Mike and Leslie Arbise--
Leslie and I have been on a journey through...the Valley of the Shadow of Debt.
Leslie:
I went to college to "find myself", and instead I found $30,000 in student loans, $20,000 in credit card debt and a spending habit that was hard to break. I was very insecure and looking for the promise of happiness, love and fulfillment that I saw portrayed in magazine Ads and TV commercials. Money never bought me what I was looking for, nor did it bring happiness, love or fulfillment. However, it DID bring me years of debt (of which 13yrs later I am still repaying), feelings of hopelessness and helplessness, depression and anxiety, and panic attacks.
Two years after graduating from college, I got married and thought, "I'll never have to worry about finances again." That was until I realized that my new husband had the same money problems I did. Both of us loved to spend money, and neither of us knew how to save it or manage it. We both had lots of experience mismanaging it. And the bottom line
we had no clue, nor did we care, what God had to say about handling money.
Together, we continued to fail in handling our finances. We bought a timeshare, a couple of cars, ate out whenever we wanted to, took vacations and gave gifts with money that we did not have. We were spending much more then we made. We continued to spiral downward in mismanagement and upward in debt. Finally, we realized we were powerless over our spending habits. Then, we admitted to God that we were powerless and finally gave control of our finances to Him. We asked Him to help us and decided to put our trust in Him to provide our needs. We cut up some credit cards, committed to tithe and created a budget. It was amazing to watch God's economy at work. He could do so much more with 90% of our income than we could ever do with 100%. We even developed a "Wants and Needs List" to bring our requests to God and keep track of his provision in our lives. He has met many of those needs, and even a few wants, AND many of the items were provided FREE of charge. We also established an accountability relationship with a Crown Financial Ministries Budget Coach. He helps us gain clarity and objectivity with our budget and financial goals. And more importantly, he helps us avoid rationalizing our way into more new debt.
Mike:
After we got married in 1999, we owed nearly $40,000 in credit card debt and unsecured bank loans. To date, we've paid back over $33,000 on these debts and $31,000 on other debts including Student Loans, Car Loans, the TimeShare and our Home Mortgage.
Yeah God.
Some of the key steps that helped us get out of debt and brought us toward a restored relationship with God included:
Realizing that God had the power to restore us, that He could use our weaknesses to help others, and that He had the ability to solve our financial problems if we would just let Him.
Tithing.
Creating a realistic budget and actually following it.
Establishing a Savings account and Creating Savings Goals.
Committing to NO NEW DEBT!
Making a Debt Repayment Plan.
Using Cash for some of our budget categories.
Selling what we could.
Seeking the Accountability and Support of a Small Group.
Seeking Godly Counsel.
Communicating as a couple about our finances.
Establishing financial goals.
Regularly reviewing our budget together.
Not giving up even when we felt overwhelmed and discouraged.
Having a Sense of Humor!
And most importantly, putting God 1st in the equation.
The biggest transformation for me in this journey is that I've become very passionate about this topic and about giving others the opportunity to learn God's wisdom on finances. As a part of this journey, Blake asked us to research stewardship programs for Hope Church. After looking at many different programs, we chose Crown Financial Ministries, a ministry created by Larry Burkett and Howard Dayton.
We have been so blessed to watch God use the Crown Programs to work in the lives of others. I'm so thankful that God has used our pain and weakness to give hope and strength to others who struggle with their finances. However, this is a topic everyone can benefit from, not just those who are struggling. We all have to make financial decisions. God knew this, and He knew that we would need instruction in this area, so He gave us over 2,350 verses in the Bible regarding the topic of money. In fact, the only other topic He talks more about in the Bible is Love. The topic of Money not only deals with finances, but, more importantly, it deals with and reveals the condition of our hearts. God is more concerned about our hearts than our wallets. And once we figure this out, we have begun the path of True Stewardship.
It is my hope that you will get passionate about your finances and enroll in one of our Sunday Morning classes, seminars, or small groups. However, it is important that we all become good stewards with what God has entrusted to us.
The Mission of the Stewardship Ministry at Hope Church is:
To teach people God's financial principles in order for them to know Christ more intimately and be free to serve him.
I am thankful for this opportunity to share our experience. I am hopeful that you will be inspired and encouraged to Discover God's Way of Handling money.
"I know what it is to be in need and I know what it is to have plenty. I've learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well-fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do everything through Him who gives me strength." Philippians 4:12-13 (NIV)
We realize now that everything else is worthless, except for our relationship with Jesus Christ and that he accepts us RIGHT WHERE WE ARE.
"Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the priceless gain of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. I have put aside all else, counting it worth LESS than nothing, in order that I can have Christ, and become one with him, no longer counting on being saved by being good enough or by obeying God's laws, but by trusting Christ to save me; for God's way of making us right with himself depends on faith counting on Christ alone." Philippians 3:8-9 (LB)
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