Crushing Fear – Day 36 – Debt

Posted March 24, 2021 - Debt, Fear


Some debts are fun when you are acquiring them, but none are fun when you set about retiring them.

— Ogden Nash —

Thought

As noted in yesterday’s reading, the enemy tries his best to convince us to fill any and all holes in our soul with things from the world.

The enemy loves for us to become overextended financially because there is a certain amount of stress created from this state of being…been there done that.

Debt in America is a huge problem as statistics show the average American holds 50% more debt today than a decade ago, and the number continues to rise.

Look Back

When I crashed and burned at the age of 28, we were carrying significant debt and actually lived off of credit cards for the first couple of years of my sobriety while we got our feet back under us. (I created the debt–not my wife).

A key part of my recovery included getting out of debt because the fears associated with debt were dangerous to my sobriety.

Once I was able to go back to work full time, my wife and I decided our first step in getting out of debt was to begin giving 10% of our earnings back to our church and others in need. I know this doesn’t make sense, but I’ve found God doesn’t always make sense. If you want to grow your faith–try doing all the “nonsensical” things God tells you to do. 🙂

After faithfully tithing (giving at least 10% of our earnings to God and His people) and reducing our debt over a twenty-year period, the feeling I had when my wife and I said good-bye to debt forever was better than any feeling any drug ever gave me during my dark days as an addict.

Solution

If you are drowning in debt and don’t know where to start, try this:

  1. Give at least 10% of your income to God, whether it be a church or a cause that helps His people. DO THIS FIRST.
  2. Write down all your expenses and then compare them to your income.
  3. You will need to reduce your expenses and/or increase your income so that your expenses make up no more than 80% of your income.
  4. Take 10% of what is leftover and save it for a rainy day.
  5. But most importantly, begin filling the void in your soul with God through prayer instead of things.
  6. Also, check out www.crown.org.

Luke 14:28 (NIV), “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower.  Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it.”

Reflection:

What beliefs, thoughts, and actions cause you to struggle with debt?

Additional Scripture to read and reflect upon:  Proverbs 22:7, Romans 13:8, 1 Timothy 6:10

P.E.A.C.E.

Jay@EagleLaunch.com

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