Hey, friends!
We just made our final debt payment toward our non-student loan consumer debt, and now after 22 months of doing Dave Ramsey’s baby steps, we are “non-student loan consumer debt free.” I know that sounds funny, but our debt was so big and our income so small at the beginning of this journey that it helped us to look at it that way! We aren’t totally debt free yet… that will come next after we pay off our student loans!
We started Dave Ramsey’s program in January of 2019 after reading The Total Money Makeover. We had just started talking about having our third baby, and we realized that we honestly couldn’t even afford the extra $200 it would take to buy a car seat, let alone the medical bills and other expenses that having a third baby would entail. We were super sad. There was a lot of guilt and shame that I felt about the state of our finances, and especially having a lot of credit card debt, and we carried this constant burden of stress about finances. I remember just standing in the shower and feeling so trapped by debt that a hopelessness began to come over me. But then God reminded me that no matter what mistakes we had made with finances, that he was there with us and all we needed to do was ask him for help and He would direct our steps.
“The heart of man plans his way, but the LORD establishes his steps.” -Proverbs 16:9
“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” -1 Peter 5:7
We sat down, prayed together, and committed ourselves to Dave Ramsey’s plan and to God’s will for our finances. At that point, we barely had $100 of extra money at the end of the month, so we did everything we could think of to accomplish Baby Step 1. Then, we took all of the advice we would find from the Debt Free Community and started working like crazy people! In 22 months, we have paid off $80,000 of debt which included our cars, our iPhones, computers, iPad, a signature loan, seven credit cards, a lot of medical bills, and one student loan! I remember looking at that mountain of debt and thinking that it would be forever until we would even be past the first part and begin to really pay onto our student loans. Well, here we are 22 months later and I can personally tell you that it wasn’t forever. It was 22 months! And the time passes by either way, so we are choosing to work hard and make the most of it.
I am sharing this because it was about this time 2 years ago that we were at our most stressful place financially. Christmas was coming up, we had spent money that we didn’t have, and we knew we needed to make a change. If you are in that place right now, pray and ask God to take charge over your finances. Ask him to restore this area of your life. Isaiah 61 is one of my very favorite chapters in the Bible, but I especially love verse 7 when thinking about finances.
“Instead of your shame you will receive a double portion, and instead of disgrace you will rejoice in your inheritance. And so you will inherit a double portion in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours.” -Isaiah 61:7
If you feel hopeless about finances and want to make a change in 2021, I encourage you to order the Total Money Makeover, research the Baby Steps, and most of all, invite God to change this area of your life like only He can. I know that for us, it has been an incredible blessing and we are never going back! Our mindset has totally shifted. We still have a hefty student loan debt to pay off, but I no longer feel hopeless and I have no doubt that God will provide for us as we work diligently to knock it out!
Here are some resources that you can click on if you want more information:
A lot of great information: Dave Ramsey’s Website
What to do to get started: The 7 Baby Steps
The book that changed our lives: The Total Money Makeover
A really encouraging hashtag to follow on Instagram: The Debt Free Community
A class we took at our church and loved: Financial Peace University
