May Wise Stewards Finance Tip

Wise Steward Newsletter Series 2, Article 2

“Pay an honest tithing. Successful financial management in every LDS home begins with the payment of an honest tithe. If our tithing and fast offerings are the first obligations met following the receipt of each paycheck, our commitment to this important gospel principle will be strengthened and the likelihood of financial mismanagement will be reduced. Paying tithing promptly to Him who does not come to check up each month will teach us and our children to be more honest with those physically closer at hand.”                                                

                                                                                                                                                                                                      –from Elder Marvin J. Ashton’s "Guide to FamilyFinance" in the April 2000 Ensign

We’ve been commanded to pay tithing.  We’ve also been promised great blessings if we keep this commandment.  I’ve heard many stories about blessings received from the payment of tithing and even had my own personal experiences that have strengthened my testimony of this law.  Even without a show of divine intervention, it just makes sense.  The Lord gives us commandments that help us to be happy.  We may not understand the reasons at first, but sooner or later they become apparent.  The Word of Wisdom is seen as a strange commandment by those outside our faith, but as I get older I see the benefits in my body compared to those who have lived differently.  The act of paying tithing is something that takes discipline, and just like living the Word of Wisdom, the results aren’t always immediately apparent.  As Elder Ashton mentions, no one will be checking up each month to make sure you’ve paid, but when you are organized and disciplined with this principle, it lays the foundation for a responsible outlook on other financial matters.

May RS Message

It was wonderful to be gathered together with all of the sisters in the ward for our Visiting Teaching Conference last week! There is strength in unity. Here is one more thought to keep us motivated in our efforts to be better Visiting Teachers. This is from President Barbara B. Smith, former General Relief Society President.

“Visiting Teaching is a tool given to us by the Lord. Properly used, it is a great source of inspiration, strength, and comfort. Many a sister's prayers have been miraculously answered by visiting teachers in a time of need. In an urban world that is often filled with loneliness in the midst of a crowd, visiting teachers are essential. They are the Lord's way of keeping His daughters in touch with each other, and I think they are His recognition of the sanctity of each home. What the visiting teaching program needs is for us to have more dedication to those that we are called to visit.”

May we all be blessed with a desire to improve our efforts and increase our love for those whom we visit teach.

Please take the opportunity this month to have your Young Woman age daughters join you in visiting teaching.  We were very blessed to have them with us for the Visiting Teaching Conference and would like to provide them a glimpse of the joy and blessings of visiting teaching.  

May Newsletter Announcements

Please mark your calendars for the Stake Youth Fireside at 5pm on Sunday, May 20th at the Stake Center. All youth 12-18 and their parents and leaders are invited to attend.  (We apologize that this event was left off May's Newsletter calendar.)

Neighborhood Clean-up and Clothing Swap - Saturday, May 12^th 9-11am - Contact Pres. Shannon for more info about the clean-up or Lisa Peterson for more info about the clothing swap.

YW News –

"Reminder to all the YW that we start camp prep activities in June.  Dig out your camp manual and camp necklace and prepare to have fun!"

YM News – April found the scouts at Willow Park for the Spring District Camporee.  This year they celebrated 100 years of Eagle Scouts.  Dustin and Spencer were awarded their Eagle at a special celebration. Congratulations on all your hard work!  The YM also spent time preparing for Scout-O-Rama learning knots and using them to make camp gadgets and participating in more cycling and hiking in preparation for the upcoming 50/30/20/12.  They joined the YW for two activities this month: a stake youth night about the restoration of the gospel and a night of games, including kickball and capture the flag.

Mark your calendar for our Ward Pool Party on Saturday, August 18^th from 8-10pm at the Oquirrh Park Fitness Center Pools.  This will take place instead of the annual ward camp-out.

Congratulations to Tyler Savage on his mission call to the Carlsbad California Mission.

Quotes from "Becoming Provident Providers Temporally and Spiritually"

Elder Robert D. Hales, of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, spoke during the Saturday morning session of General Conference. His talk, titled “Becoming Provident Providers Temporally and Spiritually” was definitely for our time and day and has many suggestions and counsel for us all. It can be found in the May 2009 Ensign or online. It is well worth the time to read and re-read it and to study it with our families for Family Home Evening.

Some quotes from his talk:

All of us are responsible to provide for ourselves and our families in both temporal and spiritual ways. To provide providently, we must practice the principles of provident living: joyfully living within our means, being content with what we have, avoiding excessive debt, and diligently saving and preparing for rainy-day emergencies. When we live providently, we can provide for ourselves and our families and also follow the Savior’s example to serve and bless others.

When faced with the choice to buy, consume, or engage in worldly things and activities, we all need to learn to say to one another, “We can’t afford it, even though we want it!” or “We can afford it, but we don’t need it—and we really don’t even want it!”

Vacation Cheaply

The end of the school year and summer is fast approaching us. Have you planned a family vacation this year? Even if the budget for vacationing is small, you can still plan a fun family outing that will create lasting memories. The most important thing about your vacation is not where or for how long you go or how much money you spend, it is about the time you spend with your family and the memories that you create together.

Utah is abound with wonderful places to visit and things to see. Pick a city, a national park or landmark that you haven’t visited recently, or ever, and plan an overnighter or a few days around that location. If you do your research, you can have a well-planned and cheap vacation. Make sure that you budget for your trip and all expenditures (including small souvenirs) and stick to your budget.

The internet is an incredible resource for planning vacations (and is available free at the library). Many online visitors bureaus and city tourist websites will mail you information, brochures and coupons to help you plan your vacation. Ask other people about where they have vacationed and what they like to do in certain cities. Sometimes the most enjoyable and free outings are not always listed in the brochures.

Also, the Salt Lake County Libraries have state park passes available for check-out. They are available for one week, (check-out on Wed and due back the following Tues). The passes allow free day use at almost all state parks and a discount on camping fees. Each library location has only one pass available on a first-come, first-served basis.

Tips for Vacationing Cheaply:

• Travel close, save on gas
• Pack your lunch
• Stay somewhere that includes a continental breakfast
• Stock the hotel fridges with breakfast and lunch supplies
• Use coupons
• Plan in advance what your activities will be and budget for them
• Contact the city, county or state you will be vacationing for travel info
• Look into passes for zoos, museums, etc – sometimes local ones are reciprocal in other states
• Search around for great deals – sometimes you can get package deals (airfare, rental car, etc)
• Don’t forget the library – travel books, atlases, state park passes, local exploration passes, etc

Just a few Utah Travel Websites:
http://www.visitsaltlake.com/visit/
http://www.2chambers.com/tourist40.htm - Lists major cities in Utah and websites for their visitors bureaus
http://www.utah.com/
http://travel.utah.gov/

Spring Cleaning

It’s that time of year again – spring cleaning! As you are cleaning your baseboards and blinds, don’t forget your files. What do you really need to keep and for how long should you keep it???

• Taxes – 7 years, just to be safe.
• IRA contributions – don’t toss! Keep permanently.
• Retirement/ savings plan statements – Keep the quarterly statements until you receive the annual statement, but keep the annual statements until you close the account.
• Bank records/utilities – Keep for a year and then you only need to keep those related to taxes, business expenses, home improvements and mortgage payments after that.
• Brokerage statements – Keep until you sell the securities.
• Credit card receipts and statements – Keep seven years if it documents tax related things, otherwise you can shred after you receive your statement.
• Paycheck stubs – Keep until you receive your W2. If they match, you can shred.
• House records – Keep all records regarding permanent improvements until you sell, expenses incurred in buying and selling keep for six years.
• Receipts – It’s a good idea to have a filing system for all those receipts that accumulate. I like to file them by date after they are recorded in my finance software. I just staple them all together. That way, if I need to return something, I can find the receipt. Periodically clean them out (monthly – quarterly) and keep only those related to business expenses, taxes and large purchases.

Resources:
http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/mtg/20000518h.asp
http://www.kiplinger.com/columns/ask/archive/2002/q0325.htm
http://www.bluesuitmom.com/career/getorganized/receipts.html