Are You Really Doing Okay (Money wise)?
Recently, I’ve been really examining my financial situation, and I have come to realize that I’m in some really bad shape. Poor stewardship over the years and a lack of understanding of what God’s Word says about money have really caught up to me. Not all of this is my fault (although I take complete responsibility for my actions) because I live in a society that demands to have everything now and pay for it later and, in spite of God’s warnings, I fell into the same line of thinking. My parents tried to teach me some things about money, but looking back I realize that they didn’t really have a biblical understanding on the matter either.
One of the things that I came to realize is that no matter how much money one earns, if they have debt they really don’t have as much as they think. Let me give an example. Let’s say I earn $250,000 per year in exchange for my labor. Let’s say I have a mortgage for $650,000, an auto loan for $40,000, and credit card loans for $15,000. (These numbers aren’t unreasonable. I just ran some calculations on a mortgage qualifier calculator and based on the income, car payment and credit card payment, it calculates that I would qualify for an $805,000 mortgage.) But if we add all of those debts up, it comes to $705,000…of debt! Now since I earn $250,000 for my labor (don’t forget that the government lays claim to a portion of it) and I owe $705,000, am I really well off? I would say absolutely not!
How have we, as a society, come to be so debt ridden? How have we, as Christians, come to ignore what God’s Word says about debt (Proverbs 22:7) and owing people money (Romans 13:8)? Why have we ignored the warnings in our Father’s Word when He tells us not to go into debt (Deuteronomy15:6 and 28:12) and those who do become servants to the lender? Why have we accepted the shackles that come with borrowing money? There are many reasons I’m sure, but when we boil it down what’s left is probably greed and coveteousness (which is idolatry Colossians 3:5).
I know that I have both in my heart, and as a child of God, I am asking Him to help me see my sinfulness in this area, and I am repenting of it. I’m thankful to Him for showing me that I have been erring and that He is now teaching me His ways regarding money. (Psalm 25:4-5)
The Debt-Free Man
One of the challenges of being a man is wisely handling the money God has given us stewardship over. Each of us is required to be responsible and make wise decisions on what to do with that money. Jesus talked about that in the Parable of the Talents. (Matthew 25:14-30)
Recently, I have really come to realize that having debt is terrible stewardship. I always knew in the back of my mind that we are not supposed to owe anyone anything, but I never really applied it. Well, now I am. I have really come to realize that I have enslaved myself to others by borrowing money from them, voluntarily! I’m not just talking about credit cards; I’m talking about every aspect of borrowing money, from credit cards, to auto loans, to even the mortgage for our home. I am a servant to every person or corporation from whom I have borrowed money.
God’s word declares: The rich rule over the poor and the borrower is servant to the lender. (Proverbs 22:7)
I had read that many times, quoted it many times, but I never really had it sink in and be real to me. I had always thought that yes, that’s a great principle, but I didn’t take God’s word for what it truly says, “The borrower is servant to the lender.” If you have ever had trouble paying your debt on time, then you know the feeling of the phone calls and the late notices from your creditors. It feels like they own you.
We are now doing everything we can to get out of debt bondage. We are starting to see that when we decide to borrow money instead of waiting for God’s provision, then we really don’t trust Him to provide; we trust a corporation to provide for us financially… but for a price.
