If you are paying for travel costs, a hotel, possibly a new outfit, and a gift, the cost of attending a wedding can skyrocket. In fact, according to Consumer Affairs, the average American will spend over $700 just to attend a wedding. That price is likely to increase if you’re in the wedding or a Millennial.

So how do you still make an effort to give thoughtful and useful gifts without ruining your own budget in the process? We’ve compiled some of our favorite wedding (and shower) gifts that are under $30, as well as some “gift hacks” to help you make it through the summer.

Budget-Friendly Gifts:

Your Time or Services. If you have great handwriting, offer to hand letter the ever-present chalkboard signs, or address invitations. You can also bargain hunt for the chalkboards or signs at consignment stores, used wedding supply stores, Goodwill, Walmart, or Hobby Lobby. If you’re talented with graphic design, offer to design and print the wedding programs free of charge. If you’re a musician, offer to play for the wedding. If you’re extremely organized, offer to help with making a timeline or a seating chart. If you’re good at doing hair or makeup, offer to do the bride’s and/or bridesmaids’ free of charge. If there will be a lot of guests coming in from out of town, offer to house the bridal party or family in your home. Host a brunch for the bridal party a few days before the wedding.

Home Essentials Kit. These work best if the bride and groom are moving into an apartment or home that one of them has not previously inhabited. Put together some practical home items in a cute basket or trash can, or get really creative and make them a housewarming “cake”.

Sentimental Touches. Take an extra wedding invitation and put it in a nice frame, or cut it into small strips to put in a pretty Christmas ornament like this. Little details from the big day are easy to forget and they’ll appreciate having them to remember later on. Write letters from you and your spouse for the bride and groom to open on different anniversaries (1 month, 3 months, 6 months, etc.) throughout the next year. Include encouragement, Bible verses, and wisdom that other couples have shared with you.

Stamps. The bride and groom are going to have a lot of thank-you notes to write and buying all the stamps can be expensive. For an extra touch, have the stamps personalized without spending more than $25.

Family Recipe Cookbook. Collect recipes from both sides of the family and compile them in a sweet cookbook for the couple. Try to have everyone write the recipe in their own handwriting and include a note, verse, or piece of encouragement for the couple. Put them together in a photo album or binder – and be sure to leave some blank pages for the bride and groom to add their own recipes!

Kitchen Items + Recipes. Give one of your favorite recipes with the kitchen item that goes along with it. For example, buy the couple a waffle maker and include your famous waffle recipe. (Try to pick an item off their registry to be sure they’ll put it to use, but add the personal touch of a beloved recipe.)

Get Well Kit. There is often stress involved in planning a wedding, which means immune systems are weakened and can crash after the big day. A Get Well Kit like this one comes in handy at any time, but especially post-wedding!

Perfect Pairs Kit. Get creative and put together a “Perfect “Pairs” kit like this one to add some personality to everyday items.

Gift Cards.Pay for a date night by giving them a gift card to a restaurant or movie theater. A gift card to Lowes or Home Depot will also come in handy!

Monogrammed Items.Things like coasters, towels, napkins, placemats, cutting boards, and blankets are all home essentials that are made a little more special with some personalization.

Bonus! This is your extra gift idea – the online MoneyLife Personal Finance Study. Navigating finances as a newlywed can be both stressful and overwhelming! Give the new couple a head start by blessing them with Crown’s online study. It’s completely self-paced so they can start and finish whenever they want and it will help them establish their plan for a biblical financial future together.

Gift Hacks: 

• Try to buy gifts off the registry early. That way you have a larger selection to choose from, not just the expensive things left.
• Watch for sales or free shipping offers.
• Look for coupons online or in apps like RetailMeNot.
• Buy the same gifts they have registered for at a different store for a cheaper price. If you find one of their registry items for less money somewhere else, you can always go online and mark the item as “purchased” even if it didn’t come from that store.
• Share the cost. If there’s another friend or family member that can split the cost of an item with you, go for it and sign the card from both of you.

We hope that your summer is filled with quality time spent with friends and family! What are you doing this summer? Share your budget-friendly vacations, activities, and gifts with us!

The post 10 Budget-Friendly Wedding Gifts appeared first on Crown Financial Ministries.

So what does the Bible say about comparison? How do we prevent it?

Contentment, Not Comparison

The only true antidote to comparison is contentment, which begins with a thankful heart. The comparison trap compels us to turn inward, to focus on ourselves, what we lack, what caused our discontentment. Thankfulness, on the other hand, compels us to turn our attention to others. It’s like a salve over a fragile or damaged heart. When we are thankful, we don’t see what we lack. Instead, we see the generosity and faithfulness of a good Father and are compelled to meet the needs of others.

2 Corinthians 5:14 – For Christ’s love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer.

Just like we have to discipline our hands to save and give regularly, we also need to discipline our eyes to look upon what truly matters. The things of eternal value cannot be found on Pinterest, or Instagram, or Facebook.

Remain in the Word

When you face the temptation of the comparison trap, it’s important to have the Word of God hidden in your heart to combat it.

Remember the words of the Apostle Paul, “At one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true.” (Ephesians 5:8-10)

You’re to “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than ourselves.” (Philippians 2:3)

You’re called to remain “steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord….knowing that in the Lord our labor is not in vain.” (1 Corinthians 15:58)

You’re not to “become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.” (Galatians 5:26)

Instead of checking Instagram, “Delight yourselves in the Lord,” knowing “he will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4)

Serve Others

There have been numerous studies done to show the positive effects serving has on our overall physical and mental health. The best thing you can do to cure yourself or someone else of the comparison trap is to consistently serve others.

There’s a reason serving has such a positive effect on our behavior – because it influences our beliefs. It helps us to take our minds off ourselves and focus on meeting the needs of others.

Look at the words of Jesus in Matthew 20: “…whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave—just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

If you’re struggling with comparison, be intentional to spend time serving others. There are needs all around you – start praying about which ones God wants you to meet first.

The post What Does the Bible Say About Comparison? appeared first on Crown Financial Ministries.

Spring is a season of order, renewal. The longer days, more sunshine, and collective attitude to clean motivates us to make improvements in many areas of our life. So while you’re cleaning out your closet or hosting a yard sale, also commit to resetting your finances. These 7 things will help you feel energized and reinstate your purpose as a steward of God’s resources.

1. Surrender Your Finances

Even if you have a perfect credit score, an air-tight budget, and a maxed-out 401(k), you’ll never experience true financial freedom as long as you think of yourself as the owner of everything. Your finances are about more than just money, and the best way to reset your finances is to recognize yourself as a steward, a manager, of God’s resources.

Everything we have comes from God. He’s given it to us for a purpose, but when we don’t embrace our purpose as stewards, we get distracted and (over)spend His resources on other things.

2. Use All Cash  

Using all cash, even just for a period of time, is a great way to hit reset. It makes it more difficult to part with the money you have and prevents you from overspending. Studies show it helps you to spend less overall and like what you buy more.

If you can’t convert your entire budget to all cash, start with one category. Food (eating out and groceries) is one of the most commonly over-spent categories, so start there.

If you don’t have a budget yet, make one! Crown has an easy-to-use guide that walks you through making a budget step-by-step and includes a number of resources to make it simple. You can download it here.

3. Save For Emergencies

Surprise or emergency expenses are a fact of life. No one can avoid them. Yet the majority of Americans don’t have $500 saved! Instead, we rely on credit cards to cover the emergency expenses, which spirals us into more stress and debt.

One of the best resets for your finances is to develop an emergency savings account. Start with a goal of $1,000 (here are 13 ideas on how to get there), and then build up to 9-12 months’ of living expenses. We recommend you have $1,000 in an emergency account before you even get out of debt.  

4. Increase Your Income

If you want to have more financial margin or reach goals faster, you may need to increase your income (here are some ideas on how to do so). There are many ways to do this, all depending on your current circumstances.

You may need to ask for a raise at work, get a part-time job on nights or weekends, start a “side hustle”, or join the ever-growing Gig Economy.

Be cautious to not increase your spending as you increase your income. Set parameters on what your extra income will be used for (paying off debt, investing, retirement, Education Savings Account, giving, etc.) and work unto the Lord.

5. Give Generously

This is a powerful way to hit reset for your finances! Giving is a privilege, not an obligation, and we are in fact the ones that are blessed by it. Giving and meeting the needs of others is not only good for our hearts, it’s good for our health and our finances.

Proverbs 3:9 says, “Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops…”

A tithe is usually 10% of your gross income, which is a great place to start. But if you can’t give 10% right now, just give something. It may be $5 this week, but it will get you into the habit of giving.

6. Stop Comparing

Have you ever caught yourself buying something just to “keep up”? It’s a subtle decision, often undetected in our heart when we swipe up on Instagram or overspend to keep the status quo. So we have to guard our hearts and minds by filling up on the truth of God’s Word so there’s no room for the manipulation of the world.

To reset your finances, stop comparing. You don’t get to take any of what you have here on earth with you to heaven. You’ll spend a number of years here on earth, but an eternity in heaven, so spend for the long-term, not the short-term.

Delete social media from your phone for awhile, confess your struggles to a spouse or friend, and guard your heart and mind by serving others.

7. Set Goals

Goals are major financial motivators! Without goals, we don’t make plans and end up just drifting along, frustrated and without progress. You may have the best of intentions to save, get out of debt, and open a Roth IRA, but good intentions take you nowhere.

Write your plans down, set up accountability, and act upon them.

Most of us live an affluent life that we don’t have to set goals. We can drift along in the group with relative ease and comfort. But like the faithful stewards in the Parable of the Talents, God expects us to multiply the resources we have been given. Don’t be a stagnant money manager.

Your goals will vary depending on your current financial situation. Crown’s Money Map is a visual guide that lays out a path of financial goals for you to follow. You can download it for free and get access to the Get Started Guide here!

The post 7 Ways to Reset Your Finances appeared first on Crown Financial Ministries.