THE 5-JAR PRINCIPLE: AN EDUCATION IN PURPOSE-DRIVEN MONEY

Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it. - Proverbs 22:6 (KJV)

I first heard about the 5-jar principle of wealth management in 2016 from the passionate and intelligent Danstan Kisuule, the CEO of Y-Save, a savings and investment scheme owned by some Watoto Church members.

The 5-jar principle is one of those wealth management techniques that Jewish parents use to teach their children financial management. For instance, if your monthly income is $1000, the 5-jar technique would be apportioned this way:

The first jar is a tithe jar, where 10%, at a minimum, is set aside as tithe from all earnings. $100 would therefore be set aside and returned as tithe.

The second jar is for alms and offertory to help the less fortunate in one’s community. You would thus set aside $100 to cater to the needs of others.

The third jar is for savings for emergencies and rainy days. As a Jewish child, you are asked to put away 10% of the money you receive. In this instance, $100 would be dedicated and put away for this.

The fourth jar is for investments to create passive income or that generate more income. In this case, $200.

Lastly, when everything is apportioned, the remaining 50% is put in the fifth and last jar to address all expenses.

You can try this out. Distribute your monthly or weekly or daily earnings depending on how the income trickles in, and based on this principle, it is my hope that this will go a long way in determining how you manage your wealth.

From this principle it is easier to distribute one’s earnings so that one doesn’t have to wipe out their net worth dealing with expenses, consequently reinforcing their financial status.

On average, my expenses are 28% of my net earnings, not including one-off payments such as school fees. This means that I am able to free up more money for savings and investments, critical for a financial breakthrough.

In a typical month, my expenses look like this:

Number	Item Description	Percentage (%)
1	Rent	6.0%
2	Home	11.0%
3	Fuel	3.3%
4	Personal Food	3.3%
5	Clothes & Shoes	2.2%
6	Others	2.2%
	Total	28.0%

Typically, every money designated for home expenses is physically debited to my wife and she administers the expenses. Sometimes, in unexpected scenarios, options such as mobile money come in handy in the debit.

FINANCIAL BREAKTHROUGH - A SYNOPSIS

One day as I casually scrolled through X (then twitter) some time last year, I bumped into a post by a young lady, clad in her fitting blue dress, flashing a carefully designed book, and in her writings, she said

“I have become an author today”

 I was intrigued and inquired further, I figured out that she had just graduated from the Harvest Institute and as part of her year long assignment, she needed to author a book.

“I also want to write a book”

I reasoned in my head and to cut the long story short, I had enrolled for the Harvest Institute school of leadership at the start of the year. Some time in November, I debuted with “Financial Breakthrough” a classic about age old, time-tested biblical principles that are designed by God to help readers implement changes in their financial habits and behaviors. It was a story about God inviting many readers to receive God's best through a financial breakthrough.

The contents of this book are meticulously arranged. The first chapter underscores the dilemma of poverty and the whole decapitating notion of lack. The second chapter defines financial breakthrough and gives a list of biblical and contemporary characters who (have) achieved unprecedented financial breakthrough with the help of God. It also explains the importance or essence of financial breakthrough. The third chapter defines first fruits and why it is important for anybody who is serious about promotion in any sphere of influence to practice. The fourth chapter is an exposé of the concept of tithe and its liberating power from the tight grip of the devil.

 The fifth chapter is a typification of the generosity of kings and why giving alms is a pathway to enormous blessings both for the giver and the receiver.

The next three chapters are old school concepts practiced world over: savings, investments, and wise spending. The ninth chapter explores the principles of work, and closes with a revealing principle of consistency. At the end of each chapter, the practical examples allow for self-reflection for the reader.

This book is punctuated with bible verses and stories derived from a theophany – the experience that places God at the center of the narrative.

This book attempts to help anybody who is tired of living in financial obscurity and uncertainty to get to a place of abundant provisions in God, by observing divine principles and following men and women who have walked this journey to financial breakthrough. Anybody interested in changing their financial life will not overlook the opportunity to learn, relearn and unlearn enroute to a stable financial status.

While a typical book on financial breakthrough is not a guarantee of immediate financial success, this book is inspired by the unfailing word of God (Luke 1:37 NLT), and is designed to harness the power within you to achieve unprecedented financial success.

In this book I offer practical strategies that the reader can immediately adopt and apply, while also warning the reader that is not a magic bullet but rather a patient guide to a consistent and patterned life of walking in divine principles which are capable of changing people’s lives forever.

The last page, which is apparently the most important page in the book is the invitation to the reader to eternal life through the salvation prayer. While I have believed God that this book will leave an impact on the reader’s life that will resonate long after its final pages have been closed by simply repeating these words:

“Lord Jesus, I thank you because you died for my sins, and you were raised for my glory. Today, I receive you as my personal Lord and Saviour; I am born again. Amen.”

GOD WANTS NO ONE POOR

Bugonga, Entebbe, 1996, a small fishing village sat on the shores of Lake Victoria, with no electricity, but flickering candles, with only one dusty rugged road that led nowhere except to makeshift and half empty fish stalls. Little boys with half stitched pants frequented the beach with hooks and worms in hand, ready to catch some fish, of which they would keep some for the family dinner while the rest was sold to make a living. In this little enclave poverty smelt on everyone that lived here.

I was born and raised in the old Kitasa quarters not far from Bugonga, our home was at the monumental House A8, which was old, decrepit, and unsightly, it hung on a smooth plateau in the middle of the notorious fire quarters estate, the house’s exterior rendering had weathered, the uninviting paint had long faded, revealing a patchwork of cracked plaster. The clay tiled roof had a few broken shingles, the windows were cracked, half the panes had broken slates and the other half had eroded putty, the floor screed underfoot had mangled leaving behind a trail of patches, the house’s front and rear doors creaked as breaths of wind caused them to move on their rusty hinges. Its only bedroom was small and cramped up. It was clear that the occupants of this house were struggling to make ends meet.

For over a decade, my parents raised me and my siblings in this house, the old colonial quarters were a clumsy yet very social housing estate, almost all the occupants of the over 100 houses in this quarters suffered the same fate, old houses, broken sewage systems, cracked tarmac roads, all but a sign of poverty. Many years after people were forcefully evicted from this estate when the government of Uganda set up the area around the old Entebbe airport as a security buffer, I returned to this house sometime in July 2012 and what I saw reduced me to tears, nothing had changed, the same grim picture of hardship and destituteness we endured growing up was flashed in my face. To imagine that a family of eight with twice as many relatives, crammed up in this house was devastating, how would we change clothes, how would we even breath? That evening I was angered and disappointed at the same time, I stood on the edge of the road in front of the house, close to the gigantic mango tree that formed part of the estates meeting arena, my heart pounding in my chest.

The world around me seemed to hold its breath, The air was thick with disgust, charged with a mix of rage and resentment, my mind only whispered one thing, poverty is a terrible experience, a scourge of unequal proportions, when I walked off the property enroute to Kitoro, I knew that I needed to do something to escape the hard shackles of poverty, never to return into its inviting arms ever again.

God did not intend for us to be poor, we were created to rule and have dominion, all things we desire, have been created by God for us who has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness'' (2 Peter 1:3).

In the beginning, God made all things and declared them good and then HE put man in charge as stewards, dominate and multiply or create new things from what He had given them. That doesn’t sound like someone who wants you poor. Producing more out of this world was surely God’s intention for us to live in abundance. 

BROTHEL TO ETERNITY

Victoria Namusisi (Not real names) had dreamt of studying and becoming something of repute, she had known of no other way to help her family than through getting a good education.

For some reason, she did not complete her education, she enrolled to study Physiotherapy and what she thought would be a successful medical career ended up as a masseuse at a brothel.

I had an earnest desire to conduct my first massage, I had heard of many stories about massage and what happens in those massage parlors cum brothels, and the thought of bumping into some sort of fille de joie at a parlor scared me greatly.

As we drove through Hoima town, I saw a signpost for a massage parlor and I was interested.
When I arrived, the lady at the reception explained the different packages including a package which included clients having a bit of rumpy pumpy with the masseuse, that thought startled me but I later understood why.

When I was led into the massage room, the place exuded a sense of tranquility, bathed in a soft, diffused glow of ambient lighting. The air was scented with the soothing aroma of incense, invoking an immediate feeling of relaxation. The massage table, draped in crisp, white linens with some red flower petals sprinkled over making a conspicuous heart symbolic of love.

In no minute, Victoria turned up in the room and she sat just next to me, the distance between her mouth and my ear was closer than a child to a mother, what is going on here? I thought to myself. She was suggestive but I was not interested. She briefly left the room to allow me change my clothes and make myself ready for the massage. No sooner had she left than when I burst out bubbling in tongues, I needed to call on a cloud of angels and witnesses to protect me and keep me safe from a potential seduction.

A massage parlor is a place where individuals can receive legitimate massage and relaxation services from trained massage therapists. These services are typically non-sexual and are intended for relaxation, stress relief, or therapeutic purposes. However, in some cases, illicit activities may occur in massage parlors, where sexual services are offered in exchange for money. This is illegal in many places and can lead to law enforcement intervention and the closure of such establishments.

When Victoria returned, she asked me to settle onto the plush, padded table, her skilled hands began to dance through my muscles. The touch was gentle yet firm, like the gentle caress of an afternoon breeze. Each stroke seemed to unravel the knots of stress that had settled deep within my muscles.

The room was filled with the sounds of serenity: the soft, melodic hum of tranquil music, the occasional whisper of the therapist’s instructions, and the rhythmic percussion of her hands, creating a symphony of relaxation. It was a choreography of tactile sensations, a ballet of healing touch.

Warm oil was applied, adding a sensation of silkiness that further enhanced the experience. The hands moved with precision, tracing a path from neck to shoulders, down the spine, and along the limbs, coaxing tension to release its grip. Muscles sighed in relief, surrendering to the skilled ministrations.

The world outside the massage room faded away as I surrendered to the sensory journey. The sensation of time became fluid, and worries melted into the ether. It was a moment of pure indulgence, the exquisite symphony of touch, scent, and sound, lead me into a realm of profound serenity.

As Victoria went about her work, I struck up a conversation that would later become one of the greatest things to happen to her, in there I had learnt that occasionally she would sleep with clients depending on the package they choose and though she didn't like it, she had no choice, she had two little children to feed, the man who got her pregnant on two occasions had abandoned her and she had no other option except to do this kind of work.

In that moment of anguish as I relived her experiences, a great door and effectual opened for me to preach the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, by the time I was done, she had agreed to give her life to Christ.

I returned home so excited, It was one of the greatest stories of salvation God had ever done by my hands and what a previledge that was. 
 

ESCAPE BY THE SKIN OF THE TEETH

One of my great born-again Christian friends, Vastine narrated to us one of the saddest stories I have ever heard, a story of a young Somali Muslim boy who wanted to receive Jesus Christ as his personal life at the before he died. Vastine she says met this young man while he was battling some sickness of sorts, visibly ill and vulnerable, when she had preached the gospel of eternal life to the young man, it was clear the young man was interested in this eternal life, he was elated at the prospect of going straight to heaven after his physical death, perhaps to him it was some sort of escape or insurance policy, to say the least, he was apparently not ready when Vastine preached to him. Vastine at the time or point of departing, left him with a blank cheque, that whenever he wanted to become born again, he would count on her to lead him to Christ or so she thought.

Vastine kept in touch with this young man and in the process, they exchanged contacts, the young man himself owned no phone and relied on a relative's phone. One day Vastine’s phone rang, the young man was probably on the other end of the call, for some reason, Vastine was not near her phone, the phone rang many times and the buzzing vibration faded when the call was not answered, "where is the girl who promised to lead me to Jesus Christ" he thought to himself. When Vastine finally got access to her phone, her heart raced within her chest, what could be the problem? "Ismail hadn’t called me these many times before, is everything okay?" She spoke under her breath.

"Hello" she muttered on the phone, "Hello" the voice on the other end of the call responded, "Is this Ismael?", Vastine asked, before even her inquiry could be answered, the mourns and wails in the background were enough for her to know something unusual had happened, Ismael had just passed away, He had most certainly called to receive Jesus Christ? Vastine broke down in frustration, anger and disappointment at how somebody nearly made it to heaven had she been near her phone. 

So sad as it sounds, preaching the gospel is a very urgent business, any minute spent wasting time is a function of the souls that will perish in hell, you could argue that people going to hell is not your business and you could be right, but what about you Christian, the old woman that prayed for you every day you staggered across her house while drunk, what about you erstwhile prostitute, the man that sent you an invitation to come to church, did they think like that? If they did, would you have been saved?

Sometimes we are misunderstood by family, friends, colleagues and acquaintances simply because we take the gospel seriously, why shouldn’t we, this very thing that men play with and in, led to the death of many saints on the stake, death in sleep is agreeable to many but death by driving a tree through your mouth then through the belly is nothing short of cruel and grotesque, missionaries braved malaria, wild animals and unfriendly tribes to bring this thing to Africa, some left wife, children and property to bring the good news to Africa, why shouldn’t we do more, the martyrs in Uganda disobeyed the most powerful king of their time to serve God. Paul was physically spent all he had for the gospel’s sake. Why are we not reaching out, why are we so comfortable when sinners are sliding into the gaping pit of hell.

I don’t know many things but I have lived long enough to know that God’s ultimate desire is that all men come to the saving knowledge of his son Jesus Christ. 

Who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. 1 Timothy 2:4 

You might not be like Vastine but there are certainly hundreds of people in your community that are perishing because you haven’t shared with them the good news of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. The bible says how will they will know if they are not told. 

How can they believe in one of whom they have never heard? And how can they hear unless someone proclaims him? And who will go to tell them unless he is sent? Romans 10:14

May the preaching of the gospel become our ultimate purpose while we live for therein we can be able to help many escape death of the damning hell fire by the skin of their teeth, eternity is such a long time that no one deserves to spend time there leave alone go there.

WHY YOU SHOULD STREET PREACH

The sun hung low in the sky, casting long shadows on the bustling streets of Yumbe town. People rushed past one another, absorbed in their own worlds, groups of women clustered around makeshift stalls picking selecting second hand clothes, in one street corner girls were tirelessly preparing and serving delectable the local food, the air was thick with the tantalizing aroma of oven fried goats meat. Amongst this whirlwind of activity, a small group of individuals gathered on a street corner, shouting on top of their voices , "God Loves You!" and "He does not condemn you but wants you to have eternal life"

From a distance, the Muslim call to prayer goes off, some middle-aged men are seen hurrying to the mosque, in Yumbe town a predominantly muslim enclave, majority of the town dwellers practice Islam. When they see such groups of Christians shouting at the corner of the streets, they don't take it lightly, some peep at them with suspicion while others are quickly enraged.

On this particular day, John, a middle-aged man with a hoary head and a warm smile, was the leader of this 5 man street evangelism team. He had a passion for sharing his faith and spreading the message of hope and redemption. With unwavering conviction, he stood at the center, his Bible in hand.

As the group began to spew out scriptures,  their voices cut through the noise of the market street. Passersby couldn't help but glance their way, some with curiosity and others with skepticism. A few stopped to listen, their expressions a mixture of wonder and uncertainty. 

As the sun dipped below the horizon, and the town continued its relentless pace, the small group of evangelists remained steadfast, knowing that their simple act of spreading the message of love and faith could touch the lives of those who needed it most and save them from eternal damnation and give them eternal life. 

While street preaching is not so common with many churches, it is a time-tested and historic method of evangelism that is effective in reaching those who might never enter a church. It may offend those who resist the truth, and it may have to overcome some negative associations, but street preaching continues to be used by God around the world to lead people to faith in Christ. Rather than wait for the lost to come to us, we should go to them.

Street preaching is a form of public evangelism or religious outreach in which individuals, often referred to as street preachers or evangelists, deliver religious messages in public places. Street preachers typically share their beliefs, religious teachings, or messages about faith, salvation, and morality with passersby in various public settings, such as street corners, parks and public places.

Prominent English Baptist preacher Charles Spurgeon once said

“Where would the reformation have been if its great preachers had confined themselves to churches and cathedrals? How would the common people have become indoctrinated with the Gospel had it not for those far-wandering evangelists and those daring innovators who found a pulpit on every heap of stones, and an audience chamber in every open space near the abodes of men?”

The Bible is filled with countless scriptures and examples of street preaching

Cry aloud; do not hold back; lift up your voice like a trumpet; declare to my people their transgression, to the house of Jacob their sins. - Isaiah 58:1

Proclaim all these words in the cities of Judah and in the streets of Jerusalem; hear the words of this covenant and do them. - Jeremiah 11:6-7

Now in those days John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, saying, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." - Matthew 3:1-2 

And He called the twelve together, and gave them power and authority over all the demons and to heal diseases. Departing, they began going throughout the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere. - Luke 9:1,6

Philip went down to the city of Samaria and began proclaiming Christ to them. The crowds with one accord were giving attention to what was said by Philip, as they heard and saw the signs which he was performing. For in the case of many who had unclean spirits, they were coming out of them shouting with a loud voice; and many who had been paralyzed and lame were healed. So there was much rejoicing in that city. - Acts 8:5-8

Street preaching is by far one of the most effective ways to reach out to the lost sinners, The ultimate goal is to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ for all the world to hear.  And for street preachers, The Holy Spirit is the greatest helper. Child of God don’t hesitate to preach Jesus Christ. 

THE DONKEY IN A PIT - THE ACT OF GIVING

Thou shalt not see thy brother's ass or his ox fall down by the way and hide thyself from them: thou shalt surely help him to lift them up again. Deuteronomy 22:4 KJV

Giving is the transfer of something or ownership of a good without the expectation of receiving something in return, sometimes it takes the form of generosity or charity. Giving is symbiotic, both the giver and the receiver benefit from the act of giving.

While it is a good thing to pray before you commit to give somebody something, I have seen people who out of blind generosity have funded rebellion or been a limitation to the progress of others by their giving, one wise man once said, it is better to teach people to fish than giving them fish always, it is equally important to pray over donations and gifts so that the receiver appropriates them to purpose.

In this scripture, the bible emphasizes the place of helping and not entirely carrying the burden single handedly. Once I had decided to sponsor my nephew in secondary school because the father was incapacitated, when I asked the young man to send me the school fees payment slip, he not only sent

it, but he also added a list of requirements, I rebuked him and told him to either look out for some sort of work to raise the UGX. 80,000 he wanted for books, pens, sugar, and soap or get to his parents, in no time, the parents figured out a way, the point was driven home, both the giver and the receiver were in some sort of partnership, working towards a common goal.

If you want love, learn to give the same to others, if you want to live a happy life, make the life of others full of happiness, if you want to be rich, enable others to become rich. That is how giving works.

However, as you practice generosity, take care not to disable your benefactors, instead offer them a helping hand as the Lord impresses it on your heart, otherwise they will keep seeking for help from you to no end. Some recipients of aid are entitled. I have worked in humanitarian spaces for a long time,

It is better to teach people to fish than giving them fish always.

As you practice generosity, take care not to disable your benefactors and I have witnessed beforehand people refusing to take care of a latrine or a water tap because they know some humanitarian organization will come and fix it, UN would come and help us, they would say. What kind of entitlement is that? Desist from it, child of God.