Maybe this is really obvious to other people, but apparently its not really helpful to go to a big stewardship conference when you are about $100,000 in debt. (at least it not if your me….)
There I’ve gone and said it. My family and I are over $100,000 in debt, and the end seems nowhere is sight. We live paycheck to paycheck, my husband works three part time jobs, I work one fulltime job. I try to tutor (although I’ve let that fizzle recently). We rent out our extra car, and we have wonderful people who we pay (not very much) to help us to take care of our 3 boy-boys. We try to stay off the credit cards, but when bills come they come. And maybe we could have put off having children, but every time we’ve had a child someone has been home (first two were during our summers at grad school and the third was when my husband was looking for a job by my new church) so we know we are saving a TON on childcare. We are done with that (we think) and I guess we could have not had kids, but honestly that so does not work for us. So we can’t really see what else to do……
Here is the part that gets me…We’re not alone. Most people my age are struggling with debt. I’m lucky that I have a job with benefits (which frankly is why we have 3 kids) but really, we aren’t really “making it” so to speak.
So when I went to the kaleidoscope stewardship conference, I really wanted to hear about the United States’ problem with debt, in the context that we pray and promise the forgiveness of debt. I wanted intellectual conversation, theological discussion. I probably would have settled for the fact if someone (besides me and my big mouth) had raised the issue…
What the conference was: A great bag of tricks and tools, and a new set of language to think about stewardship–a training for stewardship teams or world-weary pastors, a way to address money in (primarily) big churches or churches with undergivers.
A nice way to think about these situations are like this (your planting the seeds of stewardship)
What it discussed: Healthy financial practices–including giving, personal relationships, thankyous, ongoing stewardship (instead of a once a year thing), and some reflection about where people do put their money and why it isn’t church (instead). For thoughts about wealth and how it effects judgement read this fascinating article..
What it didn’t include:
ways to leverage Time and Talent as well as money, (much) theological discuss, what to do if you were in financial distress (or are already in debt), and the fact that we are moving on from institutional religion to something else in Christianity….
The story was pay your debts and then you can get on with your life…..apparently I will never be able to get on in my life.
I guess I pictured the conference to be more about this…
and less about this
If your interested in my theology of debt read my brilliant post about Ruth here!
But here is the long and short of it.
American’s Don’t God to Church (this report notes that “overwhelmingly, they think that religious organizations are too concerned with money and power, too focused on rules and too involved in politics.”)…ok so again an indication our “stewardship” approach should probably be more about sharing what we’ve got rather than raising money for the instituion….
All Americans have to deal with debt (sequester anyone??), ESPECIALLY those Millennial/Nones we (us religious people) are so desperate to connect with….
We pray for, Christ promises and we attest to the forgiveness of debts.
Anyone else notice that Christianity is dropping the ball here?
I vote we find a way to REALLY address debts and the feeling of worthlessness it induces (again read my Ruth post for more on this)
And since I’m one of those in deep debt. I pray we do it soon!
Graph from the fascinating article linked above
katyandtheword 
My wife and I were in debt once, never at the $100K level, but nonetheless we were in debt. The job I had was in sales and it was feast or famine. That’s how we ran up the credit cards However, I can tell you that now that we are on the other side of the situation, God was faithful throughout. We should have lost our home. but didn’t. We could have gone hungry but didn’t. I can remember times going to my mail box and finding envelopes with money stuffed in it. Or someone showing up with bags of groceries who had no idea that we didn’t have enough for food. I hope and pray that you too will soon be on the other side of the situation where you have a surplus instead of debt and that you both find, as we have, phenomenal jobs. However, even though we have great jobs, we remember that it is the Lord and not our jobs that provides for us.