Conversations with a Four Year Old

February 19, 2011 By nick 1 Comment

Gavin asked why a nurse came to our house the other morning, so Nicki was explaining to both Gavin and Tristan that the nurse came to do different tests so we could increase our life insurance.

Here’s how the conversation went (paraphrased):

Nicki: “If daddy died, life insurance would help pay to bury him.”

Tristan: “We can bury daddy in the backyard and pack the dirt down real tight so no one would see him”

He says he learned it in school!

I am glad my family has big plans for me when I die. I think I may go ahead and make Tristan the executor of my will, it sounds as if he will be frugal with what little money I am able to leave behind. :)

Join the Conversation. Have you had any interesting conversations with your children lately?

Popularity: 1% [?]

Filed Under: Family Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Pivot Points

February 7, 2011 By nick 3 Comments

piv·ot point: The point at which something pivots, changes, or turns (my definition)

This Sunday we kickoff our new marriage campaign I DO…Not Anymore at New Passion. As I’ve been preparing for the messages I was thinking about some of the pivot points in my own marriage. Nicki and I got married young and we face our share of struggles, but by God’s grace we celebrated 10 years of marriage last November. Throughout this series I will post about some of these pivot points we’ve made that were positive moves in our marriage.

This first pivot point was a subtle change that we felt led to make early in our marriage but the results and benefits of this change have lasted us and have been experienced over and over throughout our marriage.

PIVOT POINT #1: Shifted from tithing on our net income to our gross income.

Money has never really been an issue of contention with Nicki and me (We’ve had short spats, but no big brawls). When we first got married we had plenty of money. We never questioned how we were going to pay our bills and the term “pay check to pay check” was foreign to us. We always had money in the bank, we had new(er) cars and a nice house.

But, everything has to change at some point right? The life of financial ease would not last very long.

We were giving a tithe to God. A tithe is 10% of the income God provides to us. However, we were giving a tithe on our net income, meaning that when we got paid we were giving Blue Cross Blue Shield their share first, the U.S. Government their share second, and then God 10% of what was left over.

We heard a pastor preach a message about the tithe being the first fruit and how it should be our response to God’s goodness to us. In worshiping God through our tithe our best would be giving back to him that first fruit from the total of what he has blessed us with. I had never really been taught what was what. I had friends who were giving their tithe after paying all of their bills. This message not only struck home with Nicki and me, but also with some of our friends.

Nicki and I decided that we were going to start worshiping God with our tithe from the gross of what he had blessed us with. Because symbolically, we wanted God to be first in our money and first in our home. This was the best way we could demonstrate this to God.

A Back Story – - – (I am not presenting a prosperity gospel) – - I believe when we did this God communicated something to us. Here’s how. I had a four wheeler that I bought but never got to ride. So, I placed it in the IWANTA to sell it. Several weeks had passed and I heard nothing. The day Nicki and I decided to start tithing on our gross (with the right motivations) I had a phone call from a guy wanting to see the four wheeler. The next day he was at my house looking at it. I tried to start it three times and it wouldn’t start. On the fourth attempt it started. The guy bought the four wheeler that day and didn’t even try to negotiate a lower price.

Does this mean that if we tithe on our gross or tithe at all that God will always act on our behalf and become our personal genie? No! In fact, the impression that I felt God was communicating to me at that moment was this, “If you put me first in everything, I will take care of you (not give me what I want).” Since that day, we followed through with our goal of having Nicki stay at home with the children (up until last year she started working part time at a gift shop). Honestly, we have faced some very dark financial issues since this pivotal day in our marriage. We have had challenges as a family. But God, has sustained us. Are we rich? By America’s standards, no. According to the world’s standards, yes! Do we have the nicest material possessions because of this pivot point? No. Do we have everything together as a family? Far from it. The reality is, this pivot point was not a magic pill to give us everything we wanted.

This pivot point was our communicating and committing to God that he was first in our marriage, our finances and in our home. Even when we didn’t have the money to pay the bills, we put God first. It has not always been easy. But there are undeniable, obvious finger prints of God on my household because he has taken care of us in good times and in bad.

In addition, because we learned these principles in our marriage, they play a huge role at New Passion as well. It was set in our DNA from the very beginning that we would put God first in the church’s finances by giving at least a tithe as a church to missions. God has honored this commitment.

Join the Conversation…Have you had to come to a pivot point in your marriage with God and finances?

Popularity: 1% [?]

Filed Under: Family, Personal Tagged With: , , , ,

Depends and Bifocals

December 15, 2010 By nick Leave a Comment

Well. It’s almost here. At 9:35 p.m. tomorrow (and not a second earlier) I will turn the big 30! I guess I need to carve out some time Friday morning to go get sized for my new life of Depends. I probably need to go by Eye Glass World or somewhere like that to treat myself to a brand new pair of bifocals too. We’re going to Sconyers BBQ on Friday night for my birthday, so I really can’t delay getting these things done if I want to read the menu, and only God knows what will happen with my bladder and digestive system as of 9:35 p.m. tomorrow, so I definitely CANNOT delay with the Depends, those will be top priority. I would hate to have an embarrassing episode, but then again, I will be a rookie goldy oldie so I guess it’s expected.

I wonder if 30 among the elderly is like being a freshmen in high school. I fear being hazed by the older, older people. I guess I’ll have to keep a close eye on my dentures and walker so no one hides them. You know how our memory gets lost with everything else, I’ll never find them if they get a hold of them.

While my memory is still flickering slightly better than it will be at 9:35 p.m. tomorrow night. I must remind you, because I know everyone reading this is ringing their hands right now and are nervous that you have not bought be a birthday gift. So, you are thinking that you are going to have to go battle the Christmas traffic or the long lines to get me the very best gift in the world. But, do not be afraid! That seems to sound familiar. Although I know you were going to lavish me with wonderful gifts, I must decline. I am asking you to celebrate the 30 wonderful years God has blessed me with by blessing those in Africa who do not have clean water. Many children will not live to see this ripe old age of 30 because they don’t have usable water. Will you go give a gift of any size to this effort? Instead of going out and buying that pack of Depends for me, you may want to give the equivalent amount (approx. $13) towards my campaign, or if you are really feeling generous you can give $1 per year I’ve been alive, that will provide 1.5 people water for the next 20 years!  The direct link to the gift giving site is: http://mycharitywater.org/nickcarnes

P.S. Billy Wilson says he and Seree went to the Apple Store to buy me an iPad for my birthday when he pulled up my blog in the store and saw that I was  asking for water instead. So, they put the iPad back. Do me a favor and please go to Billy’s Facebok page, his Twitter, and/or his Email and help remind him and Seree to donate the equivalent amount of money for an iPad in a water donation to my campaign, since they were feeling so generous this Birthday season!

Popularity: 2% [?]

Filed Under: Personal Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

When Relationships Trump Ego – A Lebron James Story

July 9, 2010 By nick Leave a Comment

lebronjames_150hgt I was happy when the Lebron James decision came last night. I couldn’t even turn on the news without seeing a report about it or being told to go to their website to answer their poll on where I thought he would go. Now, here I am diving into the conversation. Just to get it out there, I didn’t think LeBron would stay in Cleveland, I was leaning towards New York, after all, that’s what everyone has been talking about for two years now. After all, that’s what was going to be the best for Lebron’s brand, his bank account, and his ego.

Okay, great, that’s out of the way….

With every athlete there is an ego. I personally didn’t think Lebron’s television “Decision” on ESPN was the best decision. In fact, I thought it was quite egotistical, a little self-centered. I had a slight change of heart when I found out proceeds from the television performance was going to the Boys and Girls Club of America.

dewaynewade_150hgtI also had a change of heart in Lebron’s choice from last night to this morning. When Lebron mentioned that he was going to South Beach in Miami, I at first wanted to tweet that he would never be seen in the same light at Michael Jordan, even if he did win multiple championships, I still believe that, but that’s the point of my change of heart.

I read an article on ESPN from Bill Simmons about a pact that Lebron James, Dewayne Wade, Chris Bosh and Chris Paul made two years ago. In the article Bill reports that the four players made a pact that they would all play with each other in a single city one day. It has been widely reported all over the media that Wade, James, and Bosh are all good friends and in the end, I have no doubt that is what made the final decision for Lebron.

I find it interesting that most of the outrage surrounds the decision by Lebron to go to Miami, however, the fact is, it is requiring a huge sacrifice on his part to attempt to win a championship. After all, that’s what professional sports are all about, winning championships. Lebron hurts his brand, he sacrifices his ego, and he sacrificed a lot of money (although Florida’s no state income tax may have helped there too). Chris Bosh and Dewayne Wade are also sacrificing many of the same things that Lebron is sacrificing, all to play with each other and to win a championship. That’s truly unheard of with All-Star athletes.

chrisbosh_150hgtThe media questions why things are progressing the way they are with the ego and selfishness of professional athletes, yet, we feed it. I think a majority of people who followed the Lebron situation wanted him to make a choice that would “benefit” him the most. Even his entourage advised him not to go to Miami because of the things he would be sacrificing. Instead of celebrating an athlete that would give his television proceeds to the Boys and Girls Club, sacrifice at least 30 million dollars in salary, sacrifice his legacy as a player that could win a championship in a “cursed” city and be the “leader” of the team; we make him the black sheep. We would rather celebrate greed and self-centeredness over sacrifice and selflessness.

I am sure there are plenty of things that we can fault Lebron on and I can definitely understand Cleveland’s hurt and pain with Lebron leaving, however, the fact is, this is a business and Lebron has to make the best decision as someone who is employeed in the industry. I am sure his decision was tough, but in the end, I think relationships trumped ego and that is at least one lesson that should be taught to our kids and at least one thing that should be praised throughout this situation.

Popularity: 2% [?]

Filed Under: Thoughts Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

God Doesn’t Deserve My Best

March 16, 2010 By nick 1 Comment

trophy gold“God doesn’t deserve my best,” is exactly what we say when we as “Christ Followers” decide to be consumers rather than contributors. I listened to a message by Perry Noble the other day from NewSpring’s Practical Atheist series. He referenced the verses where Cain and Abel present their offerings to the Lord and how Cain just gave some of his crops as  an offering to the Lord, while Abel gave his first and best lamb as an offering. While the main point of Perry’s usage of the Scripture was to point out that the tithe did not go away with the law since it was present 500+ years before the law was given, something different stood out to me.

I’ve practically grown up in church. I’ve been a ministry leader, staff, volunteer, and a plain ‘ol church attender. I’ve heard messages on giving and tithing several times in the past, but nothing has prepared me for the harsh reality that there are more Christians like Cain than there are like Abel in most churches. I remember hearing about Cain as a child in our Bible stories. He got a bad rap, I guess it stemmed mostly from him murdering Abel. But the more I think about it, there is more focus put on his being a murderer than there is his attitude that God did not deserve his best. I wonder if we  avoid that foundational truth because its our attitude too? I wonder if that’s why people church hop and get angry when the pastor preaches on giving and money? Could it be because their attitude is that God does not deserve their best?

This verse has never stuck out to me until I looked at it over the weekend, check it out…

“Why are you so angry?” the Lord asked Cain. “Why do you look so dejected? You will be accepted if you do what is right. But if you refuse to do what is right, then watch out! Sin is crouching at the door, eager to control you. But you must subdue it and be its master.” Genesis 4:6-7

What was the right thing in this situation? Abel’s income came through being a shepherd. Cain’s income came through harvesting the land. Both brought an offering to the Lord, because the Lord had blessed them both with a profit and a means of living. The difference is, Abel brought his first and his best to God, Cain just brought a random selection, but it was definitely not his best. God’s response was that Cain would be accepted if he only did what was right. Cain knew what was right, but his attitude directed his actions. He did not feel God deserved his best, therefore he did not give God his best. The biggest part of this verse to me is where God points out, that sin is crouching at Cain’s door waiting to control him because he lacked the heart to put God first and to give him his best.

There are Christians all over the world who do this all the time. They won’t or they can’t give God their best because they are driving it, or living in it, or wearing it. There are Christians all over the world who want to tell the church what they want to consume from the church, but they refuse to contribute to the vision God has given the church.

Matthew 6:21 says, “Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.“

I believe that is what God was telling Cain in Genesis. Watch out! Sin will control your desires when God does not deserve the first and best of your treasures.

Are there areas in your life or in the life of your family that sin has control of? It may start with your desire to be a consumer rather than a contributor and the attitude that God does not deserve your best!

Just a thought!

Popularity: 1% [?]

Filed Under: Thoughts Tagged With: , , , ,

Would You Turn In $10,000?

December 1, 2008 By nick 2 Comments
Click to play video

Direct your children onto the right path, and when they are older, they will not leave it.
Proverbs 22:6 (NLT)

Moses, the bagboy, found $10,000 in the bathroom of the grocery store where he worked. When you watch the video, you will see that he decided to turn the money into his manager so the owner of the money bag could retrieve their property. In this video, Moses attributes his decision to the lessons that he teaches young children in Sunday School, while in another video, Moses goes on to talk about the lessons he was taught to make ‘Wise Choices’ when he was also young in Sunday School.

As a youth leader, this makes me smile :) – It must make this young man’s parents and youth leaders proud to see some of what they have invested in him stick. I hope as my kids get older what we are trying to teach them will stay with them.

h/t CNN

Popularity: 1% [?]

Filed Under: Bible Studies, Ministry Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

You Don’t Have Family In Nigeria!!!

November 20, 2008 By nick 3 Comments

Click Picture to Watch Video

Click Picture to Watch Video

I saw this video on CNN.com where a lady lost $400,000 to a Nigerian email scam…yes that was $400,000 (dollars)…watch the video to see what all she sold and cashed in for what she thought was going to be a $20 Million Dollar payday. I think the lady in the video says it best, “YOU DON’T HAVE FAMILY IN NIGERIA!” Don’t fall for this scam. ALSO – Check out the 419 Eater website for funny stories and pictures of Nigerian email scammers being scammed by some smart people…they would be the people who did not send $400,000 to a “family” member in Nigeria (These stories are awesome).

Also on the video is a sad, but semi-funny story about an elderly lady who was robbed when she fell for an exploding toilet story by a robber who was wearing a fake water company uniform.

And the third story is about two men who stole an ATM with a stolen fork lift. Watch the video, I am sure you will be entertained. Join the Conversation: What’s the funniest crime story you’ve ever heard or experienced?

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/bestoftv/2008/11/19/pn.most.outrageous.email.scam.cnn

Popularity: 1% [?]

Filed Under: Entertainment Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Can God Get A Loan?

November 19, 2008 By nick 2 Comments

hundred-dollar-bills

If you help the poor, you are lending to the Lord – and he will repay you! Proverbs 19:17

I found this verse interesting. People always talk about being ‘the hands and feet of Jesus’ to help those who are in need, but how about the ‘bank of Jesus?’ I think a lot of us look at giving to the poor in terms of what we have financially, we make comments like, “When God blesses me with extra, then I can give to others.” However, I get the impression that God works like this, “You give from whatever I’ve already given you, and then I’ll repay you based on your kindness.”

To me this puts a new perspective on Matthew 25:40 (MSG) where Jesus says, whatever we do to those overlooked and ignored, we do it to Him. Proverbs is saying that we are not giving our money to the poor…we are giving a loan to God, he’s just predesignated that he wants the money to go, and he wants it to go to those who are overlooked and ignored. This promise from Proverbs is not limited to “Christians.” I see tons of secular businesses that are very successful, and many times if you look behind the scenes they are highly involved in charitable giving. I just think the Church should be leading the way…

This is personally something I have to work on. My family is definitely not rich, but that cannot be an excuse! Join the Conversation…What do you think? Is God’s credit good enough at your bank?

Popularity: 1% [?]

Filed Under: Bible Studies Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Our Cash Envelope System

November 8, 2008 By nick 3 Comments

Nicki and I went to the ReThink Money Workshop today that our church put on with Casey Graham. Casey talked about using one of three plans to pre-designate your monthly funds: 1. A written spending plan 2. A Cash Envelope System or 3. A computer method (Quickbooks, Quicken, Etc.). If we used the cash envelope system, here’s what it would look like right now:

cash-envelope-system-copy
We are not going to use a cash envelope system, because cash is easier to spend, and we don’t have money to spend, period. Hopefully, applying the principles we learned today will help us save money and cut spending where we can, it is not going to help us overcome my need to start a second job for a while, but it will reduce the amount I need to earn in that job. If you hear of a ReThink Money Seminar in your area, I highly recommend you go to it.

Join the Conversation: Do you use a budgeting system or a spending plan, if so what is it?

rethink-money-image

Popularity: 1% [?]

Filed Under: Family, Ministry, Personal Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

ReThink Money Workshop

October 29, 2008 By nick 4 Comments

Casey Graham spoke at TCAG Sunday about God’s purpose for our money. I loved the verse he used from the Message:

1 Timothy 6:17-19 Tell those rich in this world’s wealth to quit being so full of themselves and so obsessed with money, which is here today and gone tomorrow. Tell them to go after God, who piles on all the riches we could ever manage—to do good, to be rich in helping others, to be extravagantly generous. If they do that, they’ll build a treasury that will last, gaining life that is truly life.

His bottom line thought was: “God wants us to do well (financially) so we can do good.”

His main ideas: God gives us riches (money) so we can…

  1. Do Good
  2. Help Others
  3. Be Extravagantly Generous

The message was an introduction to our new series, “Bling” which will include a financial workshop on Saturday, November 8 from 8:15 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. If you live in the Augusta, Martinez, Evans, or North Augusta area, I highly recommend you attend this workshop. The details for the workshop are as follows:

____________________________________________________________________________

During our next series, “BLING,” Casey Graham, of ReThink Money, will be hosting a workshop to help you get your finances in order.

  • Wouldn’t it be great to learn how to get rid of your personal debt quickly?
  • Can you imagine what it would fell like to have an exact date that you will be debt free?
  • What about retirement…are you ready?

ReThink teaches four life-changing concepts:

  • Spend Less
  • Kill Debt
  • Invest Wisely
  • Provide Hope through Giving.

You can’t AFFORD to miss out!!!  Cost for materials is $20/singles & $30/couple.  RSVP Today or contact our office to sign up.

Popularity: 1% [?]

Filed Under: Bible Studies, Conferences, Ministry Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,