Fiscal Sanity

Image by Andrew Bardwell

Debt is a prison that many of us voluntarily walk into.  That is how a trap works; we walk into it based upon some lure.  We see something we want, (ignoring warning signs of danger) we go get it, and we suffer.  Debt represents all the money you owe and have not yet paid back, so when you owe money to someone you essentially become their slave (Proverbs 22:7).


Creditcards.com states that the average American household owes more than $15,000 on their credit cards. Furthermore, the ongoing housing crisis is devouring many families, and few have any savings for retirement.  Can you escape these traps, or are you doomed to eventually be swept up in the random nature of the business cycle?  Now that you are a legal adult, you are allowed to enter into contracts, but beware that contracts are binding.  If you make a bad choice here, your parents can’t get you out of the contract.  


Credit cards offers are going to be available everywhere you go, and you need to be very careful because some of the contracts will cost you money even if you do not use the credit card.  Those freebees and gifts offered by credit card vendors can lead to serous debt.  A lot of people put down false information on the application to get free stuff, but it isn’t worth the compromise of your values for a free Frisbee or t-shirt.  At this phase in your life, you should avoid credit cards.  


You do not need to walk into debt, but folks tend to run up the bill as long as additional credit is issued.  They have lost the sense of the enormity of their debt and give up all hope of paying things off.  The bottom line is that when you borrow money you have an obligation to pay for it because taking something without paying for it is stealing.  Jesus’ most talked about topic is money, so you can learn much about how to handle yourself financially when you live according to the Word of God.