Becoming a Millionaire God’s Way: Getting Money to You, Not from You by C. Thomas Anderson

There are three things wrong with this book. First, it is very poorly written… not difficult to read, but poorly written. Second, some of the ideas put forth are based on very loose theology. The author makes many claims that I am not comfortable even reading. Third, some of the “investment tips” in the book are very pyramid scheme-esque. Robert Kiyosaki (Rich Dad, Poor Dad) wrote the forward and basically the author is writing “Rich Dad, Poor Dad” with a few Bible verses and personal stories rolled into the book.

Poorly Written: In a section called “Miracles” he tells a story of writing a check to Harry Greenwood. They didn’t have money in the bank to cover the check and they weren’t planning on mailing the check until there was money to cover it. The check accidently gets mailed but they get a tax refund which allows them to cover the check. The problem is they don’t tell you anything about Harry Greenwood… We don’t need to know his name. He doesn’t tell us what the check was meant to pay. He doesn’t tell us if Harry Greenwood was warned that the check was accidently mailed… nothing. It is name dropping, but the person isn’t important. He also inserts three other sentences in this same paragraph that have nothing to do with the story.

Loose Theology: “Maureen and I have done this for years. She might see a dress she loves. We claim that dress. It is hers. We have tithed and sown seed, so God is obligated to prosper whatever we touch.” (pg. 78) Wow!!! I’m sure as a prosperity preacher he has verses that can justify this level of arrogance. The idea that God is “obligated” to do anything for us is shocking. I’m not saying that God doesn’t bless us. I’m not saying that God can’t bless us richly. I do think we are overstepping our importance by claiming that God is “obligated to prosper whatever we touch”.
He discusses home values in another part of the book. Using his “God is obligated” approach to home values, it appears Christian people could not have lost any money in the housing bubble of the last few years. This certainly is not the case for me or my Christian friends in most parts of the country.

There are a few things in the book that are fine and good to remember. There is a section about tithing and offering. Basically, the tithe is the 10% that you give no matter what. The offering is any amount above 10% that you give. He goes on to make radical claims about what the offering entitles you to, but I think it is a good reminder that you can give more than 10%.

The only reason I would recommend this book is for someone to see what I am talking about. I believe the author is trying to become a millionaire by publishing poorly written, Christian-themed Robert Kiyosaki knock offs.

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