Government Debt: 15.3 Trillion

Private Debt:  41.3 Trillion

Total Debt:  56.6 Trillion

Credit Card Debt:  793 Billion

Student Loan Debt:  Will surpass 1 Trillion this year!

We borrow 48 cents of every dollar that the Government spends.  

I find it very ironic that In God We Trust is found on the back of money. Is that really the case in this country? There is nothing that exemplifies who we trust in this country more than the exploding debt problem. Credit is nothing more than currency that we use in place of money.      

Politicians use it to fulfill the need for power.   There is power in being an elected politician.   Money can buy a lot of votes which can, in turn, create a lot of power. Individuals can look towards credit and debt to instantly fulfill all types of needs. Credit is the only currency that creates immediate gratification at the moment of a swipe of a card or the writing of a signature.

What is worse, the politicians not only encourage the use of credit they also make it easy to get. Do you think that it is going to get any better? You can look at the signs all over the place. The politicians are lending out money so fast in the form of student loans that almost 10% of all outstanding student loan debt was issued only LAST YEAR. Politicians are borrowing .48 of every dollar spent. The will and desire to curb that spending is nothing more than a joke.

Those numbers above illustrate what happens when we don’t heed the warning issued in Matthew 6:24.   Unfortunately, there is an ugly end game because debt cannot grow to infinity. The imbalance ultimately has to return to a balance. I look at what is happening in Greece today. They have been given a second round of bailout money with no conceivable way of living up to the restrictive conditions that go along with this bailout.

Think about the irony that God does not lead our currency. God is found on the back.   On the front of every currency denomination is a President with the exception of the $10,000 bill (Salmon Chase – a politician). Then there is the nickname for money - "the almighty dollar".

Christ said it very simply in Matthew 6:24. Money is God’s chief competition. It is the one thing that will vie for top priority. Ironically, the verse of the day (as I was writing this) on www.biblegateway.com was:

“Don't run up debts, except for the huge debt of love you owe each other. When you love others, you complete what the law has been after all along. The law code—don't sleep with another person's spouse, don't take someone's life, don't take what isn't yours, don't always be wanting what you don't have, and any other "don't" you can think of—finally adds up to this: Love other people as well as you do yourself. You can't go wrong when you love others. When you add up everything in the law code, the sum total is love.”

Romans 13:9-10 MSG

Just imagine how different this country would be if that were the track we followed?

I typically write about all of the smoke and mirror benefits that credit card companies advertize. I write about the consumer traps that exist with these marketing programs. I never get to write anything good about credit card companies…..until now.

Yes, believe it or not, credit card companies are bolstering up their reward cards and making them a much better deal for the consumer. However, there is a motivating factor behind this move. Banks are just not making as much money every time you swipe the debit card. As a result, they would prefer that you swipe the credit card instead (where they make higher fees)

The politicians changed the game for the banks by reducing the amount of money that they can make every time you swipe the debit card and pay for something. However, they didn’t change the swipe fee for credit cards and also left pre-paid cards out of the mix. This is why you are seeing the emphasis put on pre-paid cards. This is where the money is.

So, double check and make sure that you are getting the best deal on your rewards program. Here are some of the nice advantages of the better cards:

• No membership fees
• Up to 2% cash back
• Sign up bonus points
• No expiration period for reward points

To get a look at some of the best cards, check out the bankrate.com study.

The latest debt numbers have some interesting tidbits of information about consumer debt. The information from this article originally appeared in an article (link) at minyanville.com http://www.minyanville.com/businessmarkets/articles/consumer-credit-december-consumer-credit-us/2/9/2012/id/39304

First the good news:

“Revolving credit balances (principally credit cards) rose $19.6 billion for the month (almost 60% of the total).  As noted late last year, credit card usage was up significantly this Christmas versus 2010.”

That is good news? It sounds like bad news, right? Well it would be bad news except…..

“But I’d note that based on the weekly data from the Federal Reserve, the entire balance growth from December 2011 has already repaid by January 25. So while consumers used their cards more, it looks to me like they were quick to pay it back.”

That is highly unusual. The day we start fixing the debt problem is the day that the consumer starts to hate debt so much that they are paying it off. –Good News

Now for the bad news…

“For December 2011, $8.8 billion of the $33.1 billion total increase in consumer credit (27%) came from student loan borrowing; and for the year student lending overall was up more than 34% from December 2010.”

Last year student loan debt increased by over 100 billion dollars. This year we are going to eclipse 1 trillion dollars. Yes, you are looking at the next major debt bubble right before your eyes. This can’t end in a good way.

General rule on student loan debt – don’t borrow it just because you can and don’t borrow it because you think you are suppose to go to college for the sake of going to college. The bottom line is that you need a good game plan and a reason to go to college more so than to live the college experience. It is an expensive experience.

Well, this is the toughest part of any relationship. There is nothing that I can write that will make the problem go away (if there is one). Let’s face it – most couples have spent a lifetime of practicing bad communication. It takes a long time to unlearn bad habits. However, if you can improve some aspects of communication, then you can start that process.

So, consider the following tips as places to start.

(1)  When communicating, leave your ego at the door – this isn’t about ‘I’ it is about ‘we’.

(2)  This is an old Stephen Covey principle - Seek to understand then to be understood – listening is the first key to understanding.

(3)  Realize that both of you have strong feelings about money – Money is written about more than any other subject in the Bible. It is also the one thing that people know very little about and emotionally have a tough timeMoney matters (where they relate to your relationship) are about knowing each other’s values and most importantly being willing to compromise.

(4)  Make sure the right person is taking care of the day to day finances. Most problems start as a result of the wrong person taking care of the daily expenditures. The reality is that not everyone is geared to take care of the details.

(5)  Make sure that your spouse is informed about the finances and doesn’t have to figure it out in a time of crisis.

(6)  Money can either build or destroy trust in a relationship. Trust is a precious thing. When you think of your decisions about money affecting the trust of your partner, it shines a completely different light on the actions that you take.

(7)  Don’t let money problems remain a secret – the longer they stay a secret the worse they become – secrets have a way of revealing themselves.

(8)  Show each other some grace – money is one of the most difficult aspects of life to deal with – we all make mistakes and this isn’t the opportunity to make your spouse feel stupid for a mistake that was made. After all, God shows us Grace all of the time and we really never deserve it.

(9)  Money was never meant to be used as a means of control. If you are using it as a means of control, really think about what all of that means.

(10)  Pray constantly and never start a communication about money without inviting God to the conversation. It is tough to argue when God is sitting between the both of you.

Mr. Obama has an interesting approach to creating growth.

A quote from his budget proposal:

“He said his proposals would ‘invest in the things that will help grow our economy right now. We can’t cut back on those things that are important for us to grow. We can’t just cut our way into growth. We can cut back on the things that we don’t need, but we also have to make sure everyone is paying their fair share for the things that we do need.’”

Said another way:

(1)  ‘Spending’ is not as politically correct as ‘investing’ – Investing is the new word for Spending. So, if I really want that big screen television, I guess it is an investment versus spending.

(2)  Cutting spending doesn’t create growth? – No, cutting spending creates growth which increases your bottom line. You know….like Growth.

(3)  We are going to kill growth by making those who are growing the economy pay the taxes for the 50% of Americans who don’t pay taxes.

(4)  Imagine if the politicians actually cut back on “the things that we don’t need?” That would probably be a lot of growth.

You have to love “politically-correct” math.