Charges that lead to a debt row sentence

One of the many risks of charging to credit cards is that if most people aren’t attentive to their spending, often you can run up more debt than you can pay for. Recently there has been a lot of talk in the news about a proposed amendment to the financial reform bill before Congress that would have imposed states' usury limits on national banks that issue credit cards, but no matter what the laws are, if you are one of those with high debt, you may need help dealing with your payments before it leads a unmanageable debt sentence.

Throughout the recession, some consumers have had difficulty paying off their credit card debt. That trend continued through April, according to a recent report. In another report, credit card defaults were the most common for all age groups. Young married couples in the same segment had even higher rates of defaults on debts than single counterparts

Many people do not realize that money borrowed today has to be repaid tomorrow - with interest, of course. With debt, you will have reduced freedom in the future. Opportunities may knock, but you won't have the freedom to take advantange.

The credit card market is full of card tricks and you need to play your cards right in order not to get trumped. Here are five basic keys to financial success:

1. Understand the scriptural principles. Your involvement in this series show you've made a commitment to know His will for your financial life.

2. Adopt a non-consumptive lifestyle. Live simply, frugally. Make saving a priority to enable you to reach the financial goals He sets before you.

3. Avoid the use of debt. As we've seen, nothing is more destructive to your financial health than debt.

4. Keep your liquidity high. As we'll see in Session 4 (of the DVD), a wise investor follows a step-by-step strategy. The first steps involve making sure you have adequate emergency funds (liquid assets) you can use quickly.

5. Set long-term goals. In our next session we'll learn how to set goals that are achievable. Because if you aim at nothing, you'll hit it every time.

Action Item:

Look again at those five keys listed above. Put a checkmark beside the ones you feel you are currently following. Are you satisfied with the number of checkmarks?

The Bible does show many ways to overcome any financial crisis. Many of these principles are laid out in our successful course, the Scriptural Financial Freedom series. To learn more, you can download the Small Groups kit from our estore.

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