Capitalizing on the Lower Gas Prices

The good news is that gas prices have gone back down to normal levels. The even better news is that most people have not gotten used to having that extra cash back in their budgets. To get a good idea of how much money most people are looking at lets crunch some numbers.

The only assumptions we need to make is that average gas tank will hold about 12 gallons and that people will generally fill up once a week. You may have a smaller or larger tank and have to fill up more often but this seems to be the norm for most people. The gas price numbers read like this: Toward the end of July average gas prices for the U.S. peaked at $4.12 per gallon and right now they are at $1.80 per gallon. So now all we have to do is figure out how much an average person is saving per week on gasoline. That is a simple math equation - price per gallon x number of gallons x fill ups per week.

$4.18 x 12 x 1 = $50.16

$1.80 x 12 x 1 = $21.60

Total saved per week $28.56
Total saved per month $114.24

THAT SPENDS JUST LIKE MONEY!! $114.24 a month is a significant amount in most peoples budgets. But since we are used to not having this money be a part of our budget maybe we should consider how we are going to use it. If you have any type of debt other than your house you should immediately start using this money to pay off debt. Imagine if you did not have all those payments going out each month. The average car payment is $370 per month. What if you didn't have to make that payment any more? I mean $370 plus $114.24 is $484.24. THAT IS SOME SERIOUS CHANGE!! I mean you could rent your own clown to follow you around or hire a studio audience to laugh at all your jokes.

You see this whole financial crisis has been centered around the misuse of debt. If you have large amounts of debt (any debt except for house debt is bad) then you will continue to tred water for years to come. With the infusion of money into our wallets now is the time to get out of debt. If you don't know where to start try checking out the Prepare a Plan section at Joe Sangl's Next Steps Site. If you feel you need to sit down with someone who can counsel you through the process you can email Joe and set up a financial counseling appointment (these appointments are free if you can make it to New Spring Church's Anderson or Greenville locations and only $200 if you cannot make it to the church)

If you are a person who who has a heart for helping people get their finances in order then you may want to offer free financial counseling at your church or business. Just e-mail Joe and write in the comments box that you want to become a financial counselor. Joe's ministry will be training counselors across the country in the next few months so I am sure a counselor training will be coming to an area near you very soon!!

With this influx of money into your monthly budget now is the time to take control of our finances!!