Money Talks

Don’t pinch them, and you lose them. Or, they in fact, pinch you!
As they say, “Time marches on.” Money does not buy happiness; however, it does buy many things we can enjoy and find fulfillment in for years to come.
Most importantly, Money Talks has many practical and common sense truths that can help you begin a new journey toward “pinching your pennies” for the long haul. Over the years, I have been greatly blessed by many wise and marvelous mentors and successful coaches in my life. In one way, I guess you could say I am simply passing on the baton of wisdom that these fantastic mentors and coaches have passed on to me.

I hope that this book will make a very positive, powerful, and meaningful difference in your life. You will be nudged along the way by many verses that I have chosen from the incredible wisdom of King Solomon. As he says, “The words of a wise man’s mouth are gracious, But the lips of a fool shall swallow him up.” (Ecclesiastes 10:12, KJV).

My goal is to convey to you some great truths as you allow your mind to traipse through each page. I hope that you, too, will hear from the wise men that have given me such valuable advice along life’s way.

I pray that your life will be greatly enriched from this writing—it is from my heart to yours. Just remember this. It is true. You will see for yourself. Money Talks!

On one occasion, when the Lord walked this earth, He was hungry. He saw a fi g tree. However, when he went closer to the tree to pick a fi g, he found nothing but leaves. So, he cursed this tree, and the tree withered away. What does this have to do with pinching pennies? Hang on! There is an interesting statement in the scriptures at this point where the Gospel writer, Mark, says, “For the time of figs was not yet” (Mark 11:13c, KJV).

The word time in this original text is the word kairos. This Greek term means opportunity. It also means, of course, time.1 Opportunity is a very consequential word. It has an especially significant meaning when it comes to pennies.

My name is Dawn Penny. Other coins seem to like me. They know that I have been useful for the public to spend and enjoy. I have had many unique experiences. I am a most unique penny because a very tiny fragment of me was shaved off during the minting process. This tiny portion is so minute that none of my owners have ever noticed it. It happened in Philadelphia at ‘Ye Olde Mint’ where I was minted many years ago.

I call myself Dent Penny. My dent is more noticeable to me than to anyone else. Nevertheless, I have been in circulation and helped buy many items throughout throughout the years.
At one time in my currency life, I was in the hands of a very rich banker by the name of John Matson. Mr. Matson never liked pennies. Can you believe that? So he never took pennies seriously. Just to set the record straight, there is no pun intended to the fact that John Matson was a banker. The character he portrays would have the same self-willed attitude no matter what his profession.
However, he planned his own retirement (he thought) right down to the last penny. He determined he would never need a financial advisor. So, when he finally retired and began to receive all his distributions from his pension, 401k, and other personal investments, he omitted one of their biggest expenses, the cost of prescriptions and health insurance for him and his wife, Lois.
He retired at 62. Lois, who had never worked before, was 60. What a foolish blunder he made! John Matson would have done well had he read the wisdom of King Solomon before he made
his retirement plan. The wisest of all men declared, “Be diligent to know the state of your flocks, And attend to your herds” (Proverbs 27:23).

Like many other people who choose to do their own planning, Mr. Matson did not know the total state of his flocks (retirement expenses). How could he have possibly overlooked the health insurance that was so important for him and his beloved Lois? Just the grimace on his face said it all. This retirement voyage he set in motion was irrevocable! What a costly miscalculation!
For me, I was lost in the shuffle of things. He threw me and some other pennies down one day and I rolled over into a crevice of the floor. Mr. Matson had a real bad temper. He was so overwhelmed with this stupid mistake he had made, that he just slung us across the bedroom floor. It was as though we were at fault for his poor planning. He simply could not believe he had forgotten to include the ridiculous costs that would have to be paid for all those medical expenses. Stranger things have happened, of course.

When I first heard about Eddy’s old manager I could not help but think about the enormous contrast in people, how Murph and Mr. John Matson differed so. Murph had more than one advisor over the years. In fact, he sponged off every financial guru he could so he had more pennies to take to his bank. One thing I remember reading, which Murph taught in one of his books, “Opportunity craves wisdom and enthusiasm, but abhors an arrogant spirit and indecisive attitude.” Perhaps Mr. Matson would not be where he is today had he read this and taken these words to heart, too.