ANDY STANLEY
HOW TO
BE RICH
ITS NOT WHAT YOU HAVE.
ITS WHAT YOU DO
WITH WHAT YOU HAVE.
For Howard Bowen.
You certainly know how.
You know what the problem is about handling money Gods way? It works. If you handle your money the way God tells you to in Scripture, youre going to build wealth. But if you dont have the spiritual and emotional backbone to carry that wealth, it will destroy your life. In How to Be Rich, Andy lays out clear principles for carrying that load, making sure your wealth remains a blessing not just for you, but for your family and community for generations to come.
Dave Ramsey, New York Times bestselling author and nationally syndicated radio show host
My friend Andy has been teaching his churches this material for years. I am so grateful he has chosen to make it available to a broader audience. I know from my personal interaction with Sandra and Andy that this is not theory. This is how they live their lives and manage their personal finances. My hope is that the message of How to Be Rich will permeate our culture and spark a revival of Christ-centered generosity and stewardship.
John C. Maxwell, leadership author and speaker
When Andy originally presented this content to his churches, I asked for the outlines and repreached it to mine. When he told me he was publishing this content, I told him I would do everything I could to get it into as many hands as possible. Thats how strongly I feel about this content. Buy it! Read it! Pass it on.
Craig Groeschel, pastor, LifeChurch.tv and author of Fight and The Christian Atheist
How to Be Rich is liberating, fresh, convicting, and wise. It is a radical message in a friendly voice, and it could change your life.
John Ortberg, senior pastor of Menlo Park Presbyterian Church, and author of Who Is This Man?
Andy Stanley provides with How to Be Rich the most fundamental and fresh biblical approach to generosity, wealth, and stewardship. This is a revolution-starting, game-changing book. Our use of time, talent, and treasure is paramount to leading well and leaving a legacy. This message and book will change our churches, communities, and our culture for good. Its mandatory reading!
Brad Lomenick, author of The Catalyst Leader
Our culture bombards us with messages designed to make us feel deprived of more stuff, while half the world lives on less than two dollars a day. Andy makes a fresh, compelling case that the first step to following Jesus call to be wise and generous stewards is to recognize that we are already rich. Only then will we discover the joy and freedom of putting our trust in God and not our bank accounts.
Jonathan Reckford, CEO,
Habitat for Humanity International
In a culture that sees money as the way to happiness, Andy Stanley explains that the real value of money is that it provides the opportunity for us to make a difference beyond ourselves. Reading How to Be Rich will unlock the message of why God so richly provides for us, and will teach you not to trust in riches but in him who richly provides.
Mike Kendrick, CEO, iDisciple
A Family Christian Company
An old hymn says, Jesus is all the world to me my life, my joy, my all. If you cant touch that reality deeply but want to, read this book. Careful though; it might change you and your world for good in ways you never imagined.
Jimmy Mellado, president and CEO,
Compassion International
CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1
Celebration Is in Order
CHAPTER 2
Learning Curve
CHAPTER 3
Consumption Assumption
CHAPTER 4
Planning Ahead
CHAPTER 5
Greater Gain
CHAPTER 6
Ownership Myth
CHAPTER 7
It Can Happen Again
N o book is the product of individual effort. This book is certainly no exception. How to Be Rich reflects the insight, creativity, editing, and writing skills of a talented team of people that Im privileged to call friends. To begin, I would like to thank Craig Groeschel for encouraging me to put this content in book form. Honestly, Im not sure it would have happened if he hadnt finally threatened to publish these ideas under his name. Thanks, Craig!
On the creative and content side of the equation, my longtime friend Ben Ortlip deserves far more credit than a sentence or two can provide. His illustrations and insights made this book so much better and so much more accessible than I could have ever done on my own. Thank you, Ben!
On the production side, this project would have never gotten to the finish line without the indefatigable labor of Suzy Gray. Once again, when I wanted to be done, Suzy wanted it to be better. Suzy, thank you for your attention to detail. Thank you for reading and rereading and rereading again.
To John Raymond at Zondervan, thank you for the enthusiasm you expressed early on for the content of this book. Thank you for leveraging your influence to help us get this message into the hearts of believers around the world.
Books always reflect something of the life journeys of their authors. This book is certainly no exception. Generosity has always been easy for me. Primarily because of the way I was raised. Being generous as a family has been even easier because of who I married. Anytime Ive suggested we do something crazy in the realm of generosity, Sandra smiles and says, Thats what I love about you. And thats what I love about her.
L ike most young men, I grew up hoping to be R-I-C-H. Not filthy rich. Not private-jet rich. Just rich enough to be able to do what I wanted when I wanted, without worrying about how much it cost. You know, average rich. My initial strategy for attaining rich was to be a rock star and live in hilltop houses drivin fifteen cars. So I taught myself to play the guitar and piano, rounded up a few high school friends, and started a band. I had no doubt that I was on my way to fortune and fame. Actually, I really didnt care about the fame part. From the beginning Ive been convinced that it is better to be rich than famous. Anonymity was a price I was willing to pay.
Now, as you might imagine, my parents werent thrilled with my career choice. My dad in particular. When people asked me what I was planning to do when I grew up, my dad would give me that look and then answer for me, Andy hasnt decided yet.
Needless to say, the rock star thing didnt work out. If country music had been as big in the 70s as it is now, I might have had a chance. And honestly, Sometimes when I play that old six-string, I think about you, wonder what went wrong.
Lets move on.
Once I accepted the fact that I didnt have the chops for the music biz, I was forced to come up with another get-rich career scheme. And thats when it hit me the ministry! Ill be a pastor! After all, pastors have lots of money.
Now, while that may be true to a limited extent today, back then I had never heard of a rich preacher. As you probably know, my dad is a pastor. My parents never owned their own home until I was in middle school. Before that we lived in a parsonage, a house that a church purchased for the pastor and his family to use. It came with the job, was just part of the package. Kind of like being the President of the United States. Except we had to mow the lawn. And unlike the first family, we had to get permission to redecorate or repaint or re-anything. After all, it wasnt our house. It was the peoples house. As in church people. And church people can be particular about what you do with their house. And thats understandable. In those days, pastors didnt stay more than three or four years. So there was no point in making a lot of expensive changes for someone who wasnt going to be around that long.