the pastoral family and money (part2)

getting out of debt

The average American has more than 3 credit cards and is over $16,000 in debt! Sadly, Christians and pastoral families are often in the same boat with everyone else.

Just a few decades ago, if you wanted a car, you saved until you could buy one. If you wanted a house, you saved up for a big downpayment. If you wanted a new pair of shoes, you had to have cash in hand.

Now, if we let him, my 7-month old son could open a credit card and go on a spending spree.

Debt is bondage. Solomon knew that way back when he wrote "...the borrower is a slave to the lender." (Proverbs 22:7) The bible urges us over and over to be debt-free, and to live within our means. That can be a real challenge - especially when pastors don't usually make a lot of money.

About 5 years ago, my PH and I decided to get out of debt. We had the average American credit card balance, plus a car payment, school loans and a mortgage. We got on board with one of the great bible-based money management programs out there called "Total Money Makeover" and changed how we looked at spending money.

Since then, we lived on beans and rice for a while, and paid off our credit cards, cars, and so on. We're selling our house (since we moved to a new church district anyway), and put a big dent in the school loans. It's tough at the moment, because I'm not earning a paycheck since our little guy came along last year, but having a cash-only mindset made the transition to living on one salary MUCH easier!

We've cultivated habits of watching for sales, clipping coupons, buying in bulk, and skipping pricey indulgences - and it has made a huge difference!

What about you?
Have you decided to go biblical and be debt-free?
How did you do it?
How does your family model biblical money management as spiritual leaders?

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