The "Summer Slump" Budget Review: Re-evaluating Habits Mid-Season?

The summer started with such great financial intentions, but now that we're mid season, does your budget feel a little, well, slumped? Have spending habits drifted and are you wondering how to regain control?What if a quick checkup could get you back on track for a stress free summer? Well, stick with me today because I've got the steps to make that happen and that's exactly what I'm covering on today's show.

This is Financially Confident Christian, your daily dose of gospel, grounded insight and faith driven tips to help you break the cycle of financial financial shame with confidence.

Hey there and welcome back to your Financially Confident Christian. I'm Ralph and this is the show that always helps you answer that big question and that's how can I become a financially confident Christian?And we are in our series Smart Money for Back to school and beyond, trying to help you thrive for the financial school year and finish up the summer strong. Now today we're going to focus on the summer budget slump.Yeah, I said slump because so many of us get into that summer routine and the great habits that we had at the beginning of the year just starting to fade just a little bit. Maybe we're eating out a little bit more, we're spending a little bit more on the entertainment.We're not paying attention to what we thought we were going to pay attention to. So today I really want to focus on how to recognize that drift and reset your path towards peace and purpose.So let's talk about the summer slump and what that looks like. You started summer, like I said, with good intentions. Maybe you had that summer fun. Fun. Remember I talked about that on a few shows ago.You had a savings goal, you had a spending plan. But as with most people, along came summer and along came those impulse buys, those spontaneous events, things you just couldn't afford to miss.And maybe, just maybe, you've taken a break from your tracking and now all of a sudden you're starting to feel things get a little tight again. Your budget's starting to feel a little leaky. Maybe like a lot of us, you're starting to feel guilty about your spending decisions again.Maybe you're even questioning your discipline now. This isn't just about money. If it was just about money, be simple. But so many times it's a whole other level of emotional issues as well.But here's the truth I want you to hear right now. If you're listening right now and you're feeling like you're a failure, this is not a failure. This is just a moment for a faithful reset.So let's look into the scripture today and talk about how that looks in scripture, because here's the thing I want you to understand the big idea for today. Budgets are not chains. If you think that a budget is a chain, guess what you're going to do.You're going to break free of it and you're not going to use it. But if you're using a budget, well, if you're using a budget wisely, it's really a tool of grace. And this mid season review doesn't signal a defeat.This doesn't mean, oh, throw my hands up, I've lost a project. Ralph it's not that at all.But if you really take the time and do this mid season review, it's a mark of diligence and, and it's a mark of perseverance. So let's look right into the scripture and I'm going to use one that I use on the show probably once a week, and that's Proverbs 21:5. It says this.The plans of the diligent lead to profit as surely as haste leads to poverty. Again, we're talking about that plan you created. Maybe you created that way back at the beginning of the summer.You had these great ideas for I'm really going to cut back on spending this summer. Maybe you saw that you had a routine every year that summer.You got into this slump before and you said, I'm really going to do this this time, Ralph.But now, now you're starting to look at this and go, yeah, I'm about halfway through and I really had a savings goal and I'm not meeting that savings goal. And it talks all about this in the scripture, that, that diligent planning. Another book that's mentioned here. And we'll talk about perseverance.That's the book of Galatians, chapter six, nine. And this one, I think is perfect for what we're talking about today.It says this, let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest. And if we don't give up, hey, that's what I'm talking about today. This is not the time to throw your hands and say, I give up.I can't budget, I can't make this work, Ralph. But here's the thing I want you to hear right now, because listen, I've been there too. There are times where we all struggle.We have these great intentions. We're going to lose weight, we're going to eat healthier, we're going to do all of those type of things.But here's my encouragement for you right now. Even small course corrections are acts of faith. And I just want to encourage you right now.Let God guide that stewardship and let him put you back into alignment. So here's your one action step for today with the goal of regaining peace and regaining control over your summer finances. I want you to do that.And listen, this is pretty simple. Today I just want you to schedule your slump check in.I thought that was kind of a catchy way to say it because all of us feel that summer slump sometimes. But I just want you to go ahead and schedule that slump check in. And this doesn't have to be this big elaborate, you know, corporate board meeting.No, I just want you to block off maybe 15, 20 minutes this week and just treat it as a real important, but hey, it's a real employment with yourself. And I want you to really review your spending and I want you to review it honestly.You know, take out that budget, take out that intentional spending plan, get those transaction journals that you've been keeping track of. Maybe you're not doing a great job of that space of time to get back into doing that.Look at your bank statement, look at your credit card statements and really focus on the last two or three weeks. Only this isn't the time to go say, well, you know, I did this two months ago, I did this four months ago.No, really laser focus on the last two, three weeks and just work on that. And I just want you to work on spotting some drift areas.We're not talking about these major shifts, we're just talking about categories that maybe slipped a little bit. You can't fix everything. I just want you to really look at fixing the things that look like the biggest leaks for you.And then once you do that, once you've looked at the data, once you found those drifting areas, I, I want you to really just make one realistic adjustment, just some quick wins.For example, one of these that I think jumps out at a lot of people is maybe you've noticed that you're ordering out more, you're, you're dining out more maybe to say to yourself, look, I'm going to cut that dining out by X number of dollars next week. Hey, maybe for you it's that impulse buying is starting to creep and I did a show about that, that lifestyle creep a couple days ago.But maybe for you it's time to reinstate that 24 hour rule.Maybe as you're sitting there in the summertime, you don't have as much going on you're you find scrolling through Amazon or looking doing some, some window shopping, maybe online window shopping. But. But maybe it's time to reinstate that 24 hour pause rule.Hey, maybe this is a great time because maybe like a lot of people, your, your entertainment budget has grown. Maybe this is the time to really sit down with the family and plan three free activities.Times that you could go do things that don't cost you anything at all. And hey, if your goal was about savings, maybe it's time to put a little bit money into that summer fund. Fund. Yeah, because summer's not over.We've got some more room to go. So that is my quick action step for today. Take a look at your intentional spending.Track those things, see where your leaks are and just plug up a couple of those and make some quick wins for yourself. How about we pray together? Father God, we just thank you for your grace. And we thank you for your grace that helps us get back on track, Lord.And we confess that our financial habits, truth be told, they sometimes drift away and they lead us to what we call this budget slump. And they lead us to stress and a lack of peace, Lord. And we just ask that you would grant us honesty in our review, Lord.And grace, when we see our imperfections, we ask that you would help us be diligent in course correction and to make wise, realistic adjustments. Lord, guide us back to your path of peace and intentional stewardship. And we ask this in confidence in in Jesus name.Listen, a mid season review is a strength. It really is. It's not a sign of weakness. It's a sign that you're really paying attention to what is going on in your financial life.And listen, it only takes one decision and you can make that decision today. So I'm going to encourage you today, schedule that review, make just one change and hey, regain your peace.And maybe you know someone else who's feeling out of control with some are spending. I'm going to encourage you right now, you share the show with them. You can even share this particular episode with them.Just point them to financially confidentchristian.com say, hey, Ralph did a show on the summer slump. You got to check this out. I've really got a lot from it. Maybe you're feeling the same way I feel.Hey, that's how we grow the show and that's how we're able to impact more people. So again, I'm going to encourage you to do that now on tomorrow's show. We're going to talk about how to overcome summer FOMO spending.You don't want to miss that one. Now, let's all go out there today and be those financially confident Christians. You can do this. I have confidence in you. Have confidence in yourself.Stay financially savvy. God bless you, and you have a great day.