The upheaval in the current economy is on everyone's mind. Many people are losing their jobs, the government is in the bailout business, and careers and retirement plans we once considered stable are now quite iffy. In a nutshell, Americans are becoming more aware and concerned about their financial situations, and Christians are no exception. But where do we turn for trustworthy advice?

Bill G. Page has created a comprehensive 497-page compendium of financial information that will help the average person understand numerous financial concepts and apply this knowledge to every money situation imaginable. He also uses many easy-to-understand illustrations. And the foundation of this course is definitely Christian in nature. As the author states on pages 12-13 in Chapter 1:

"The manual uses biblical verses as the basis for God-centered principles to enable you to make better financial decisions. God's principles do not change and should be the basis for our future decisions."

There are 39 chapters, covering such things as tithing, debt, saving, taxes, retirement funds, investments, credit cards, college expenses, insurance, and estate planning. The soft-cover manual also includes numerous worksheets and software programs to help individuals calculate and make the best financial decisions.

This program can also be used for coursework credit. There is a CD-RW (compact disc-read writable) workbook available separately for purchase. It includes a PowerPoint presentation and extra modules for each chapter. The disc also includes a course syllabus, tests, and a grading system. The Making Money Work CD-RW is a 16-week, 3 hour per week course with 39 lessons that correspond to the Making Money Work book and CD-ROM. The course is recommended for high school age students who want to complete half of an economics credit. Some of the extra modules on this CD-RW are:

• Checking/Savings Account Register
• College Expense Planning Exercise
• Housing
• Housing--Debt-to-Income Ratios
• Income Tax Preparation Exercises
• Mutual Funds--Active Versus Passive Investments
• Mutual Funds--ETFs (Exchange Traded Funds)
• Mutual Funds--NAV (Net Asset Value)
• Mutual Funds--Offer Price
• Portfolio/Investing Planning Exercise
• Retirement Planning Exercises
• Skill Challenges for Each Chapter
• Stock Purchase Exercise
• Taxable Equivalent Yield Versus After-Tax Rate of Return
• The Thought Process of the Wealthy
• Values and Spending Exercise

The Making Money Work website (www.makingmoneywork.us) has lots of information, testimonials, sample chapters, calendars, and more. The cost for just the book/CD-Rom is $39.99 plus shipping. There is an additional charge of $25.00 if you decide to add in the CD Read Writable Workbook for coursework instruction. This comes to a grand total of $64.99 (plus shipping) if you order everything. However, as we've all heard before, the security of having financial freedom is priceless!

Product review by Amy M. O'Quinn, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, November 2009