5 Biblical Principles for Your Wallet and Wellness

“I met God on the way up, but I got to know God on the way down.”

That’s how Dave Ramsey opened his talk at church recently and that line hasn’t left me.

While he was alluding to financial bankruptcy, it resonates deeply with anyone who’s faced a life-altering diagnosis. When I was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and Sjögren’s, there were weeks afterward when I felt like I was going through a health bankruptcy. Even though I treat autoimmune disease on a daily basis, my own personal diagnoses shook me to the core.

Chronic illness can feel like a fall. A disruption. A stripping away.

But it can also be the beginning of something more grounded, honest, and real. Whether in your finances or your health, the way down can be holy ground.

1. Live on a Written Budget

“You reap what you sow.” – Galatians 6:7

In finances, this means telling your money where to go. Create a budget so you are spending intentionally. In health, this means setting rhythms and boundaries that support healing: consistent medication, intentional rest, anti-inflammatory foods, journaling symptoms.

Winning, whether with dollars or disease, is not accidental.

Tracking patterns is not weakness, it’s wisdom.

Symptom Stewardship: Start a written or digital tracker.

I created a free Symptom Tracker to help monitor patterns while navigating the uncertainty of autoimmune disease.

2. Avoid Debt

“The borrower is slave to the lender.” – Proverbs 22:7

Financial debt is obvious. But chronic illness comes with another kind: the energy debt, the guilt debt, the overcommitment debt. When you say “yes” to everything and everyone, you go into deficit mode, physically, emotionally, spiritually.

As a female physician, mom, and patient, I’ve struggled with this too. But I’ve learned that boundaries are biblical. Saying no is a spiritual act of protection.

Symptom Stewardship: Learn to budget your energy just as seriously as your money.

3. Foster High-Quality Relationships

“Walk with the wise and become wise.” – Proverbs 13:20

Surround yourself with people who see you, not just people who give advice, but those who sit in the unknown with you. Whether you’re trying to pay off debt or manage flares, your support system shapes your outcome.

As both a physician and a patient, I’ve witnessed the power of community including family members, good friends, and even neighbors who show up at appointments and ask the right questions.

Symptom Stewardship: Choose wisely who gets to walk with you on this journey.

4. Save and Invest

“The wise store up choice food and olive oil.” – Proverbs 21:20

Like financial debt, emotional and physical overdraws come with interest: flare-ups, burnout, and resentment. Invest in what sustains your long-term wellness: rest, therapy, creativity, nourishment, joy.

For me, that means painting, building Legos, writing, and a daily yoga practice, even if it’s just 5 minutes. That still counts. Anything above zero is a win.

Symptom Stewardship: Save your strength for what really matters.

5. Be Incredibly Generous

“God loves a cheerful giver.” – 2 Corinthians 9:7

Generosity might look different with chronic illness. It might not be money but kindness, advocacy, presence. Maybe it’s 10 minutes of listening to someone’s story.

Even when I don’t have the answers, I’ve learned that simply being there makes a difference.

Giving reminds us that even when our strength feels limited, we still have value to offer.

Symptom Stewardship: Give from where you are, not where you think you should be.

Closing Thoughts

God’s Word offers more than financial peace.

It offers soul-deep peace, no matter your diagnosis or your bank account. Sometimes the greatest transformation doesn’t happen when life is going according to plan.

It happens in the detours, the valleys, the appointments you never saw coming.

That’s where we don’t just meet God.

That’s where we come to know Him.