Who's Your Master?

Proverbs 22:7 says “The poor are always ruled over by the rich, so don’t borrow and put yourself under their power”. (Message Version) Another version reads…..”and the lender is slave to the borrower.” (NIV)

I didn’t want to use this scripture but it was the closest thing to understanding the bondage of debt. It paints a picture of what happens once we accept money from a lender. Most of us are so focused on the thing we want, that we don’t stop and count the cost. The point I want to drive home in this blog is the fact that whoever you’ve borrowed money from (e.g., Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Salley Mae, etc.) essentially has POWER over you and to some level is your master. You may think this is an exaggeration but consider this... You get up everyday and work hard to pay off a car note, house note, school loan, credit card bills, etc. and if you don’t pay it back there are serious consequences. Either they’ll take the product back if you don’t pay for it or they’ll ruin your credit. So who really has the power? They do. I understand that we may have to get a loan to buy a car, go to school and get a home. However, why take 30 years to pay off the home when we can put a plan together to pay it off sooner! Or why not start saving more cash so we can pay for large purchases in cash?

There are many people I know that have jobs or careers that they don’t even enjoy but because of the debt they are tied to it. I seriously want you to imagine your life without owing anyone a dime. The problem is we have been programmed to think that debt is inevitable so most, not all, can’t even fathom what being debt free looks like. Just imagine, all of your money going to savings. Or just picture being able to have the freedom to walk away from a career you no longer enjoy in order to take a risk pursuing your passion! Imagine being able to give more to others in need!

This week, I want you to meditate for 15 minutes at least 3 days on what it would be like to be debt free. Write a list all the things you would do if you had NO DEBT. I also want you to take a 3 x 5 note card and write DEBT FREE on it and post it somewhere you can see it on a daily basis as a constant reminder that you can, and you will be debt free!