Bob Lotich
9 min read ⭑
“This rhythm of extended sabbath rest has been so rich and valuable in nearly every way. My spiritual, emotional, relational, and even physical health has greatly improved simply because I made this practice a part of my life.”
QUESTION #1: ACQUAINT
There's much more to food than palate and preference. How does a go-to meal at your favorite hometown restaurant reveal the true you behind the web bio?
Seven years ago, my wife and I moved to Franklin, Tennessee, following the Lord's leading. Being about 300 miles from any family and friends, we knew that one of the best ways we would put down roots and deeply connect with people would be around our table.
So I built one. I found seven thick slabs of hickory from an old barn and built what is now one of our favorite possessions. A solid and sturdy dinner table with a story that allows us to tell and hear the stories of all who gather around it.
The food we share around the table matters a whole lot less to us than the relationships we have created and nourished around it. This table has become a feature in our home and symbolizes our need and desire to deeply connect with those God has placed in our lives.
QUESTION #2: REVEAL
We’ve all got quirky proclivities and out-of-the-way interests. So what are yours? What so-called "nonspiritual" activities do you love and help you find spiritual renewal?
When people find out our social handles are all @SeedTime, they naturally assume we are some seed company or something else plant-related. The fact is, our organization has nothing to do with that. To us, SeedTime represents Zechariah 4:10: "Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin” (NLT). It’s the idea that anyone has the opportunity to have a very different financial life if they simply begin taking the small (and seemingly insignificant) steps ... just like planting a seed.
When we came up with the name SeedTime, it didn't even cross my mind that gardening was a true passion of mine and always has been. The longer I work in the garden, the more I discover all the lessons God is trying to teach us through his creation. And beyond the endless life lessons available for us to learn from the garden, I love that it forces you to slow down. It forces you to embrace God's pacing, which looks and feels so different than our 21st-century frenzied pace. I could go on and on about my love for gardening, but suffice it to say that being in my garden is where you will find me getting renewed.
QUESTION #3: CONFESS
Every superhero has a weakness. Every human, too. We're just good at faking it. But who are we kidding? We’re broken and in this thing together. So what’s your kryptonite and how do you hide it?
I’m good at getting things done. I’ve spent two decades mastering my time-management methods and finding the best productivity tools. I can build a checklist and feel so great about myself after getting everything checked off.
But like many others like me, I find it hard sometimes to simply live in and enjoy the moment. I tend to plan for an event: a special date night, vacation, or some other milestone, and when actually given the opportunity to experience the thing I planned diligently for, I often find myself just planning for the next thing.
Thankfully, God has given me a wonderful "live in the moment" wife who has rubbed off on me over the years, but I am not quite where I want to be yet. Being a planner and achiever certainly has its merits, but I never want to be guilty of missing what God is doing because I am too caught up in what I am doing.
QUESTION #4: FIRE UP
Tell us about your toil. How are you investing your professional time right now? What’s your obsession? And why should it be ours?
Why didn't anyone tell me writing a book was so hard? I talked to a lot of author friends about the book-writing process before I started mine three years ago. And sure, a lot of them said it would be a lot of work, but I had no idea how big of a project it would be.
Like many authors, I found my book, Simple Money, Rich Life, to be deeply personal. It forced me to try to put into words how exactly a broke mid-western kid like me went from being stranded 1,000 miles from home with only $7 to paying off over $400,000 of debt and reaching a personal goal of giving away $1 million by age 40.
This book has forced me to pull out the most important practical things we did that anyone can apply to some of the deep spiritual revelations that guided us on our journey. Creating this book has not been easy, but I can't think of a better way I could have spent the last three years.
QUESTION #5: BOOST
Cashiers, CEOs, contractors, or customer service reps, we all need grace flowing into us and back out into the world. How does the Holy Spirit invigorate your work? And how do you know it's God when it happens?
Like most people, I've never loved budgeting and have always been disappointed with the software and apps out there. They just didn't work very well for our family. Sure, we got by, but that was about it.
So out of frustration, we ditched the budgeting apps and created our own method that had served us well for years. One day, my brilliant better half, Linda, suggested that we create a course teaching our method. I thought this was a terrible idea. I told her, "It's too simple to build a course around. There are too many budgeting courses already." I also gave her a bunch of other excuses not to do it. And then it started to feel like God, so I reluctantly created this course teaching our unconventional approach to this thing that everyone hates.
Fast forward a few years later, and I’m sitting in church when a random woman runs up to me and says, "Your course saved our marriage."
Wait, what? I thought. I don't have a marriage course; I have a budgeting course. There is no way that's possible.
She went on to explain that finances had been a huge point of contention in their marriage for 17 years, and they were getting close to calling it quits. After trying everything, our course was the thing God used to unify them and, according to her, "save their marriage." That was the moment that I realized that God can truly use anything to accomplish what he is trying to get done on the earth. And I am just grateful for the opportunity to get to participate.
QUESTION #6: inspire
Scripture and tradition beckon us into the rich and varied actions that open our hearts to the presence of God. So spill it, which spiritual practice is workin' best for you right now?
One of the unique things I have done for the last 10 years is to take a one-month sabbatical each year. No work, no email, no social media. Just one month to decompress, pray, read, and spend time with the Lord and my family. And in 2017, he even called me to take an entire year-long sabbatical. (You can read how I did that here if interested.)
This rhythm of extended sabbath rest has been so rich and valuable in nearly every way. My spiritual, emotional, relational, and even physical health has greatly improved simply because I made this practice a part of my life.
I can say with confidence that this single practical discipline has impacted my life more than any other. So my encouragement to those new to something like this is to just go for it. It doesn't have to be a month or a year, but take a week and intentionally disconnect for sabbath rest ... resting in Jesus. To date, I have never talked to a single person who regretted taking an extended sabbath break. So get after it!
QUESTION #7: FOCUS
Our email subscribers get free ebooks featuring our favorite resources—lots of things that have truly impacted our faith lives. But you know about some really great stuff, too. What are some resources that have impacted you?
Here are a few resources that have deeply impacted my thinking over the last couple of years.
1. The Cook and the Chef by blogger Tim Urban. He is definitely not a believer, so reading it has to be filtered through that lens, but the purpose of this insanely long article is to determine what makes Elon Musk so remarkable and how we can all become more remarkable. I want to see people with a kingdom mindset making more Elon-level impact on the earth, and this article will help.
2. Five Wealth Secrets 96% of Us Don't Know by Craig Hill. I've read a lot of money books and a lot of Christian money books over the years, but this one stands out as having something unique to say.
3. The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel. Again, I've read a lot of money books, but this helped me understand why I do some of the dumb things with money that I do—even after knowing better. It's a fairly "heady" book that I'd recommend for those looking for a little more advanced financial reading.
We all have things we cling to to survive (or thrive) in tough times. Name one resource you’ve found indispensable in this current season—and tell us what it's done for you.
I am loving the Dwell app. I always wanted to listen to the Bible in other apps, but I often struggled because it sounded too dry or had cheesy background music. This app solves both of those problems. It allows you to pick the narrator you prefer (my favorite is Kylie) and also set different types of background music.
If that isn't good enough, you can adjust the speed of narration and build playlists of your favorite chapters and verses as well. It's been one of my favorite apps this year.
QUESTION #8: dream
God is continually stirring new things in each of us. So, give us the scoop! What’s beginning to stir in you but not yet fully awakened? What can we expect from you in the future?
I want to see the church financially free. There is so much financial bondage in the church right now, and it breaks my heart. I don't believe that Jesus came to set us free from bondage in so many other areas only to be okay with us staying in financial bondage. My desire is to see 2 Corinthians 9:8 in full effect—that we would "have an abundance for every good work." Not an abundance to impress people on Instagram, but to learn the simple steps (they really are simple) to steward our money well and follow his leading in our financial lives.
In doing so, we would find that we can take care of our families and have an abundance to do whatever he is calling us to. See, I believe money isn't the goal we should be chasing after. Instead, it’s simply a tool we can use to fulfill our God-given calling.
So this is what is burning in me right now. It’s why I wrote Simple Money, Rich Life and started teaching a live six-week class sharing these principles. And I suspect this is a mission I am going to be on for a while.
How does money impact your life? How do financial struggles hold you back in what you want to accomplish for God?
If we’re honest with ourselves, many of us may find that our relationship with money affects our relationship with God more than we’d like. Whether it’s because of debt burdens, a lack of budgeting, or fast-rising expenses, too many of us dwell on money concerns regularly—and that worry consumes space in our hearts and minds that we’d much rather reserve for Jesus.
So what do we do? How do we follow Jesus’ command to “not be anxious about your life, what [we] will eat or what [we] will wear” (Matthew 6:25, ESV)?
Maybe it begins with one step—whether that’s reading a book on finances, taking Bob Lotich’s budgeting course, or doing a Bible study on money. Whatever that step is, let’s take it. And then take another. And another. And another.
Before we know it, our lives will look different. And so will our finances.
For the last 14 years, award-winning blogger and podcaster Bob Lotich, CEPF® has been a trusted voice for Christians wanting to find financial freedom the way God intended. The author of Simple Money, Rich Life: Achieve True Financial Freedom & Design a Life of Eternal Impact, he has shared timeless wisdom and practical strategies with more than 50 million readers, listeners, and students through his SeedTime.com blog, online courses, and SeedTime Money podcast. Bob lives in Franklin, Tennessee with his wife, Linda, and their three children. Visit him at seedtime.com.
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