Average Canadian Debt is….What?!

calculatorI was shocked to find out recently that the average individual Canadian consumer debt is over $27,000. And it’s on the increase! This figure does not include mortgage debt. The study was done by the folks at TransUnion. I first read the article on the Globe and Mail’s website. It was also reported by Macleans.

I really couldn’t believe it. In fact, I had to read the information a couple times to make sure that I was not misunderstanding the facts. $27,335.00 is a lot of money. It’s a lot of debt.

While I haven’t researched the debt owed by Christians, I would not be surprised if it wasn’t much different.

Here’s three reasons to become debt free.

  1. Being debt free pleases God. The Bible says that we are to owe no man anything except to love one another (Romans 13:8).
  2. Being debt free brings emotional freedom. You are not weighed down with the pressure of having to work to pay off your credit cards and loans.
  3. Being debt free opens many ministry doors. If every Christian that owed $27,335.00 was debt free, that $27k per person could be pumped into ministry. Imagine there were even five people at your church that had $27k of expendable income. Suppose they give half of it to the church. That’s $68337.50! That’s a new ministry. That’s a new staff person. That’s new clothes for the homeless and food for the poor. That’s clean water in Asia or Africa. That’s sponsored children. That’s salvation!

If you are in debt, please make a commitment to get out. It certainly won’t happen overnight. It won’t be easy; but it will be worth it!

Here’s how you can be debt free.

  1. Make the commitment. Pray and ask God for help. Talk to your spouse or close friends and have them hold you accountable.
  2. Live on a budget. Use the envelope system. Take the cash out of the bank that you need for the month. Divide it up according to your expenses, such as food, shelter, gas, etc.. Place it in your envelopes and pay cash as you go. For more detailed info, check out the link below “Dave Ramsey’s Guide to Budgeting.”
  3. Cut up your credit cards.
  4. Come up with a plan to pay off your debt. Here’s how.
  5. Stick to it!

Here’s a link to download Dave Ramsey’s Guide to Budgeting. It’s a great place to get you started.

Here’s some more resources to check out.

Your Money Counts by Howard Dayton of Crown Financial Ministries
The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey
The New Master Your Money: A Step-by-Step Plan for Gaining and Enjoying Financial Freedom by Ron Blue and Chuck Swindoll

Are you debt free? How’d you do it?

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