave him a secret recipe, a tres leches cake with a non-traditional flourish, pineapple. It was off the radar, but when he took samples to some local restaurants they were curious.

“Tres leches with pineapple?” one proprietor said. “That’s weird.”

He tasted it.

“The way they responded in the restaurant was really positive,” Adelso explains. “I wanted them to taste it to see if it had any potential. They really liked it. I just chased the dream because of the reaction that I got. It was a genuine surprised reaction. I thought, Wow, they really liked it. It made me realize that this was something I could possibly do on the side.”

He started at home, but you can’t cook at home for commercial ventures for long.

The preparation for a wedding renewal turned into a full-time business. He needed to rent space at a bakery. At a cooking conference where he impressed with free samples, an acquaintance tipped him off to a 2,000-square-foot San Antonio bakery that could rent him space in the evenings.

The only problem was that she wanted $800 a month and all he could offer was $350. Read the rest: Adelso Lemus fought cancer while running a growing business

Over consumption

My bike got stolen!

Is the ‘kingdom of God’ synonymous with ‘kingdom of Heaven?’

A Flag Carrier

The Watts Towers (and riches)

Comfort was killing me

You have to work 6 days a week anyhow…

Get IN the way of the blessing

Whoa! A lot bigger than we thought. How the Griffith Observatory changed the way…

Nasty!

Finance is not hard

Assets, not liabilities

Get a cheaper downfall

Patience, not Precision.

Investing is not like golf, at least in one area.

Would you work for free?

Riches for all Races

Why work for money when money can work for you?

Two business models

Questions about the right financial plan? Reach out to Mike Ashcraft California financial professional

Hire yourself!

The poor are better off than the middle class

Surprise! The poor are often better equiped to get rich than the middle class. Financial education while you make money doing business.

Should I pay off my debt BEFORE investing for retirement?

Learn more: Mike Ashcraft financial professional California

Financial fitness in 3 steps (part 2)

Questions? Reach out to Mike Ashcraft financial professional in California.

Financial Fitness in 3 steps

Three things you must do now to be financially healthy in the future. Questions about finance? Reach out to Mike Ashcraft California financial professional.

Opportunity

Learn about finance while making money.

Stop wasting money

Get out of debt. Get rich.

Balance

Get out of the hole

Looking for an opportunity? My company is looking for a few energetic visionaries.

Fight on!

Quitters never win, winners never quit.

Continuous learning, road to riches

Learn a little about money. Make money.

Get rich for your kids

What’s the greater danger for Christian kids in America — getting spoiled or being neglected?

3 Reasons Why Christians Biblically Should Get Rich

Christians get rich. Find out why?