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August 5, 2025 12 mins

Are your subscriptions secretly draining your wallet? If you’ve got Netflix, Spotify, or any of those fancy meal kit services still hanging around, it might be time to take a good, hard look at what’s actually worth your cash. I’m diving into how to stop those sneaky charges from munching away at your budget. We’re all about reclaiming that hidden cash today, so stick with me and let’s figure out what’s still serving you and what’s just taking up space. Trust me, a little review can lead to some serious financial wins, and we’ll sprinkle in some biblical wisdom on stewardship along the way. Let’s get this money-saving party started—and ask yourself, Are your subscriptions still serving your budget this fall?

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Ever feel like your subscriptions are sneaking up on you like a cat after a laser pointer? Yeah, me too. We all jump on the latest Netflix series or that meal kit subscription thinking it'll change our lives, but before you know it, they’re quietly draining our wallets. Today, we’re diving deep into how to spot those sneaky subscription fees that seem harmless when they’re just a few bucks but can pile up faster than laundry on a lazy Sunday. Join me as I share some solid tips on how to reclaim your budget and maybe even find some hidden cash for that new pair of shoes you've been eyeing. Trust me, you don’t want to miss this; it’s time to kick those silent budget leaks to the curb!

Takeaways:

  • Subscriptions are like sneaky ninjas that can quietly drain your wallet without you even noticing.
  • A quick subscription review can help you reclaim hidden cash that you didn't even know you lost.
  • Being diligent about your finances means actively managing those pesky recurring expenses every month.
  • Evaluating your subscriptions regularly helps you avoid wasting money on services you no longer use.
  • If you're not using a subscription, it's time to cancel it and redirect that cash to better goals.
  • Taking control of your subscriptions is a step towards financial freedom and peace of mind.

Links referenced in this episode:


Companies mentioned in this episode:

  • Netflix
  • Spotify
  • Hulu

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Transcript

Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Netflix, Spotify, fitnessapps, meal kits, you signed up for
them all. Are they secretlydraining your bank account? Especially
if you barely use themanymore. What if I told you a quick
check could reclaim hundredsof dollars for your fall budget?
Well, stick with me todaybecause I'm sharing exactly how to
find that hidden cash ontoday's show.

(00:23):
This is Financially ConfidentChristian, your daily dose of gospel
grounded insight and faithdriven tips to help you break the
cycle of financial shame with confidence.
Hey there. Welcome back toyour Financially Confident Christian.
I'm Ralph and this is the showthat helps you answer that big question.
And that's how can I become afinancially confident Christian?

(00:45):
And we are in our series SmartMoney Move for Back to school and
beyond. Yes, we're studyingsome smart money moves as we get
back into the fall back toschool routine. Now yesterday we
talked about mastering mealplanning. It made me hungry. But
we talked about delicious,healthy and yes, bold, budget friendly
dinner. So if you missed thatshow, I'm going to encourage you
to go check it out. You canfind all of our shows@financiallyconfidentchristian.com

(01:11):
now today we're going to diveinto another common area where money
can silently slip away. Andthat's one that I. Listen, I'm guilty
of this. That's thosesubscriptions and memberships. So
I'm going to answer thisquestion today. Are your subscriptions
still serving your budget thisfall or are they silently just draining
your bank account? Hey, youknow that feeling all too well. You

(01:33):
sign up for a new streamingservice. Oh, I gotta have this one.
There's this show I reallywant to watch. Or maybe it's an app,
you know, oh, this apple makeme super productive in my life. And
so you click on it. Oh, it'sjust a 30 day trial. And then of
course in the fine print itsays your credit card will be charged
after the 30 day trial. Ormaybe you try one of those fun subscription

(01:53):
boxes everybody in theneighborhood has you, well I gotta
try that too. And you sign upfor it and after a while you just
forget about it. But listen,they don't forget about taking the
money from your account. Sothat money's still being deducted
and worst part is being comingout automatically. You've got those
automatic payments. Andlisten, they're small individually,

(02:13):
maybe $6 here, $7 there, maybe12.95, you get the idea. But they
add up to be a significantfinancial drain every month. It's
what I call the silent budgetleaks. And it's this overall sense
of losing control over yourmoney. And as you think about that,
you start realizing that yourhard earned money goes to unused

(02:34):
services or membership. Hey,it happened to me the other day.
I didn't even realize it. Iwas looking at my credit card statement
and I saw this subscription.This is a service I haven't used.
And to be blunt, probably 16,17, maybe a year and a half. And
I said to myself, Ralph, whyhaven't you canceled this? Well,
I went out and canceled it.Unfortunately, it was set up to be
automatic renewing for a year.But listen, it's not going to renew

(02:57):
again. So it's going to removethat frustration and it's going to
help us build our financialgoals. See, here's the thing. Subscriptions
are designed for convenience.Hey, there's some great subscription
apps out there. I use them,you use them, Netflix, Hulu, all
those type of things. But ifyou're not using them, and if they're

(03:18):
adding up, they can be silentbudget killers if you don't review
them. And see, here's the bigprinciple that I want to really talk
about today. We talk aboutstewardship on this show all the
time, but intentionalstewardship requires actively managing
these recurring expenses. Solet's look at the Bible and see some
wisdom there. And I'm going tobreak this down into a couple of

(03:38):
different principles. My firstprinciple is diligence. Take a look
at this verse from the Bible.It says, whoever can be trusted with
very little can also betrusted with much. And whoever is
dishonest with very littlewill also be dishonest with much.
So if you have not beentrustworthy in handling worldly wealth,
who will trust you with trueriches? Well, I can stop right there

(04:00):
and do a whole show right onthat. But if you've not been trustworthy
with someone else's property,who will give you property of your
own? Wow, that one cuts to thechase, doesn't it? Be trusted with
very little. These, theselittle subscriptions, these little
apps and all these kind ofthings, they add up, don't they?
And the Bible is telling us,hey, you need to be aware of these

(04:20):
things. You need to bediligent in these things. Well, let's
look at our second biblicalprinciple, and that's avoiding waste.
I actually mentioned this oneon the show yesterday. We talked
about planning for fall meals.But this is John, chapter 6, verse
12. And this is straight fromJesus himself. He says, God, gather
the pieces that are left over.And the reason I grabbed it today
is let nothing be wasted.Yesterday we talked about how that

(04:43):
applies to wasted food. Well,today these subscriptions can apply
to wasting money. And see, theimpact of all of this is that you're
just wasting money. So one ofthe things that I'm really going
to encourage you to do isreally evaluate those subscriptions
because that really leads todiligent stewardship. It's going
to identify waste, it's goingto, it's going to help you reclaim

(05:03):
those lost funds. And hey,then you'll be able to redirect your
resources to higher prioritygoals. Maybe things like debt payoff
or savings or hey, think aboutthis more giving and truly align
your spending with your trueneeds and values and free up your
finances. So now you might bethinking, Ralph, you're right. Didn't
even think about that, man.There's a whole host of those things.

(05:24):
I don't even look at thestatement because I'm worried about
it. So what can we do? How dowe stop these silent money drains
and confidently ensure thatevery single subscription serves
your budget? And hey, here'sanother thought. Serves your values
well. Your single solutiontoday is this. Intentionally conduct
a thorough review of all yourrecurring subscriptions and memberships.

(05:47):
And then I just want you toidentify those, or maybe those ones
that are no longer servingyour values. And then I want you
to cancel or, or negotiatethem. Now talk about that in a second,
because you can also do thatto reclaim those lost funds. And
hey, in the end, that'sproactive financial hygiene. Yes,
we can do hygiene for ourfinances. So here's your one action

(06:07):
step for today. And our biggoal is to reclaim money from unused
subscription. Like I said, I'mguilty of this as well. So my first
thing I'm going to encourageyou to do, and this is something
that I think all of us can do,is list all your recurring subscriptions.
Have you ever gone throughyour bank account or credit card
statements and looked at allthose subscriptions you have? I actually,

(06:28):
as I was preparing for today'sshow, I thought, hey, this is really
a good exercise that everybodyshould do. And that is just make
a list of those things. Hey,maybe whenever you add one, maybe
you have a rule, I got to takeone off, but at least have a list
of those. So to start today, Iwant you to list every single recurring
subscription or every singlemembership fee. And don't even, don't
miss any of them, even thesmall ones, because, hey, like I

(06:50):
said, $3, $5, 7 doll add up tobig dollars. So start by listing
them. Second thing I'm goingto do is encourage you to rate their
value. Yeah, this is your timeto give them a rating. Ask yourself
honestly this question. Do Iactively use this service? I asked
this of myself when I saw thison my credit card statement. I said,
do I really use this? Truthis, I hadn't used it in 18 months.

(07:13):
Why am I paying for this?That's the first question. And then
ask yourself another question.Does it truly bring me value or align
with my values? Hey, if youwant to go check out an episode,
check out episode 184. Italked all about aligning your spending
with your values. And askyourself this question. This is the
one that really sent me for aloop, and that is this. Would I sign

(07:35):
up for this today? And justgive yourself a quick yes, no, or
hey, I'm gonna give you alittle hedge. I say maybe, because
at least at this point. Solist those things out. Give yourself
a yes, no, or maybe. And thenhere's the empowering part. I want
you to cancel one of thoseunused subscriptions. Hey, maybe
you cancel a lot of them, butjust identify one, at least one of

(07:56):
those subscriptions that yourated. No. Or maybe. Or maybe you
just don't use it anymore. Youdon't value that. And then I want
you to make the commitment tocanceling it today. Hey, do it today.
Don't say, hey, you know what?I made that list, Ralph, but I just
kind of never got around todoing it. No, cancel today login.
Find that cancellation buttonand. And follow through, because
that immediate action is goingto give you a win. I'm just going

(08:19):
to tell you ahead of time, youmight be on the phone a little bit,
because a lot of thesecompanies are wise to this. They
know you set it and forget it.So you may have to go through their
retention people, but juststay strong. You can do it. Now,
while you're there, here's oneof my little pro tips you could do.
You could consider negotiatingit. Maybe it's one of those maybe
things. You're like, nah, I dosee some value here, but it's gotten

(08:39):
expensive. You know, I've beena loyal customer for years. I actually
did this with satellite radioin one of my vehicles. I said, you
know what? I don't really useit that often. So I called to cancel
it and they said, well, let meput you on. Of course, they put you
on the phone with theseretention specials. Here's what these
people are trained to do. Andthey said, oh, you know, Ralph, you
really want to keep this? Isaid, okay, well, what are my options?

(09:02):
Well, all Of a sudden, thissubscription, listen to this one.
This subscription, that wouldhave been, I don't know, call it
$20 a month. And hey, if yousign up for a year in advance, listen
to this deal, I'll give it toyou for five bucks a month. Now,
of course, I ended up saying,okay, fine, I'll do it for another
year. Now, be careful of thatbecause then you got to put that
back on your list and makesure you look at it. But, hey, I

(09:22):
was able to negotiate and savesome money, and it was a service
that I still kind of used, soit was okay to do that. Now you might
be saying, Ralph, well, howdoes this help? Well, one of the
things I really, truly believethat it does, it fights that struggle
of that money silentlyslipping away. Listen, these little
nickel and dime things, youdon't even realize they're gone.
But then you get that creditcard statement, you're like, wow,

(09:42):
my balance just keeps ongrowing. And if you do what I said
today, you're going toidentify those hidden budget leaks
and free up those resources toreclaim some funds. And here's what
you could do with that money.You could pay off debts you could
save, and, hey, maybe even dosome more giving. And it empowers
greater control and peace overthose recurring expenses. Well, how

(10:03):
about we pray together? FatherGod, we just thank you for the resources
that you provide. And weconfess that we often allow subscriptions,
Lord, to drain our budget, andthey drain them silently. And it
really does lead to waste whenwe're honest about it. So we ask
that you grant us wisdom,Lord, to manage our recurring expenses,
diligently help us to identifythose things and cancel services

(10:23):
that no longer serve ourvalues, Lord, that is so important.
Or maybe they don't serve ourneeds anymore. And give us strength
to reclaim those lost funds.And, Lord, truly redirect them to
your purposes. And may ourfinances reflect your order and wise
stewardship. And we ask thisboldly, in confidence in Jesus name,

(10:43):
Amen. Listen, activemanagement of your subscriptions
is a powerful way to savemoney and boost your budget health.
It's truly a hygienicactivity. So take that step today
to review your list. Cancelone of those unused subscription
services, or, hey, maybenegotiate it to a better rate because
you're moving towards truefreedom. And now I want to ask you

(11:05):
to do me a favor. If thisepisode has resonated with you, I
really would like you toconsider sharing it with someone
who might need to hear it. Youcan find all of our resources financiallyconfidentchristian.com
so you can say, hey, I heardthis guy Ralph, and he's got a great
idea about thesesubscriptions. Send them a text.
Send him an email. Maybe inyour, in your group, or maybe you

(11:25):
got a women's group or, or aBible study group. Just say, hey,
you really should check outthis podcast. He really does a great
job. Pat myself on the back.Well, tomorrow we're going to be
talking about with coolerweather approaching. Now, I'm assuming
you're in a place where theweather gets cooler. If you're not,
well, we can still talk aboutthis. Are we talking about another
common expense, and that ishow to prepare for higher fall and

(11:46):
winter utility bills with somemoney and energy saving tips and
to keep your home comfortablewithout breaking the bank. Had this
discussion with my son. He'smoving into his first apartment and
he said, dad, how do I planfor this? Well, we're going to talk
about that on tomorrow's show,so make sure you join me. Now, let's
all go out there and befinancially confident Christians.
You can do this. I truly haveconfidence in you. Have some confidence

(12:10):
in yourself. Stay financiallysavvy. God bless you. And you have
a great day today.
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