Ever feel like debt is chasing you down?

No matter how hard you try, it's just always there.

It's lurking in unopened bills and those missed calls, and

in those sleepless nights.

Today we stop running.

We take the bravest first step, and that's getting crystal

clear on exactly what you owe.

Hey there.

Welcome back to your Daily Ask Ralph.

I'm Ralph.

Thank you for your courage in joining me again today as we shift

gears in our series, the Joy.

Of living below your means.

We are still laser focused on our mission of breaking the cycle of

financial shame with confidence.

Now, as you know, we spent the last several days talking

about how to spend wisely.

Today we start a brand new focus debt, not as a shameful thing to hide, but as

a burden we can bring into the light.

Let's be honest, for many debt isn't just numbers, it's stress.

It's that fear, it's guilt, it's shame.

Maybe you avoid checking your balances.

Yeah, you might know the minimum payment, but you don't understand the

total amount owed or the interest rates that are just stealing your future.

Things like credit cards, medical bills, student loans, car payments, it all adds

up until you feel like you're drowning.

But here's the thing, you can't fight What you refuse to face.

You can't fight what you refuse to face.

The book of Ephesians five tells us everything exposed

by the light becomes visible.

And Proverbs 28 says, whoever conceals their sins does not

prosper, but the one who confesses and renounces them finds mercy.

What profitable scripture today?

So today we shine a light, not to shame, but to free, because what's brought into

the light can be healed in the light.

So here's your most important step today.

Get clear, get honest, and get it all down.

I want you to make a master list of your debts, every single one.

Maybe not your home mortgage for now.

We'll, we'll set that aside.

Overall, this is about courageous clarity, and let me just tell you something.

Clarity is power.

You need to know who you owe.

You need to know what you owe, and you need to know what it's costing you and

what it's demanding every single month.

And I can still remember working with a couple who hadn't looked

at their total debt in five years.

He just kept making those minimum payments and living with that constant anxiety.

When they sat down and wrote it all out, I'm talking about

every card, every single loan.

They cried.

They cried.

Not because the numbers were small, they cried because they finally had a

starting point, and for the first time in years, they had hope and that hope.

That's what I want for you today.

I want you to find 30 or 60 minutes this week.

Make some space, pray first if you need to, and then I want you to do this.

Step one, I want you to gather all your documents.

I want you to find every statement.

I want you to find the credit cards, the store cards, the

medical bills, the student loans.

The car loans, the payday loans, the personal loans.

Any money owed to family or friends, find it all.

Maybe you look online or just get the paper out.

Just get them.

The second step is to create a list.

You can use a notebook, you can use a spreadsheet, or if you want, you can

use a budgeting app, and I want you to create columns for these things.

I want you to create a column for the creditor's name, a column

for the total balance owed a column for the interest rate.

A column for the minimum monthly payment.

Alright, the next thing I want you to do, step three, is fill it in.

I want you to go statement by statement and fill it all

into what you just created.

Be thorough and be brave.

It might take some, braveness here.

Step four, I want you to order it by balance.

So once it's all in that sheet, sort your list from the

smallest to the largest balance.

'cause this is gonna set you up for the debt snowball method,

which we'll talk about soon.

Now I hear you already.

You are like Ralph.

Man, that's tough and, and this might feel heavy, but remember, it's not the weight

of shame, it's the weight of freedom being built because when you list it all out,

you've already begun your comeback story.

And remember what's brought into the light can be healed in the light.

Let's pray together.

Father God Debt can feel like such a heavy burden.

I lift up my friend listening right now who is carrying this weight.

Create them supernatural courage and peace as they take this crucial step

today to list out all their debts.

Free them from shame or fear, Lord, and remind them that your grace

is enough and that you walk with them through this entire process.

Give them clarity, Lord, give them strength and give them hope.

Lord, may this moment of truth be the beginning of a journey towards

true financial freedom in you.

And we ask this in Jesus' name.

Amen.

Alright, well take a deep breath.

You've got this.

I have confidence in you.

This is the bravest, clearest, most powerful step that you can take.

So go gather those statements.

Sit with the numbers, face the facts, 'cause remember

what's brought into the light.

Can be healed in the light.

So now that you've faced the facts, a question, many ask is, should I keep using

credit cards while I'm paying off debt?

How do we stop digging the hole deeper while working to climb out?

Well, join me tomorrow on Ask Ralph as we dive into that next essential step.

So until then, stay courageous.

Stay faithful.

Stay financially confident.

God bless you, and you can go to our new website.

It's at financially confident christian.com.

There's all kinds of resources there as we're breaking the cycle of

financial shame together and becoming financially confident Christians.

Stay financially savvy out there and have a great day today.