Your Financial Actions Have Consequences, Good & Bad
Some of you read this title & thought, “Okay, Mom. Duh.” But do we really understand that all of our actions have consequences? There was a time, about four years ago, when I basically thought I was financially invincible. I spent money how I wanted, paid bills late, spent money I didn’t have on credit cards I couldn’t pay off, & virtually ruined my own health & happiness in the process.
God was not pleased.
However, He never beats us over the head or begrudgingly gives us His wrath. No, He patiently prods us & nudges our hearts until we decide that we’ve had enough of ourselves & start surrendering to Him.
“For the Lord disciplines those He loves, and chastises each son whom He receives.” - Hebrews 12:6, ESV
Thank God for chastisement, correction, & a little kick-in-the-tail every once in a while, because He disciplines those He LOVES. If you are feeling convicted about your finances at this point in your life, good! God loves you.
Many of you know that about four years ago, I started a clothing business using credit cards & got into over $20,000 of debt with no real plan to pay it off. Ironically, I had a pretty good credit score at the time, which is why I was able to secure such an amount!
Fast forward a year after starting the business: The business was actually doing pretty well! I made a significant amount of money in gross revenue (the entire amount of sales) but didn’t really have any profit (what’s left after expenses) to show for it. In fact, I just had a bunch of debt, obviously.
I was still working a regular 9-5 job & was suddenly let go. Shortly after, my husband was also between jobs. So I had all this debt, no money coming in, & a bunch of inventory I needed to sell in order to pay off some of the debt. Talk about a scary & stressful time in our lives!
You know that eventually, we paid off the debt, but not without some of the credit cards going to collections. I was able to settle some of the debt with the companies. My goal was to pay what I actually put on the credit cards myself minus interest and all the late payment fees. However, once a debt is sent to collections, it severely affects your credit score.
Now there’s a lot of nuance about credit scores and why they matter, why they don’t, but I’ll have to save that conversation for a later date. The point is: My credit was destroyed.
Why am I sharing all this? Because my credit is still not great, after all these years! Even though we are now living debt-free, have a fully-funded emergency savings account, pay our bills on time, & live well below our means, I’m still paying for my actions from years ago!
My actions were not without consequences.
I don’t want you to leave today feeling like your situation is hopeless, because it is not. Many of us have done things in our past that we are still feeling the consequences of today.
A marital problem from the past
A relationship was broken because of a misunderstanding
A lost job because of a mistake you made
A step away from God because of guilt & shame from something that happened years ago.
Whatever it is, God is gracious, faithful, & able to forgive.
You do not have to be downtrodden for the rest of your life. You can admit that there was a problem in the past, ask God to forgive you, repent (turn away) from your sin or struggle, & press toward your calling in Jesus Christ.
Here are a few things you can do to get on, or continue on, the straight & narrow with your finances:
Realize that there is a problem!
I think this one goes without saying but just in case you need another nudge: Nothing gets fixed unless we deal with it & come to terms with it. Period.
Ask God for forgiveness.
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful & just to forgive us our sins & to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” - 1 John 1:9, ESV.
Repent.
Repenting means to turn fully away from our sin or past life. An about-face, or 180-degree turn in the right direction. Repentance is a necessary part of our every day lives as Christians. Make it a part of your financial life too.
Get real with yourself!
If you aren’t sure where your money is going every month or have kind of let your financial plans go a bit, I challenge you to print out (yes, literally) at least three months of your bank statements & look at where & what every single penny was spent on. Some of you are already cringing, but it is a necessary step so that you can really see where your money is going and if it is in alignment with your values.
Get on a budget!
Give yourself some grace & room to work on your budget. A budget is just a spending plan-you telling your money where it needs to go! It gives you permission to spend money because you have a plan for it.
Keep pressing on & keep the faith.
There will be days that you feel like giving up, giving in, but in order to be good at anything, we have to keep doing it. Your budget is going to stink the first few times you do it! That’s okay! Keep trying, refining, & getting on with your bad self! LOL.
You CAN do this. I believe in you & so does Jesus!
Keep the faith, my friend.