Reverend Billy is a comical Reverend from the US. He runs the "Church Of Stop Shopping". Yes, this is really what it is called. He travels around the US preaching the values of thriftiness and getting out of debt. Plus, he sings songs on why you should get rid of your credit card and go on a budget.

Each Christmas he does a televised sermon on YouTube and the one prior to Christmas 2007 was a particularly great one. While I still can't quite work out if this is a real church or a joke, who cares? The message is great and anyone helping other people with their budgeting problems is a good thing.

He also refers to the shopocalypse, which is his church's version of the apocalypse.

Reverend Billy: "Welcome children to the Church of Stop Shopping and our Christmas special. I'm Reverend Billy. It's time we stood up to the axis of consumer evil:

1. Corporations

2. Advertising

3. Credit cards

First of all don't labour under the misapprehension that you are just a consumer at Christmas. No. We are being CON–sumed at Christmas time. We are roasted and basted like a goose, like a Christmas goose.

The advertising. Here come the four supermodels of the shopocalypse.

Are we people or are we sheeple? That's what led to the shopocalypse.

Ok children, I know what you're thinking. What about that Christmas sale, Reverend? What about that deal? I want to get thirteen pairs of panties for $1. What about that gingerbread latte? It's just like Christmas in my tummy. It's like drinking Dickens. No, child!

I know some of you want to reach out for that new XBox 360. The graphics. The special effects. It's just like crazy, it's just like real life.

Children let's play together. Put your hand on your television. Put your hand on your computer. Let's pray together now. Start giving. Stop shopping. Start loving. Stop shopping."

Funny, powerful stuff. To see more of the Reverend in action go to www.revbilly.com.

Are you tracking your super year to year? Each time the statement comes in don't just throw it in the bin. Make a note of how much it has gone up or down. Record how much your boss paid into it for the year. Then compare all this with last year's result. In Australia you are now free and easily able to change over your super accounts. If your fund is getting below average returns you can now switch and find a better performing one.

Once a year you need to check your credit report. There are mistakes on credit reports all the time and it can be extremely hard to prove that they were not yours. Consider it like just getting a full dental check up once a year. While your teeth might feel fine, it's always good to make sure there are no underlying problems. It's the same for your credit report. And it's free so there is no excuse. Simply Google 'Australian free credit reports'.

Are you getting paid below what you should be for your industry? You can compare two similar companies in the same industry. One company will pay extremely well and the other for doing the same job will pay extremely poorly. If you haven't looked at your pay rate in a while compared to the same positions in your industry, the Internet can make it so easy to find out the common wage. You may be missing out and need to talk to your employer about a pay rise.