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Ever feel like debt is chasing you down?

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

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

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in those sleepless nights.

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Today we stop running.

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

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clear on exactly what you owe.

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Hey there.

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Welcome back to your Daily Ask Ralph.

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I'm Ralph.

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

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gears in our series, the Joy.

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Of living below your means.

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

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financial shame with confidence.

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

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about how to spend wisely.

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

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a burden we can bring into the light.

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

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

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Maybe you avoid checking your balances.

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

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

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

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up until you feel like you're drowning.

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

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You can't fight what you refuse to face.

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The book of Ephesians five
tells us everything exposed

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by the light becomes visible.

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And Proverbs 28 says, whoever
conceals their sins does not

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

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What profitable scripture today?

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

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the light can be healed in the light.

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So here's your most important step today.

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

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

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Maybe not your home mortgage for now.

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We'll, we'll set that aside.

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

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Clarity is power.

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You need to know who you owe.

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

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what it's demanding every single month.

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

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at their total debt in five years.

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

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

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every card, every single loan.

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They cried.

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They cried.

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

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

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That's what I want for you today.

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

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

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

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I want you to find every statement.

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

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medical bills, the student loans.

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

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

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Maybe you look online or
just get the paper out.

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Just get them.

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The second step is to create a list.

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

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

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

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

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A column for the minimum monthly payment.

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

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

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into what you just created.

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Be thorough and be brave.

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It might take some, braveness here.

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

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

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smallest to the largest balance.

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

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which we'll talk about soon.

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Now I hear you already.

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You are like Ralph.

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

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

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you've already begun your comeback story.

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

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Let's pray together.

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Father God Debt can feel
like such a heavy burden.

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

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

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today to list out all their debts.

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

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

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

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

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true financial freedom in you.

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And we ask this in Jesus' name.

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Amen.

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Alright, well take a deep breath.

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You've got this.

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I have confidence in you.

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

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So go gather those statements.

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

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what's brought into the light.

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Can be healed in the light.

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

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credit cards while I'm paying off debt?

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

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

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So until then, stay courageous.

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Stay faithful.

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Stay financially confident.

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

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It's at financially
confident christian.com.

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

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financial shame together and becoming
financially confident Christians.

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