Are you tired of feeling crushed by debt?

Does the thought of your credit score fill you with dread?

This week we're cutting through the confusion and join me as we

recap six powerful strategies for attacking debt and mastering credit,

answering your toughest questions with actionable, fuel-filled steps.

Don't miss this crucial episode of Financially Confident Christian.

Your path to financial freedom starts right now.

Hey there.

Welcome back to your special Sunday edition of Financially

Confident Christian.

I'm Ralph and it's great to be with you for another exciting recap episode.

This show helps you answer that question, how can I become a

financially confident Christian?

And over the past six days, we've continued our conversation into

confronting debt and navigating that often confusing world of credit.

These are often areas that bring significant stress to people, but also

they're huge opportunities for freedom when we can approach them wisely.

And today we're gonna go quickly recap each of those six episodes, and then

for each one, I've got some great listener questions that have come in

that really bring these concepts to life.

So grab a warm drink, get comfortable, and let's get into our recap today.

This past week has been packed with strategies for attacking debt and

gaining clarity on your credit decisions.

We started the week with this simple question.

How do I stay motivated when paying off debt feels hopeless?

And in that show, we really focused on keeping your goals visible and celebrating

milestones and really drawing strength from faith and from your community.

I think that was a really good show, and if you missed any of them, I'm gonna

encourage you to go back and listen.

The second thing we got to second in the week, we asked this question,

should I use a balanced transfer or consolidation for high interest debt?

we discussed prayerfully researching these tools to accelerate payoff while

understanding your risk associated with those things by midweek, we

had reached this question, how can I avoid getting back into debt?

We covered developing conscious habits and those boundaries like that wait or

what I call the pause rule and really working to strengthen your emergency fund.

Then we got to Thursday's episode and we asked this very pointed question,

and that was, can I use credit wisely without falling into debt?

That was a question that was really on the mind of a lot of people and

I really emphasized that strict self-discipline and committing to pay

that full statement balance each month.

In fact, that was the commitment that we made.

Are you sticking with your commitment?

I sure hope you are by Friday.

We got to.

What does my credit score actually mean for me?

A lot of people get all hung up on those credit scores.

So we demystified the credit reports we talked about credit

scores and we discussed accessing your free report for awareness.

Again, that was annual credit report.com.

And then on Saturday we got to this big takeaway question, how can I fix

mistakes and improve my credit score?

We talked about disputing errors and focusing on those key habits like.

On time payments and low credit utilization.

It has really been a week of strategic debt attack and

empowering credit knowledge.

And these topics, they bring out significant questions and they,

they talk about real strategies.

And I've got some excellent questions from listeners just like you who

asked questions after the show.

So let's get to our first question related to how do I stay motivated

when debt feels hopeless.

This question came to us from Michael, and Michael wrote this.

He said, Ralph, I've been using the debt snowball and finding

extra money like you said.

I paid off my first small debt and that felt great for a minute, but looking

at the next one, it's much bigger and I'm already feeling discouraged again.

How do I keep celebrating those wins and stay motivated when the

next mountain looks so much higher?

Wow.

Michael, you're absolutely right, and thank you for your

honesty in asking that question.

Because that feeling that you're having right now is incredibly common.

I remember going through this myself when I was going through that debt spiral,

that debt cycle, and I got the first one paid off and I felt, you know, fantastic.

I got this debt paid off and then I looked on my sheet and I was like, oh,

here, this next one, this is a doozy.

So Michael, this feels incredibly common.

A lot of people are dealing with that, and you have to think about it in this

term, like I said, during that show, and I'm gonna repeat it right now.

This is not a sprint, it's a marathon paying off your debts.

You didn't make 'em overnight.

So it is a marathon to get them paid off.

And I just want you to remember this truth.

And this one came to us from the book of Hebrews chapter 12, verses

one and two, and it says this.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let

us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily, entangles.

Let us run with perseverance.

The race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and

the perfecter of faith for the joy set before him, he endured the cross

scorning it's shame and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

And I just thought that was such a powerful verse to talk about today because

what it's really key in on Michael and everyone else listening is it's your why.

It's that why for debt freedom.

Because if you don't understand your why, it is really hard to keep moving.

And that's why I talked about that.

You know, How do I stay motivated when paying off debt feels hopeless?

That was the whole point.

And we talked about the exercise that I'm gonna mention here

in a second during that show.

And that is to really visualize that fully debt-free future.

What does that look like for you?

Not worrying about that debt hanging over your head and that

big mountain in front of you.

I really focused on, developing the why for you because you gotta keep

that why visible in front of you so that you know what you're working for.

The second thing we talked about, it's breaking down that journey into

smaller milestones beyond just that first debt because Michael, it's

great you got past that first one.

That's the whole point of using that method, and maybe you hit that

total amount paid goal that you were looking for with that first one.

But maybe it's time to sort of refocus.

Maybe you wanna set a certain dollar amount goal, maybe, I don't know

how much debt you have, but let's just say you have $10,000 in debt.

Well, maybe you set a goal for, I'm gonna pay the first 2,500 off, or maybe half

or whatever that next specific debt is.

I'm gonna really encourage you to plan small, non-financial celebrations

for these many milestones.

You wanna try to keep that that, that, that, that consistency going.

You wanna keep that momentum building and you got to celebrate that

consistency in what you're doing here.

And when you find extra money.

That's a way to win.

I'm also gonna encourage you, again to share your progress with

an accountability partner, right?

I mentioned this in a show when we talked about who should I share my financial

goals with and help them to celebrate with you and draw strength from their faith.

And then don't forget about praying.

I think it's a great time to just sit there and pray for

renewed motivation each day.

It's tough when you've got this big mountain of dead in front of you.

And you look at it and you're like, man, this is Ralph.

This is just about insurmountable.

How am I gonna ever do this?

And Michael, like I said, you're not alone feeling this way.

But there are tools and there are people that will support you.

So start with a prayer.

Surround yourself with people who can help you and just look at it as a one

day and the next day and the next day.

But keep celebrating that progress, not just completion.

So Michael, I just wanna thank you so much for your question because it

really brought all the things we talked about to light in your question today.

Let's look at our second listener question, and this was

related to that whole topic.

I talked about balanced transfers and consolidations, and this

question comes to us from Emily.

This is what Emily wrote.

She said, You talked about balance transfers and consolidation and

should I use a balance transfer or consolidation for high interest debt?

It sounds tempting to lower interest, But I'm afraid I'll just end up with one

more debt, especially if I transfer a balance, but don't pay it off before that

0% ends.

And then she hit me with the big zinger of questions, and she said this, she

said, How do I know if it's a truly wise step and not a potential trap?

Well, Emily, that fear is absolutely valid, and it's something that a

lot of people have expressed to me, and that's why I approached that

episode with a great deal of caution.

Because as I said in the show, these tools can be very powerful.

But you need to remember, these are not magic fixes.

They're not gonna, you're not gonna sell you a whamo and everything has gone away.

They require significant discipline.

And remember, we tied this into the Book of Proverbs.

I wanna re revisit that right now about discernment and wise counsel.

And that was from Proverbs chapter 11, verse 14.

It says this, where there is no guidance, a people falls.

But in an abundance of counselors, there is safety.

Think about that for a second.

What is it saying there?

Where there is no guidance of people falls, but in an abundance

of counselors, there is safety.

And we also talked about Proverbs, chapter 24, verse six said this, for

by wise guidance you can wage your war.

And in abundance of counselors there is victory.

See the struggle here is seeing that the temptation of those lower

interest rates and that that's great.

You saw a lower interest rate.

Oh look, I can save a lot of money, Ralph by doing that.

That is the first step, but that's not the part you gotta focus on.

You've got to focus then on that, the discipline required and the potential

pitfalls that you might run into.

And that's why I shared in that particular episode, my action step,

and this was the key thing here.

You gotta prayerfully consider your specific situation and your habits.

See, this is where you have to be brutally honest with yourself.

If you're gonna just go and get a consolidation loan or something like

that, and you're just gonna charge things back up again, all you've

done is make the problem bigger.

So ask yourself these type of questions.

You know, Have you consistently stuck to your budget?

Do you have a budget?

Are you sticking to it?

Are you consistently not accumulating new debt?

If you're accumulating new debt?

This is not the answer for you.

And another thing I really want you to consider is do you have a realistic plan?

And don't forget the other side of this and the discipline to pay off the

entire transfer or consolidated amount before any promotional rate expires

like you talked about in your question.

Are you going to get it paid off before that 0% expires?

Unfortunately, I've seen it happen way too many times where people say,

oh, Ralph, I'm gonna go get this consolidation loan and and next thing

you know, it was just an excuse to just push the, the, the meatball as

they say down the road a little bit.

if any of your answers to those questions I just asked you are shaky or maybe.

I gotta be very honest with you, these tools are likely not the right

step for you to take right now.

So if you don't do that, what I'm going to in instead focus on if you're worried

about that 0% or you don't have the discipline, you don't have that budget,

focus on building stronger habits.

That's the one thing you can do right now.

You can build stronger habits, you can build stronger budgeting habits,

you can build stronger tracking habits, and you can avoid debt.

I in the first place.

But if you are disciplined and you have a solid payoff plan for the consolidated

amount, then you can save money.

You can save interest, and that is huge.

That is in fact wise stewardship.

But don't forget about the other side of that.

There's a temptation to rack up debt on the old card or not pay off the new loan.

That temptation is very real, and that's why I encourage you to seek

counsel from trusted financial friends.

You know, Like I talked about in that episode, who should I

share my financial goals with?

Maybe this is a time to go meet with one of those nonprofit

credit counseling services.

So overall, big takeaway here, Emily, is approach these tools with caution.

Understand your habits.

Understand where you are in this process because listen, I don't expect

you to be an expert in this overnight.

This takes time.

But approach it with caution.

Approach it with prayer.

Again, go to God and say, God, here's what I'm thinking about doing.

What do you think I should do?

And then the end of this, the big piece of this, and I mentioned this

in the show that I did that day, you gotta have deep self-awareness.

Are you going to follow through?

Do you have the discipline to do what you are needing to do?

Or are you just gonna just push that down a far a road a little

farther, incur some more debt?

Now you've got, you've got capacity to go charge up more things.

So again, Emily, I just wanna thank you for your question.

It really hit home what I was trying to convey in that episode.

Well, let's move to our third question, and this one was

related to avoiding new debt.

Kind of follows along with what Emily was asking, and this question comes to us from

James, and this is what James wrote to me.

He said, Ralph, I'm really trying to avoid new debt after listening to your,

'How can I avoid getting back into debt' show, but unexpected things happen.

My car needed a repair I didn't save enough for.

How strict do I need to be about not using credit cards when my

emergency fund isn't huge yet?

Now, James, the thing I love about it, first off, thank you for your question and

this is a very common, real life struggle, but what I love about your question.

It tells me that you are getting to the point of discipline because you say this,

you say, when my emergency fund isn't huge, and then you, you end it with this.

Yet that's beautiful because you're recognizing the importance

of that emergency fund.

Now, I know that's not exactly what you asked here, but when you wrote that, man,

I was like, that is a home run there.

Because like I said, James, this is a very common real life struggle

because as I said on the show I play church league softball, for example.

It's, It's slow pitchy.

You have to arc the ball and all that sort of thing.

But I love to hit, I'm not pretty good hitter if I don't say so

myself or 52-year-old, old man.

And I love to hit a curve ball because here's the thing, life throws curve balls

and softball pitchers throw curve balls.

If you are patient and you just wait to swing at the last minute, man,

you can, you can whack a curve ball a long way, but we have to accept

that life throws us curve balls.

And as you alluded to James, it's tough when your e fund isn't fully built yet.

I love the fact that you're working on that, but in your particular situation,

it's clear it's not built yet.

So you're trying to balance this struggle of no new debt versus

unexpected financial challenges.

And that's not easy.

But remember the wisdom that we talked about in that show

about avoiding new debt.

It, It does require intentionality, it requires discipline, and what

I mentioned there that that single solution was to develop conscious

habits and clear boundaries.

But James, you answered your own question.

Because the ultimate defense against needing new debt for emergencies is

that fully funded emergency fund.

So in your particular case, I think the answer is yes, you're

going to have to use credit if you don't have the emergency fund.

One of the things I don't wanna see you do is just completely

wipe out your emergency fund.

So if your emergency fund isn't huge, it highlights the high,

the critical importance of building that emergency fund.

I've talked about that on this show many times.

So as you, as you pay down that debt that you might have to

incur for this unexpected repair, also prioritize strengthening

your emergency fund like crazy.

Maybe you look for every extra dollar you can find to throw in TA Emergency Fund to

help build that shield against new debt.

And see in a true, unavoidable emergency when savings fall short, then you've

got a different decision to make.

So James, here's the second part of my answer to your question.

I think in your case, using a low interest credit card, if you've got

a, and here's the other side of that.

I mean, you gotta get your car fixed, right?

Because I guess you could walk, but if you gotta get your car fixed.

Use a low interest credit card, but have a plan to pay it off as quickly

and as temporarily as possible.

Yes.

It's what I'll call a necessary evil.

It's gotta be your last resort.

Not the first, but do it with extreme discipline.

You know, and we'll talk about that a little bit later when we talk about,

can I use credit wisely without falling into debt and pay it full always.

You know, that's one of the things we're gonna talk about because remember,

the goal isn't just to avoid debt.

That's part of it, but to build that financial resistance to

build that emergency fund.

'cause if you have that, guess what?

It makes new debt unnecessary.

So James, I just wanna thank you so much for your question.

It exactly illustrated the importance the very critical importance

of having that emergency fund.

Because like you said, life throws curve balls.

Let's move on to our fourth question, and this one's related to using credit wisely,

and this question comes to us from Bonnie.

I actually think this is the first time I've ever got a question

from somebody named Bonnie.

But Bonnie, this is what Bonnie wrote.

She said, Ralph, I'm confused.

Can a Christian actually used a credit card without getting into trouble.

Should I just ditch them all to avoid debt altogether?

Like some people say.

now here's the thing, Bonnie, I know exactly where you're going from.

There are people out there who talk about, financial, you know,

counseling and all that stuff, and say, don't ever use credit cards.

I'm not gonna, I'm not gonna name who these people are because

people know who these people are.

And I think that, Bonnie, you've got a great question here.

It's a fantastic question.

It does create a lot of confusion because there's a lot of people

that say, oh, credit cards are evil.

Credit cards are terrible.

Ralph, you should never use credit cards.

It's not that simple.

See, the struggle you're really talking about Bonnie, is discernment,

you know, wise financial practice and maybe having these absolute rules.

See I'm a believer that there are no absolutes.

Now, that probably isn't the right thing to say in terms of, I, I

believe there is absolute right and wrong, but when it comes to this.

The thing I wanna really reinforce, and I tried to really reinforce that

in the episode, and Bonnie, I want you to hear this loud and clear.

Credit is simply a tool.

It's just a tool.

Like any tool I mentioned in the show, you could use a hammer, a carpenter uses

a hammer and builds beautiful things, but you can also use a hammer to break stuff.

So like any tool, it can be used for good or it can be used for Ill.

what we're really talking about here is bad debt.

Bad debt is using that tool to spend money you don't have and paying interest on it.

That's the part we wanna avoid, Bonnie, but if you can use

responsibly, if you can do what I call responsible credit usage, that's

using that tool for your convenience.

The thing that's great about credit cards is they're a great convenience.

They can offer you purchase protection, you can get credit card rewards,

they can build a credit history.

I. Which can be really important if you need to go borrow money

for a mortgage or get a car loan.

But as I mentioned in that show, and I'm gonna reiterate it right

now, spending only money you already have and have budgeted for.

So, Bonnie, if you're asking me the question in a different

way, he didn't say this in your question, but I'm gonna go there.

If you're saying to me, Ralph, listen, I don't have the money to pay for stuff.

I wanna go buy something, but I can't afford to pay for it, then by

all means don't use a credit card.

But if you've got the money to pay for that and you're like, Hey, I just wanna

use this credit card because I get points, I get this, I get that, and you're gonna

pay that full statement balance every single month before the interest accrues,

then I say, yes, go ahead and use it.

And like I said, approach credit usage with a strict

faith fueled self-discipline.

If you can commit to paying that full statement balance every single

month, I mentioned in that show, to pay it automatically and then only

use that card when it's budgeted.

Then yes, by all means, you can use credit wisely.

But if you're one of those people that knows you struggle with overspending, and

let's be honest here, I've been there.

Maybe you're sitting there listening right now.

You're like, right, yeah, I'm right there with you, dude.

I, I'm not very good at this.

If I've got that credit card and I'm at the mall, Shazam, it goes down.

Maybe for you it's time to ditch those credit cards or lock 'em up.

We, We talked about in the show, put 'em in a block of ice and freezing it in a

freezer or burying them in the backyard.

I, I really believe it's good to have a credit card as a fallback.

Now, again, I wanna start with that emergency fund, but you may use a

credit card as a fallback, but ask yourself that really difficult question.

Be honest with yourself.

If you're going to struggle, don't put yourself in jeopardy.

Don't put yourself in that position.

So prioritize avoiding debt first.

And if you, if you've got the money, if you're strict, if you follow discipline,

you pay that bounce off and every month with no interest charges, then hey,

by all means, use that credit card.

So Bonnie, I just wanna thank you again for your question.

It's one I hear all the time because so many people get hung

up on some of these knuckleheads.

They hear, oh, you should never have a credit card.

Okay, that's great.

But then when you go to rent a car, how do you pay for that?

Or when you need to go put a deposit on something or you

wanna buy something online.

So I think they got their heads buried where the sun doesn't shine.

I just think that's a dumb thing to tell people.

But again, I don't disagree with the approach if you can't manage it.

So again, Bonnie, thank you for your question.

Well, let's move on to our fifth question.

This is related to credit scores.

This question came from David.

A lot of people get tied up in credit scores, and I remember when

I worked at the credit union, a lot of people didn't understand that,

but this is what David wrote me.

He said, Ralph, I checked my credit report for the first time after listening

to your show, 'What does my credit score actually mean for me?' And my

score was much lower than I thought.

Yeah, David, I hear you.

Dude.

There's a lot of people say that.

Honestly, he goes on to say it feels a bit defeating.

And then he asked me his question.

He says, How much does this really affect my life and is it worth worrying about?

That is a brilliant and great and brave question, David, because you took the

bravery to go look at that credit report.

A lot of people don't even bother.

Ah, you know, my credit's bad.

I don't even wanna look at it.

Because if they look at it, then they're gonna have to think about,

well, am I gonna do something about it?

Listen, I get it.

That initial feeling of a disappointment or feeling like you've been defeated,

that's a real struggle and it's a common one because it's a score.

It's like when you were in school, and I don't remember, I don't know about

you, but when I got my, my report card, I wanted to look at my report card.

I wanted all straight a's well.

If I got C's, D's, or if I got an F, I was in bigger trouble at home.

But let's just say I got some C's and low B's and C's.

Well, the credit report, the credit score is no different than that.

It's a struggle.

It's that feeling.

But here's the thing you need to understand, David.

I hope I made this point and I'm gonna make it again right now.

This not a fixed reality.

So yes, your credit score is important in today's financial system.

It does impact, it impacts your ability to get loans for a car, your

ability to get loans for a home.

I mentioned in the show when I did that show the other day.

I was trying to get a car loan.

At one point.

I got pulled into the finance guy's office and it was the most

embarrassing time of my life.

He said, Ralph, your credit's not so great.

I don't think we're gonna be able to help you.

So, yes, it impacts your ability to get loans.

It impacts the interest rate you're gonna pay.

So if your credit's not so good, you may still get the loan, but

you're gonna pay a lot more for it.

I've been there and done that as well.

I've had other situations where, again, the, these are all my decisions.

I wasn't ironing my credit.

I went into the finance guy's office and he says, well,

good news and bad news, Ralph.

I got your your car loan approved, but man, the interest rate is sky high.

So you gotta realize lenders are using that because they're

judging your character.

A credit score is a character score.

Again, we're not talking about your Christian character, we're not talking

about your value as it relates to you as a human being, but from a creditor's

perspective, that's what they look at.

You also have to be aware some things like insurance premiums or getting

a rental apartment, all these things can tie into that credit score.

So yes, David, it's important, but remember what I, read to you that day

from the book of Proverbs, chapter 22, verse one, and I think we really need

to focus in on this for just a moment.

It said this, in the Bible it says, A good name is more desirable

than great riches To be esteemed is better than silver or gold.

David, the truth of the matter is, and I don't know how else to, I can't

sugarcoat this and say it any differently.

Your credit score is part of your financial name.

It's part of your financial reputation.

So yes, it's absolutely worth understanding and it's

absolutely worth managing.

Now I talked about what do you do?

Well, like I said in the show, first thing you wanna do is go

get that free credit report.

Again, annual credit report.com is the only one, as I understand it, that

the government actually sanctions that you can get a copy of it once a year.

Start there.

That's the first part of that.

Get the credit report, read it, look at it.

What does it say?

Listen, it's a judgment of the past.

Know that when you go into it, when you're looking at this credit score, you go,

oh, that credit, that's not good, dude.

This is not good at all.

But just recognize that is what was done prior to you pulling that report.

You're not gonna be judged the rest of your days by what's on that

credit report right at that moment.

Now that being said, this gives you an opportunity to build healthier habits.

Now, if you just wanna say, you know what, Ralph?

My credit's terrible.

I'm never gonna have credit.

I give up.

That's not the right answer either.

So there are things that you can do.

I gave you some concrete steps to improve it, so don't let

that initial number defeat you.

Let it be a motivator.

Let it be a motivator for change.

And David, I just wanna thank you so much for your question, and I hear

you, it's tough when you pull that credit and you're like, yeah, man,

that score is not what I expected.

Things my grandfather used to say, and I'm gonna say this right now.

Hey, can only get better from here if you take the time you invest.

Get those debts paid off, get those your credit utilization rates down.

You can do this, David.

I have confidence in you.

Well, let's move to our sixth question, our last question for today, and

that's related to fixing your credit.

What a great uh, transition.

What do you think, David?

And our final question for this show came from Jackie.

Jackie said this.

She said, Ralph, I checked my credit report like you recommended in, 'What

does my credit score actually mean for me?' And I found an old collection

account I didn't even know about.

My score is really low because of it.

How do I even start fixing that And can it really help my credit

score, like you said, or will it just be a waste of my time?

Yeah, Jackie, it is frustrating because again, you're going back to something

that happened before you made a mistake.

You made a a bad decision.

This is probably something you weren't expecting.

But here's the thing I'm gonna say to you, and you're gonna

be surprised when I say this.

Thank God you found it, because now that you see it, you can do something about it.

Now, I'm assuming this is something you are aware of, something that you

did, you maybe had forgotten about it, so then you have an opportunity to pay

it or fix it or whatever it is, but.

Maybe it's not correct, and that's why I talked in that show

about taking intentional steps to dispute the inaccuracies and focus

on the key habits to improve it.

So, Jackie, first thing you wanna do, as I mentioned in the show,

Dispute the accuracy of that.

'cause like I mentioned in the show, if you dispute it and the lender

doesn't get back, and if you're talking about an old collection, to

be very candid with you, a lot of times either the lender doesn't exist

anymore, they just, eh, that's so old.

I'm not gonna worry about it.

So if you dispute it, I'm not, and listen, I'm not, this is not Ralph

saying to you, don't pay your bills.

That's not what I'm saying.

But from a practical standpoint, if you dispute this debt and

the lender doesn't respond.

They're gonna take that off your credit report.

Now you may have to follow up on all three credit bureaus, but to do that will

absolutely you, you asked the question, I wanna get to your answer, Jackie.

It absolutely will help Your credit score.

Your credit score is based on all of these things.

So like I said in the show that day, the first thing, the most crucial first step,

if it's an error dispute that error.

Are you gonna gather your information?

It might just be, it might be, lemme go, where do I find this?

Maybe you say, oh, you know, I thought I paid that.

Go do your homework 'cause maybe you didn't pay it, but then I said go

to the credit bureau's websites and remember the three credit bureaus.

The big ones are Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion.

And again, I wanna mention it again, I'll put it in the show notes today too.

Annual credit report.com and follow their dispute process.

Be diligent and be persistent, but follow their instructions and listen.

These disputes are not gonna be resolved overnight.

If you think it's gonna be, oh, I made a dispute today and tomorrow my

credit score is gonna be perfect again.

No, but there are time limits, so don't, it's not gonna take years.

It's not gonna take months.

It might take a month or two.

While that dispute is happening, focused intensely on what other things

you can do to build that credit score.

Now, I'm gonna take a minute here and just talk about those things.

The biggest thing you can do to improve your credit score is to

be consistent and make all in time payments for all of your bills.

One of the best ways that you can do that is set up automatic payments.

Now, I'm not saying to set up an automatic payment, just pay the minimum.

We'll talk about that again in another time.

Set up to make sure your payments are always made on time.

If that means setting up automatic payments for everything, I

think that's a great idea.

The second thing, the biggest second thing you can do is keep those

credit card balances low because I talked about this in the show and a

lot of people don't get this, that credit utilization ratio is enormous.

Basically they're looking for your credit utilization to be less than 30%.

You might be saying, Ralph, again, I have no idea what you're talking about.

Real simple example.

Let's say you've got a thousand dollars credit card.

That's your credit limit.

If you've got anything more than $300 owed on that credit card, that is

going to affect your credit negatively.

They don't want that to ever be more than 30%.

Now, there's a couple of easy ways to prevent that.

My son, my oldest son does this.

He uses his credit card like a champ.

He pays that credit card every single payday.

He's never gonna pay any interest.

He's never gonna pay it late.

And guess what?

His percentage is never going to be very high.

That's one of the big things you can do, is keep that utilization under 30%.

So make sure all your payments are made on time and keep that utilization low.

Now, a lot of people are gonna, I'm gonna say something now, which a lot

of financial experts are gonna say, Ralph, I can't believe you don't.

Here's one of the things you might wanna consider.

Call them and see if they will increase your credit limit.

Now again, think about what I'm saying to you.

It's not an opportunity.

It's not a, it's not a get outta jail free card.

It's not a time, Hey, Mike, they doubled my credit limit.

Let me go spend, spend, spend.

That's not what I'm saying at all.

But one of the quickest ways to improve your credit score if you've

got that constant utilization ratio.

I remember a client told me about this.

He said, Ralph, I put everything on my credit, my credit card, I get paid once

a month, so at the end of the month I pay off my credit card balance in full, but it

looks like I've got really high balances.

'cause with the timing of it when they report, I said, okay,

here's what I want you to do.

Call your credit card company.

They're gonna love you because they're gonna look at your payment history.

They're gonna look at the fact that you pay it in full every month and ask

them to increase your credit limit.

I remember he called me back and he says, Ralph, you're never gonna believe this.

They tripled my credit limit.

I said, that's fantastic, but remember, discipline.

Don't go charge it up, because now you've got more to spend.

That's the wrong answer.

That's gonna get you in worse trouble, but you can expand your credit limit.

Like I said, best case scenario, pay your bills on time.

Keep that ratio under under 30% and look at these things in the long term.

It's all about long-term financial health, and it's all about reducing that stress.

I'm gonna encourage you, Jackie, and everyone else listening, don't give up.

You can overcome these obstacles.

We started with a question about paying off that first debt and

seeing that mountain before us.

You can do this.

Well, how about we pray together?

Father God, thank you for the wisdom you provide in your word.

We just, we so focused on that today.

And Lord, we just, we want you to help us navigate these complex financial topics.

And we confess Lord, that tackling debt strategies and understanding credit

can bring us struggles, it can bring us confusion and sometimes, Lord, it

can bring us a little bit of overwhelm and fear and depression sometimes.

So, Lord, we just thank you for the clarity that you offer us through

our prayers and through our study.

And I just ask you right now to bless Michael and bless

Emily and James and Bonnie.

And David and Jackie, and everyone else who sent in questions or

who are listening right now.

Help them apply these principles we talked about, Lord, and grant us all discernment

in using financial tools wisely, with discipline, and avoiding new debt.

Lord, as it says in your word, we don't wanna become a slave to the lender.

And Lord, we just ask for your perseverance in building a

strong financial reputation.

Lord, because you said it to us, our name, our character is important.

Help us to trust you completely, Lord, with our finances and with our future.

And we ask this in confidence.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

Wow, what a powerful week of getting into debt strategies and credit from

maintaining motivation and exploring tools for high interest debt to building

that defense against new debt and taking control of your credit reputation.

These steps are all vital for gaining control, and remember overall we're

trying to reduce that financial stress.

So I just wanna thank you again for all the questions that you sent in.

I wasn't able to use all of them, but those were amazing

questions and they really helped us illustrate these important topics.

And I'm just gonna encourage you right now, keep applying these

principles this week, and you can always send in your questions.

For future recap episodes, go to our website@financiallyconfidentchristian.com.

And don't forget, I've got a special gift for you on that journey today.

For the first 100 listeners who go to my website, financially confident

christian.com slash master, I'm gonna give you a free copy of my book.

It's called Mastering Your Finances.

As I've mentioned, it's quick.

It's a powerful read, designed as a starting point to help you

break that cycle of financial shame and step into confidence.

Again, you'll get that by going to financially confident christian.com/master

and get your free copy today.

Now, tomorrow we're gonna shift our focus to the income side of the equation.

We've talked a lot about debt and strategies, but tomorrow we're

gonna talk about the income side.

We're gonna be asking if your income.

It's actually the real source of your stress or are there new opportunities

to explore so you don't wanna miss it.

So make sure you join me then and let's all go out there

and be financially confident.

Christians, you can do this.

I have confidence in you.

Have confidence in yourself.

Stay financially savvy.

God bless you, and you have a great day today.