Check-Up
In Proverbs 27:23-24 it is written "Be diligent to know the state of your flocks, and look well to your herds; For riches and not forever..."
In this era, you likely do not own flocks and herds, when these words were written those creatures were a source of provision and even a form of exchange. The word diligent refers to continuous action, being persevering and careful in your work. What God is teaching us today in these words is to be diligent to know the state of our finances. I want to encourage you to perform your own financial "check-up".
As you know, one of the fundamental elements for your doctor to use in gaging the level and direction of your health is by performing tests to establish your baseline in different areas. Then with future visits, to see how those measurements have changed from the past.
If you are serious about reducing your debt level and want to move ahead, select a point of time (or two) in the past - one month, six months or a year ago. Pull the past statements from your credit cards and all other debts along with checking/savings accounts and record each of them on a sheet showing the total amounts owed for each and add them together.
Now do the same with all your current debts and obligations. Compare the two, with attention especially on the total amount owed of all debts combined. Has the total increased or decreased? Have the number of different debts grown or shrunk? This is a good first test to perform to illuminate the trajectory you currently are on.
Let's add one other aspect to this, pull all of your monthly subscriptions together and record them the same way, showing each of the past subscriptions along with their amounts and the current ones. An important question is... are you sure you have accounted for all of them? Several services and apps have come on the scene promising to find all subscriptions and even cancel the unwanted ones for you. My take-away from this is if there is a "business" in doing so, there must be plenty of subscriptions out there that are not really being used or worthwhile. Even if you don't employ one of these services, look closely over your credit card and bank statements and make certain you know what the charges are for or why amounts are coming out of your bank account.
If your doctor has identified areas to improve your health, they may have suggested you remove or reduce things from your diet, exercise more or address some destructive habit. It is quite similar in our finances:
"Remove or reduce things from your diet" - look what categories or types of things you are overspending on, and decide to rein those in. Even just a partial concession in an area can yield great results when repeated each month.
"Exercise more" - stay with this exercise of tracking how much debt exists in your household, gaining the knowledge of what things you are spending money on each month, as opposed to guessing how much, and also staying on top of subscriptions.
"Address some destructive habit" - this could be something large financially, like always having a new car, medium, like becoming a slave to the latest expensive fashions or gadgets, or even small, like buying a prepared coffee or eating out for lunch every day, because when added up day after day it takes a large bite out of your budget.
Also to be considered in our "personal check-up" is this question... where are we in giving to the Lord and His work? Since we're thinking in a medical-mindset today, let's bring out the "scalpel" here, as the Word of God is described as sharper than any two-edged sword:
For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also (Matthew 6:21)
When we perform our check-up and see the results in black-and-white, if we consider this verse, it will speak to us... literally, as to where our heart has been as we have spent our money. If we reflect and ask ourselves if we've put the Lord first in line after we were paid, if we have been a joyful giver, and if we've sought to be generous, it will go a long ways towards aligning things properly to the One who has given us all things, including His Son Jesus Christ.
Lastly, even if you feel it challenging to make changes with your finances, be encouraged that you can, taking strength from these who stepped out in faith in much greater measure than merely in finances, as recorded in the Word:
"So Peter got out of the boat..." (Matthew 14:29)
"Noah did this, he did all that God commanded him" [building the ark] (Genesis 6:22)
"David ran quickly toward the battle line to meet the Philistine" (1 Samuel 17:48)
I encourage you to run quickly toward the battle line in your finances, follow God's direction and He will respond for you.
God Bless you and may He show Himself greatly to you,
Paul
