Ellie Kay is a financial expert, author of 14 books and mother of seven children. She has walked the financial talk and joins us to discuss practical steps to financial freedom.
The major practical step to financial freedom is getting rid of debt.
“The Bible tells us to owe no man except love. So, when we have financial freedom, that means we’re owing no man.”
Not having debt allows us the financial freedom to reach out and help neighbors in need. Financial freedom in a marriage leads to less arguments about money.
“That’s what freedom is all about–being obedient to biblical acts of stewardship so that in turn God can honor that and use you to be a blessing to other people.”
Ellie challenges people to consider if God is calling them to radical generosity. It can be tricky to know when we are hearing God’s voice prompting us to an act of generosity or when other people are just trying to make us feel guilty. If we want to know the difference, we have to be in close communication with God and know his heart.
This is something Ellie knows from experience. In the early years of her marriage she, her husband and her two daughters by marriage struggled significantly because of credit card debt. She gave the situation to the Lord, turned her financial expertise inward to her family and within two-and-a-half years they were free from consumer debt.
She learned many things from her experiences, lessons that have spawned many of her books.
One key thing she learned was that she and her husband were different. She was a saver and he was a spender. Although it might be tempting to just demand that her husband become a saver too, Ellie had to learn to compromise.
“He had to modify his behavior, but then I had to modify mine too. I mean, I wouldn’t let us go to McDonald’s unless it was 99 cent Happy Meal Tuesdays”
