So you’ve decided who you want to be…and now you’re asking the question now what do I do?

In the first video of this series, we explored the foundation of the IBCD Framework: Identity.

I challenged you to stop seeing yourself as a woman who is merely trying to survive financially and instead decide to be a Faithful Steward—a woman who manages God’s resources with wisdom, integrity, and purpose.

But here’s the question many women ask next:

“I’ve decided who I want to be… so why do I still make the same financial mistakes?”

And the answer is: that deciding your identity alone is not enough.

Your identity is what shapes your beliefs.

But your beliefs is what shapes your behaviors.

And your behaviors eventually create your results.

This is why the second pillar of the IBCD Framework is Believe & Behave.

Because functionality always follows identity.

You cannot consistently behave or function in a way that contradicts what you truly believe.

If you believe wealth is dangerous, you’ll avoid opportunities to create it.

If you believe money is stressful, you’ll unconsciously create financial chaos.

If you believe financial success makes people greedy, you’ll never allow yourself to experience it.

The issue isn’t your income. It’s the beliefs driving your daily decisions.

So in this article we are going to explore 3 Financial Lies that many women as well as as many faith driven women professionals and business owners believe that keep them stuck.

Lie #1: “Desiring Wealth Is Unspiritual”

Have you ever said, “I don’t need to be rich. I just want enough.”

At first glance, that sounds humble.

It sounds spiritual.

But pause for a moment.

Where did that belief come from?

Did God say it?

Or did culture teach it?

Scripture never condemns wealth.

It repeatedly warns against loving wealth more than God.

Those are two very different things.

Money is not evil.

“The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil.” (1 Timothy 6:10)

Notice the distinction.

Money is a tool. Love is a posture of the heart.

When we confuse the two, we begin believing that financial success itself is spiritually dangerous.

That belief quietly influences behavior.

You hesitate to negotiate your salary.

You undercharge for your expertise.

You avoid learning about investing.

You feel uncomfortable making a profit.

You shrink back from opportunities that could increase your capacity to serve.

Not because you lack ability. But because your beliefs tell you financial success is unspiritual.

But Scripture presents another picture.

God entrusts resources to faithful stewards because resources expand his expand his purposes.

Imagine the impact a financially healthy Christian woman can have.

She can fund missions.

Support ministries.

Help struggling families.

Invest in businesses that solve problems.

Create jobs.

Build schools.

Care for widows.

Provide scholarships and so much more

Generosity requires having something to give.

Wealth is not the goal. Stewardship is.

Because when your belief changes, your behavior changes.

You stop chasing money and you begin managing resources with purpose.

Lie #2: “Living by Faith Means Living Without a Plan”

Many believers unintentionally misunderstand what it means to trust God.

They assume planning ahead somehow reflects a lack of faith.

So they tell themselves, “God will provide.”

But notice something throughout Scripture.

God often provides through wisdom.

One of the clearest examples is Joseph.

God revealed that seven years of abundance would be followed by seven years of famine.

Joseph didn’t simply pray harder.

He prepared. He stored grain. He developed systems. He planned.

And because of that stewardship, entire nations survived.

Faith didn’t eliminate planning.

Faith directed planning.

Yet many women and even faith driven women professionals and business owners continue operating without even the most basic financial preparation.

No emergency fund.

No spending plan.

No investment strategy.

No financial goals.

And then they wonder why every unexpected expense becomes a crisis.

Planning is not the opposite of faith.

Planning is often one of the ways faith expresses itself.

A faithful steward prepares for tomorrow while trusting God today.

When this belief changes, behavior changes.

Saving becomes wisdom. Budgeting becomes stewardship.

Investing becomes preparation.

Managing money becomes an act of obedience instead of anxiety.

Lie #3: “If God Wants Me to Have More, It’ll Just Happen”

This may be the most dangerous belief of all.

Because it sounds deeply spiritual.

“If it’s God’s will, He’ll make it happen.”

Certainly, God opens doors.

God provides opportunities.

God blesses the work of our hands.

But Scripture also consistently calls us to participate in what he provides.

James writes that faith without works is dead.

Throughout the Bible, God invites partnership.

Noah still built the ark.

Nehemiah still rebuilt the wall.

The servants still invested the talents.

The widow still gathered the jars.

And God supplied the miracle.

People still had something to do.

The same is true financially.

You cannot pray for financial breakthrough while refusing to be financial responsibile.

You cannot ask God for increase while avoiding managing your money.

You cannot expect different results while repeating the same behaviors.

Faith moves. Faith acts. Faith learns. Faith grows.

Therefore when your beliefs align with God’s truth, your daily actions naturally begin changing.

You begin tracking your spending.

Learning about investing.

Setting financial goals.

Creating healthy boundaries.

Building multiple income streams.

Not because you’re chasing wealth.

But because you’re becoming the kind of steward who can faithfully manage it.

Functionality Always Follows Identity

One of the foundational principles of the IBCD Framework is this:

Functionality always follows identity.

You will naturally function according to who you believe you are.

A woman who identifies and decided to be a faithful steward doesn’t merely hope her finances improve.

She behaves like a faithful steward.

She learns.

She plans.

She saves.

She invests wisely.

She gives generously.

And she continually renews her mind with God’s truth.

Because behavior is simply belief made visible.

Reflection Questions

So I encourage you spend time and honestly reflect on these questions. Ask yourself:

• What beliefs about money did I inherit from my family, church, or culture?
• Which of those beliefs are rooted in Scripture, and which are rooted in fear?
• How do my daily financial habits reveal what I truly believe?
• If I genuinely believed God wants me to steward wealth for his purposes, what financial behavior can I begin changing this week? and lastly
• What is one limiting belief I need to replace with God’s truth?

As I said take take sometime and reflect of these questions. You can re-watch and write out these question. These are the type of questions that will allow you to see what you believe and how you behave.

Final Thoughts

Changing your identity is where transformation begins.

Changing your beliefs is what makes that identity believable.

And changing your behaviors is what makes that identity visible.

This is why Believe & Behave is the bridge between who you decide to be and the life you eventually build.

As your beliefs align with God’s truth, your behaviors begin to reflect the woman he created you to be.

And those repeated behaviors eventually become your culture.

And that’s exactly where we’re going next.

In the next article, we’ll explore the C in the IBCD Framework: Culture and how the people you surround yourself with, the voices you listen to, and the environments you remain in can either reinforce your new identity or quietly pull you back into old patterns.

Because transformation isn’t sustained by willpower alone.

It’s sustained by the environment that supports it.

So if you want to continue this journey with me, be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss the next article in the series.

Your identity has been decided.

Now it’s time to make sure your beliefs and behaviors agree with it.