Do you watch mountains of interest hover over you like a large vulture while the principle on your credit card grows?
Do you sometimes wish you never heard of credit cards?
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The rich rules over the poor,
And the borrower becomes the lender’s slave.
For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.
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In my 40s, though past college years, I lived in a student apartment building. Times had changed. Getting credit wasn’t easy, especially since I never used it. But this nation considers no credit as atrocious as the consequences (bankruptcy, etc.) that credit causes. The government runs on debt and look at the hole that waits to bury it. China may own us. Businesses don’t hire people without credit, for example.
The companies pursue one segment of society—college students. Credit card offers poured in to my mailbox daily. The companies target students while young, and they own them for life. I ignored those enticing plastic rectangles for years, but eventually chose one that I vowed to pay off each month.
After the company sent that card, I paid it off for four or five months. Soon a legitimate need (or so I thought) lured me to borrow beyond my ability to pay in a month. Once again, I promised myself to pay more each month until I caught up. The total grew. I realized the pit I now inhabited when the itemized bill included one hundred dollars on the debt and six hundred dollars on compound interest.
I thought, “these people are thieves.” At that moment, I vowed to use whatever means necessary to divest myself of this card. I talked to lawyers and credit counselors and settled on the only choice open to me. The bill is a memory.
“For all sad words of tongue and pen, the saddest are these. ‘It might have been.’” John Greenleaf Whittier.
Young man or woman, save when it’s difficult. Start in college or on your first job. Use any means to lower your costs, even if unnecessary. Learn about coupons and sales. Buy used. And religiously avoid debt.
Surely a demon whispered, “get just one card.” Sometimes I hear him laughing.
Dear Lord, thank you for your lessons, though I don't like them. I believe I'll never use debt again.