Why I Decided to [re]become Debt Free

How/why I got into debt

I was born and raised in Cameroon, a country in Central Africa. Being the first born of a string of six kids, I always felt the responsibility to care for my brothers and sisters by the giving them a chance  at a better life.
Such an assignment required that I worked hard, depriving myself of many 'luxuries'. Long story short, by the time I was ready to make my second sister come from Cameroon I had put aside enough money to pay for an entire year of tuition plus her plane ticket. However when the time to pay for her school came, I decided to put the money on a credit card for I knew I could reimburse later. And that's how I accumulated my
first big debt, closed to $9,000.00 (nine thousand dollars) on my visa card. Meanwhile to sponsor some trips, I used another credit card to rack up miles. In the pursuit of mileage, the card averaged nearly $4000.00 (four thousand dollars) of debt on AMEX. I also needed to purchase a vehicle and I did what the common American does. I financed the vehicle. And three years down the line I still owed over $8,0000.00 (eight thousands dollars) on it. In total, I had accumulated nearly $21,000.00 (twenty one thousands dollars) in debt in three years. This total doesn't include Best Buy and Kohl's department store's credit cards for I never carried a balance on these cards. However, I would like to mention them just to outline a certain pattern that has started to take shape in my financial life.

How I decided to gazelle intense against my debt
Before I get into how I decided to get rid of my debt with the fury of an angry god, I would like to disclose that I have never paid late or skipped a payment nor have I only paid the minimum. My payments have always been more than the minimum and on time. What got me ticked off was a response from God when we (as a family) were praying about the ministry and other things including finances. God spoke to me and said: "The ministry financial health will be the reflection of your household's finances". It resonated with me, for it meant as prosperous as our personal finances will be, so will be the ministry's. Therefore, if we were negligent or bad steward of the money that God has given us, the same will be reflected in the ministry. Given that we didn't believe in a ministry racking up debt to do the work of God, it was imperative to reflect the same ideology in our finances by getting rid (as soon as possible) of our debt.


Cutting Expenses
We, as a family, decided to cut our expenses. No more eating out, if any, once in 2 months (barely), no more movies, no more (fun) travelling.  Then later, we found out it was necessary to budget and give a name to every dollars. The daunting task was to figuring out how much was spent on food, clothing, utilities (this one was easy) and entertainment. Once that was done, we knew how much to allocate for food per month and stick to that amount, meaning we wouldn't go on a spending spree just because we wanted something, although there were still food at home.

When we got our tax return, it did not serve to buy another toy nor did it serve to satisfy our next impulse but we took the bulk of it and 'invest' in our debt reduction goal. 11 months later I'm proud of to announce that we've paid off our debts!!


Challenges & Temptations
The main challenge was to keep consistency and to raise above our impulses. I remember one instance where I went to a department store with a friend who needed to buy some stuffs for her son. While in the store I saw a very cute dress, $15.00 only but it wasn't part of the budget so I close my eyes on it and told myself, there will be many other dresses on sale in the future.
To keep myself motivated, I read many times a day, testimonies of people who had gotten off debt and in the process became a fan of Dave Ramsey. I read and listened to everything I could related to his baby steps and how to be a winner financially. Visualizing the goal I wanted to achieve kept me going.

Apart from the Lord talking to me, during some introspection I also realized that so many times we, as Christians, pass up many opportunities to do good things just because we're limited in our finances. We want to offer a thoughtful gift but it's quite expensive so we refrain from it. We want to go visit a brother/sister who lives 45 min away but we think about the price of gas. A family member asks you for financial help, you're willing but you're stuck because you have borrowed your life away.The list is exhaustive.

The main temptation we faced, more so I than we for I am the financial analyst/strategist of our household, was to refrain from tithing while getting out of debt. The amount we give in tithes could accelerate the payoff by at least four months. But I have been listening the likes of David Oyedepo and Bill Johnson who once said that our tithes is like paying our rent to God, for using His air to breath, for enjoying the good health He's given us. Above all, it's a covenant relationship with our Creator. It's an act of love, gratitude and faith towards Him. I really got challenged by Bishop Oyedepo who said (in the video series link above) that since he had received the revelation on tithing, he has never skipped his tithes even once, and God's records can confirm that. I stuck to my guns and continue to tithe, believing the Lord that all shall be well.

I cut off and closed all the department stores cards and the AMEX. I left open the visa account, then during a casual conversation with a man of God, He said something that had struck the cord with me for I had heard it from the Lord Himself. He said: I really don't like credit cards, if a situation gets tough and requires resources beyond my means, then it's an opportunity to trust God and see what He does.

Often our credit cards become our gods, we trust them in case of an emergency, we sing the God of miracles every single days in our church but we live an atheist life. It's time to change, I decided to change.

A godly decision is never an easy decision and as I often say, it takes God to do a godly thing. We got smart with our money, lived below our means or within our means at best. Trusted God when "impossible" situations arise, and jumped on every good works He has prepared beforehand so we may do them.The ball is always in our court, never in God's.

My Christian Friend Slept With My Husband

When you've been hurt and pained by the very people you've allowed in your inner circle, how do you forgive? How sure are you that you have truly forgiven?
This book, My Christian Friend Slept With My Husband, narrates the story of two women whose relationship has burgeoned as classmates, evolved into ministry co-workers, prayer partners, friends, roommates and sisters to reach the ultimate betrayal. The title says it all.
The story is related in a narrative and personal way engaging the reader in this journey depicting various levels of emotions. The good the bad the ugly, everything is exposed. From emails, chat, live and phone conversations to the fall and the ultimate redemption, described in a very vivid way.
If you're a christian, how do you read "14 For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins." ?

Is it slightly possible that your salvation may rest in your hands if ever you're in a situation requiring forgiveness to your offender? For if the Father doesn't forgive you, how much chance do you think you have to make to heaven?

The book is solely sold on Amazon, in paperback and kindle version.

My-Christian-Friend-Slept-With-My-Husband

My Church: Present During My Dowry, Absent During My Mourning

     A couple of months ago, I made an emergency trip back to Cameroon to bury my dad. All went very well, then I discovered a reason why most Africans are poor and more so Christian Africans. I noticed, on hundreds of hundreds of people who were present and who supported my family and I during that dreadful period, none of them came from the Pentecostal church I used to attend while back home, except for one sister who by the way isn't with that church anymore. (I'll come back to her later).
I was flabbergasted. Besides the obvious absence there was no phone call, no email, no Facebook (FB) notifications...my jaw dropped. What is more amazing is that, two years ago when I went to Cameroon for my dowry, church folks that I didn't even expect turn up.  Some waited quite some time to see me. The dowry is a big deal in my country, the bride doesn't show up her face until her husband can correctly point her among many other covered 'fake' brides.
For the dowry, I had alerted maybe a couple of souls at best of my coming. Whereas for the funeral, I sent out text and FB messages to many.
My point is, the dowry meant party time and who says party means food and drinks.
But when it comes to funeral,our demeanor as Africans is different. We show more solidarity and support of one another. We're even willing to kiss the chicks of a formolized, dead corpse in the name of "reconciliation", believe me I've seen this. We cook meals for, or clean the house of, and give our monetary contribution to the bereaved family.

   
All the above are acts of "giveness" if I may say (excuse my neologism) which apparently the Pentecostal church (at least in Cameroon) has yet to master. It's as if the church or that church has ignored one of the fundamental Kingdom's principles for wealth: generosity, as it is said "[Prov 11:24] One person is generous and yet grows more wealthy, but another withholds more than he should and comes to poverty." Bill Johnson once said "When you have a little, sacrifice is easy, generosity is hard. When you have a lot, generosity is easy, sacrifice is hard."  The only way to become a generous person is by giving your money, your time, your materials, your talents and so on.

The second principle is by practicing faithful and trustworthy stewardship, as the Lord declared,"And if you haven’t been trustworthy with someone else’s property, who will give you your own?" [Luke16:12]
As sons and daughters of the Most High, everything we have belong to Him, we are just steward and must carefully manage the riches He has entrusted us with diligence and not crookedness.

As my mentor, Dr. Mike Murdock often says there are the Person of Jesus and the Principles of Jesus. The Person of Jesus brings peace, salvation and grace. The principles of Jesus are about managing our life down here on Earth. This explains why there are so many zealous, tongues speaking, God loving people in the church that, although saved, are lacking the basics or in bad health.

The absence of my Church doesn't imply the absence of my people altogether. I'm thankful for the sister who came from another town to show her support, I thank my classmates who showed up at the wake and the burial, I thank my spiritual children who were there from day one, who also helped with my errands, for their love, time and support, I thank my many friends and family here and overseas who brought financial support, I appreciate those who didn't have but took time to call and express their condolences. May The Lord richly bless you in return.

I feel like concluding with "Greet one another with a holy kiss"  but this is a serious matter. The choice is ours, in fact there is no choice, it's a matter of embracing both the Person of Jesus and The Principles of Jesus. With this, I hope and pray to see a more generous, prosperous and victorious Church!

Amen!

Tresorly Yours
Tresor 

I Fell Yesterday --- Not In Love But On The Floor

It happened in a flick of a second, I found myself on the floor of the living room with blood coming out of mouth. I had slipped and fell. My first thoughts were, God don't let me be disfigured by this, please no handicap! My face had met with the couch's arm in a violent kiss. My second thoughts were "where was my guardian angel when all this happened? Isn't he supposed to protect me?"

As my husband and I rushed to the emergency room, I realized that tomorrow is not guaranteed to anyone regardless of our social status: rich, poor, celebrity or unknown, educated or uneducated. And I'm always amazed at how some people live their life as if they will not have to account to God. Quite frankly, it doesn't matter whether you believe in Him on or not. Like someone said, after death nobody will be an Atheist.

And for us Christians this consciousness should be at the forefront of our thoughts. Are we where supposed to be? Doing what we're supposed to do? Surrounded by the right people? Would the Master find us ready were he to show up at any time of the day? Will He find us busy on our assigned task?

We must live our life as we will die tomorrow but plan as if we will never die, says H.Wafo in his book "The 12 Secrets of the Kingdom" I got reminded again of this truth while working on a project that required reading the book. He goes to say that  it is very important to "Understand who we are (our identity) and where we are going (our destiny)" and before we were created God had prepared good works for us to walk in them (Straight from the Bible).

What kind of good works are you supposed to do? If you know them, are you doing them?

My biggest fear is to leave this earth without fulfilling my destiny. Every morning when I wake up, I thank God for one more opportunity, one more chance to find me worthy to shine His light and I burst in worship.

I did so this morning again. I'm grateful I'm alright, just a glued slit on my chin and some wounds in the mouth. I can still think, I can still reason, I can still write and I'm fiercely pursuing my destiny. I hope you're doing the same.

Tresorly Yours,
Tresor.

New Blog!!!

Hi y'all!!
I had to create another blog cause I didn't renew my domain on time. Oh Well! This gives me an opportunity to streamline my blog and create a niche. In the past I had written about anything and everything. This new blog however, will concentrate on various topics with a Bible flavor added to it.

Tresorly Yours,
Tresor.