Running head: FAITH INTEGRATION PROJECT
Faith Integration Project
Accounting 212 – B06
Liberty University
October 3, 2016
FAITH INTEGRATION PROJECT 2
Faith Integration Project
Capital Budgeting, also known as investment appraisal, is a type of planning process that
is used to determine long term investments for an organization or company. Companies use
capital budgeting to help rank and determine which investments are worth pursuing for future
development. Capital budgeting’s main focus is revolved around cash flow and not actual profits
from these particular investments. This is important because we can use the methods to help
determine whether investments will be worth company’s time, effort, and risk going forward. We
can rely on financial planners and decision makers to embody stewardship and to make the most
ethical and beneficial decisions for the companies. Just like in Matthew 25, “The Parable of the
Bags of Gold,” God will provide for those who trust in his plan and invest their earnings with
hard work. God showed us that by being faithful to Him he will prosper us. If we make ethical
decisions with our financial investment and follow methods of capital budgeting, then we can
seek greater rewards for our company. In this paper we will discuss capital budgeting from four
main perspectives: payback period with rate of return, time value of money, biblical components
with future planning and synthesis of capital budgeting.
Payback Period
When we barrow money for family matters or for a business, we need to first see if it is
financially sound to do so. We weigh our cash flow and the unforeseen future to see if our
decisions are presentable to a board of directors or to our families. First, we need to make sure
that we can afford the added cost of the loan, if it is feasible for the job we are doing, or if we are
able to wait on the job and set money aside to help offset the difference. If part of the money is
not needed right away, we can set the money aside and invest it so it continues to grow. The Lord
had given us the responsibility for taking care of money we earn, no matter who it belongs to
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(personal or business). We are to be good stewards of our time and talent’s so others that work
with us and invest in our company know that we are Servants of God.
In our private life we are to be careful with every penny that we earn and use. We are to
give to the Lord what is due to him, whether it be money or our talents. We accomplish this by
making sure everyone around us can see God in our daily walk. It’s as simple as tithing at
church, giving our time to help someone in need, or it could be simply doing our job to the best
of our ability. The money we earn needs to be used in a way that we are honoring Christ; for he
is always watching us and wanting us to be witnesses of him in our everyday lives. In the book
of Matthew, God shows us to be very careful of everything given to us from the Lord - from
money to the lives that we come in contact with every day. The same applies to investing, we
need to be extremely careful and seek the Lord’s guidance. The most important investment we
can make in life is doing the Lords will.
Time Value of Money
Understanding rates of return, business leaders can project the future value of their
investments. The net present value (NVP) of money is a concept of investing that allows
managers to evaluate if an investment is worth the amount invested in future dollars (Brealey,
Myers, & Marcus, 2015). Planning tools help decision makers pair their talents and funds to
investments while decreasing risks. In Matthew 25:16, a responsible manager immediately puts
his talents or gold to work to receive dividends. This man is compared to another manager in
verse 18 who buries his talents in the ground. When the master returns, he rewards the first
manager putting him in charge of many other things.
Being good stewards of funds and talents is something Christians should strive to be.
Concepts such as the time value of money allow managers to anticipate returns on investment
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and in turn, reinvest. Mitigating risk and making wise decisions with one’s funds is key to living
a Christian lifestyle. Christ talked more about money than he did heaven or hell (Taylor, 2013).
While money does not last into eternity, being good stewards is a habit formation that deals with
character; which does go into eternity. Being good stewards means understanding both monetary
and non-monetary investments.
Future Planning
Being a good steward should be an important part of a Christian’s life, and a main goal in
accounting. Stewardship is the act of protecting and being accountable to (or for) something or
someone. One aspect of stewardship is future planning. Planning for the future financially
allows individuals and businesses alike to prepare for upcoming expenditures- both known and
unforeseen. Another aspect of stewardship involves honesty and integrity, both of which should
be found in Christians and in accounting. The Bible teaches us that “it is required of stewards
that one be found trustworthy” (1 Corinthians 4:2). An example of good stewardship is found in
Matthew 25:14-30. These verses discuss the parable of talents. A master rewards two stewards
in whom he had entrusted several talents who proved they were trustworthy. To the one that was
not found trustworthy, the master punished with banishment.
Being a good steward does not mean spending frivolously, nor does it mean saving every
cent. Being a good steward involves spending wisely, investing, and giving. In this sense,
tithing is seen as an aspect of good stewardship. In the Old Testament tithing was a requirement
and ten percent was to be given to the church; whether it be livestock, wine, or money. In the
New Testament however, tithing no longer seems to be a requirement but is instead given as
thankfulness for the eternal blessing we have in Jesus (Morrison, M.). Tithes should be one of
the things taken into account when planning for future expenses but should be looked at as gifts
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of thanks rather than an expense. As with other areas in our lives, we should look to Jesus when
making any financial decisions. “Are we putting our money where our heart is” (Morrison, M.)?
Matthew 6:21 shows us that our heart lies where our treasure is. Our hearts should lie with Jesus
and He will lead us to the proper financial decisions.
Conclusion
Christian’s have a responsibility to be wise managers of money, stewards of our talents
and gifts, and responsible planners. These roles allow Christians to make manageable risks in
order to reap positive benefits. Understanding payback periods, the future value of money, and
what God’s word says on the subject, we gain an understanding of business leadership from
God’s perspective. Stewardship become the ending result of this knowledge and responsibility
“From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted
much, of him they will ask all the more” (Luke 12:48 NASB).
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References
Brealey, R., Myers, S., & Marcus, A. (2015). Fundamentals of Corporate Finance (8th ed.):
McGraw-Hill Education.
Morrison, M. Date unknown. Is tithing required in the New Covenant? Retrieved from
https://www.gci.org/law/tithing
Taylor, B. (2013). Making ends meet: personal money management in a Christian perspective.
Neotestamentica, 47(2), 412-414. Retrieved from
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